FA LA LA LA LA and all that stuff!

Just a little tour of CHRISTMAS at my house. 

Uh Mom, what's in the stockings?  Bones, bones? maybe bones? Huh? Can I have it now? Drool drool pant pant.  Bones??

Uh, you disturbed my nap to take a picture of this?

I even got all my homemade gifts ready for giving - yea!

Enjoy!!!

Giveaway - Yeaaaaaaaaaaa!

I promised you a GIVEAWAY for my one year anniversary and over 100 followers, so here it is!  Well sorta here it is.  I don't have a picture because I want to personalize it for you in whatever color you like.  The prize?  A small wool box made from scratch, appliqued and beaded to within an inch of it's life! 

To enter the giveaway just leave a COMMENT on this post any time BEFORE midnight Eastern on Friday, December 4th.  I'll use the random generator to draw a winner on Saturday, December 5th.  Oh and if you are a follower, please leave a SECOND COMMENT letting me know and you'll get an extra chance to win.

A Little Ho, Ho, Ho!

And so the holiday season begins.  I finally finished my beaded pewter Santas for a little ornament swap.  I don't think these Santas tummies will jiggle like a bowl full of jello but it's the thought that counts LOL 

And on a second note...I've finally passed 100 followers and am coming up on my one year blog anniversary.  I'll be posting a giveaway later this week.  Stay tuned.

Mr. Poley and the Boxes

Finally I finished my creations from the Julie Haymaker workshop that we had here a few weeks ago.  Yea!!!!!!!!!!!!  The first is When You Come To The Edge.  Because I always have to be 'out of the box', and because I called it Take The Leap, my gal is sitting on a little swing I made rather than in the shadowbox itself.  The second is the box that we made in class when we learned how to 'rust'.  The third is Roley Poley and I just love this necklace.  Again, mine is a little out of the box and I used some found pieces that I had in some places on Mr. Poley - but I don't think he minds.

Enjoy!  And do take a class with Julie if you ever get the chance.  It's so much fun!

Humane vs. Human???

On November 30th last year I started this blog with a story that you can find  HERE.  I’ve spoken with R. over this past year several times as he kept me up to date on what was going on with his family. To bring my readers up to date – he has found a few odd jobs over the last year but basically his family is in the same situation they were in at this time last year. Living in a very rural area with few or no jobs available, a bumpity old van that only works some of the time, and still without a well so having to haul water from the aunt’s house every day for the basic necessities. While the Washington, DC pundits may expound on the fact that the recession ended in late summer 2009, the thousands of people who are still struggling to exist just can’t see it – and neither can I.


Last week I got a call from R. asking if there was any way I could help again this year so that his kids would have some kind of Christmas. He told me that the week before he had been in the same spot with his Will Work For Food sign and a couple had pulled up to talk and pray with him. As they were standing there, a large pickup truck came by at a pretty high rate of speed and slowed down just long enough for someone to throw something out of the window at R. It was a full can of beer which came at him very quickly and hard; hit him square in one knee, sending him to the ground. The couple called 911 and he was taken to the local hospital where it was determined that a good bit of cartilage in that knee was torn. Of course the truck was going so fast that no one was able to get a license tag number. So now, in addition to the fact that any odd job he might find is probably going to involve manual labor, he won’t be able to stand or bend, etc. to do that job for awhile until the knee heals.



The first paragraph in my first blog entry went something like this: OK, I know what you’re thinking – oh just another panhandler – some of them are out there at the same spot every day. Give them any money and they’ll just buy booze with it. I have to admit that would normally be my first thought too.


Shame on me for having those kinds of thoughts. And shame on the supposed human-being who threw that can of beer out the window because I’m sure that was their thought too. What kind of legacy are we leaving for our children and grandchildren if we judge a person before we know their whole story? What has happened to being humane? Questions that as we begin this holiday season shouldn’t even have to be asked.



If you want to help R. provide Christmas for his three kids this year, please contact me. 

And thank you dear readers for sticking by me during this first year of blogging.  I'm almost to the one year point and almost to 100 followers - a giveaway is coming soon.  Blessings to all of you.

Judy, Judy, Judy – Oh Wait, That’s Julie, Julie, Julie

Oh my gosh! If you ever have a chance to take a class from Julie Haymaker Thompson – you HAVE to do it! Julie is the most fun, giving, funny, spirited person I’ve ever met. She is totally supportive in class and breaks each step down so that everyone can accomplish leaving class with a finished creation. Be sure to visit her online store here Julie's Shop . All of the supplies you need and kits to make her creations are available.

Julie and Jill

On Thursday evening I picked up Julie and sweet Jan who came from Kansas City, at the airport. On Friday morning we drove to Stone Mountain to the Country Living Festival. Earth Angels was the first tent we hit and they had some fantastic creations. I was so busy looking at all of the booths that I forgot (as usual) to take many pictures. We walked into a huge open field with food tents at one end, Earth Angels in the middle, and some product tents (like Monsanto) on the right. From there we wandered on paths through the woods where all of the other tents were set up. It was a wonderful sunny fall day – breezy yet warm – perfect festival weather! I could have shopped till I dropped but contained myself and found a wonderful little prim bird as well as a great tatted piece of lace in the Earth Angels tent.

On Saturday we learned how to make When You Come To The Edge . It was so much fun – I think everyone finished except me – when you’re hosting a class there are some things that have to be done other than class. But mine is mostly done except for putting it all together so when it’s finished, I’ll post a picture. And of course me, being an “out of the box rebel”, I had to do something just a little different LOL

On Sunday it was on to Roley Poley and I was able to finish mine and wore it to work yesterday. Each person’s necklace turned out a little different – Ashley put a wee tiny monocle on her creation and it was so cute! Once again, the classes were so much fun that I mostly forgot to take pictures, but here are a few for you to enjoy.

DRY EPOXY DRY!

HMMM ...WHAT TO PUT ON NEXT

NOW GIRLS, THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT TO DO

WHERE DID THAT BEAD GO???

OH, I THINK I NEED MORE CHOCOLATE!

Monday morning it was off to the airport – I really wish that Julie and Jan could have stayed all week! That would have been so much more fun than going back to work LOL

My friend, Beverly, who took both classes, brought her wonderful bracelets for show and sale.  I was so lucky that she gifted me with one.  They are beautiful and very comfortable to wear. 

She doesn’t have an Etsy shop – yet.  But if you are interested, just contact me through my email and I’ll be glad to have her contact you.

Happy, Happy, Happy Days!

Sweet Mya from Elbows On My Window Sill gave me a Happy award and I'm supposed to list ten things I like.  Like Mya said, it's hard to only list ten but here goes (and these are in no particular order):

Having that spark of creativity which feeds my soul

Beautiful music of almost any kind

Spring or Autumn days - breezy but warm

Cooking a really great meal and sharing it with friends

Laying down for a nap with one of my dogs snuggling up to me

Reading, reading, reading

"Shopping" in my house when re-doing a room - somehow that makes it seems

fresh and new even when it isn't

The smell of laundry that's been dried on a line outside

Reading blogs and finding a kindred spirit

Teaching someone something new and seeing the

"Oh I CAN do this" in their eyes

Thanks Mya - you made my day!

I'm getting my home and studio ready for two classes this weekend taught by the wonderful Julie Haymaker - only one more day and counting until she will arrive.  We are going to the Country Living Festival at Stone Mountain, GA on Friday and I can't wait for that too - maybe we'll find some treasures we just can't resist.  I'll be posting pictures of both events next week so stay tuned.  Y'all have a wonderful week!