Stellar Creations

Off to Vegas!!!

2010-10-07T06:04:00.002-04:00

I can't remember when was the last time I've been up at 5:30 am voluntarily.. lol. But I'm up and just took my first sip of coffee and I'm so excited to head to Vegas today. I do realize I could never live there, I would certainly be broke. Sometimes I think that if I lived there I'd get bored with it but I don't think so. To me it's my own Disneyland. I don't care for the blackjack or big gaming tables.. I just like to sit at the slots and spin the wheel. We are planning to take in a show or two, but the rest of the time you will find me firmly planted in a chair in front of a slot. The only thing that bugs me about Vegas now is that they changed their slot machines payout system.. I use to LOVE walking around with my big ole bucket of quarters and I would hear the sound of the machines spitting out coins for days after I left.. but now it just spits out a ticket. How boring is that?! I just don't feel the rush without the sound of the coins hitting the tray.. but alas.. that's where I'll be.. waiting for the magic ticket...lol. Have a great week my friends!

Love ya all,

and we have a WINNER! WOOHOO

2010-10-02T16:09:00.002-04:00

First I want to say sorry for the delay, I know I was suppose to post this yesterday but I couldn't get my computer to cooperate. Anywho.. I had my grandson draw a name out of a basket and the name he choose to win my giveaway was................

wait for it..............

wait............

one more time................

LUCY from The Farmer's Attic WOOHOO!! Congrats Lucy! Send me an email at Stellarcreations4ewe@yahoo.com with your mailing addy and I will send it out on Monday!

I also just reached 100 followers so I am going to be hosting another giveaway in a few days.. check back!

I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the weekend, I'm off to do a little bloghopping and then enjoy the weekend myself!

Big Hugs,

Reminder of my Giveaway and update on my daughter

2010-09-28T12:58:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to remind everyone of my giveaway that will end on Friday! Make sure you sign up on the post below, not this one.

I also wanted to update on my daughter's injury. After the first set of doctors took a "wait and see" attitude to fixing her thumb we got a second opinion. That surgeon was furious that the initial doctors did not do anything to repair the damage and he immediately scheduled her for surgery which was done yesterday. He put 2 pins in her thumb and did some reconstructive surgery to reattach the part that had been seperated. He believes that he had enough to work with to save her thumb but we won't know for sure for a few days. So far so good though. He said that if he could get the circulation going again then he won't have to amputate her thumb. Thank you all so much for your prayers during this time. Love you all!

I'm heading back to Richmond so I can be there with her. Be back soon. Don't forget the giveaway!

Big Hugs,

Giveaway Time!!!

2010-09-23T07:50:00.008-04:00

Well, my last post was actually my 100th but life got in the way and other things took priority. First I want to say thank you for your words and prayers.. ya'll are the best! And secondly, I wasn't picking on the dog because of the breed.. I don't care if it was a yorkie that had bit her.. the problem is that the man was outside with a dog not on a leash and no matter which way this ends up it will be a permanent injury :( The dog breed is of little matter to me. I didn't mean to sound like I was preaching against pitbulls.

Ok.. now on to the giveaway..... I hope you will like it. You will win one of my clothespin bags - even if you don't have a clothesline you could use it to hold plastic bags, dryer sheets, hide little things from the hubby.. lol.. - a bottle of my Candy Corn Room Spray, 2 faux caramel apples and some pumpkin tarts I made.

This giveaway is open to all but if you are a follower of my blog you will be entered twice and if you post this on your blog you will get a third entry. Just tell me in your comment so I know. Also, if you do not have a blog make sure you leave me an email address so I have some way to contact you. I will announce the winner on Friday October 1st. You must leave a comment on THIS post to be entered. Good luck!

Big Hugs,

The weekend I wish never was....

2010-09-20T18:33:00.004-04:00

Well, we went to Richmond for the weekend for a couple relaxing days that ended up not so relaxing. I received a 4am phone call from my daughters phone and on the other end was a paramedic who informed me that he was taking her to the emergency room because she and her dog had been attacked by a pit bull. Thank goodness we were there because it would of been a loooong hour drive to get to her but luckily we were only 5 blocks away.

As she was walking out of her apartment building to take her dog for a walk she heard a man scream something so she reached for her dogs collar to pull her back into the building just as a pitbull jumped on and bit into her hand, breaking her thumb and severing the tip just below the fingernail. Absolutely gross! Sometimes it's hard being mom and acting brave when you know your children need you. Anyway, she was in the hospital until this morning.. they are "hoping" they can save the thumb but since it was a dog bite they said they couldn't reattach the thumb for 10 days so they stitched it loosely in place and straightened the bone as much as they could and now we are just playing the wait and see game. They are hoping that in 10-14 days the skin won't die and they can put a pin in her thumb but if it does die then they will be forced to remove her thumb at the knuckle. How terrible is that? She was just stepping outside to take her dog for a walk and some idiot is outside with a pitbull off his leash so he can exercise? I'm so tired and angry right now. Her injury isn't life threatening but it will affect her the rest of her life. Even if if it does heal, all the nerves have been severed and they feel she will never have feeling again. I haven't given much thought to how difficult life would be with that injury until I sat by her bed and she was sleeping her morphine induced sleep but there is a lot you really need your thumb for.

At the least, she has skin grafts and therapy ahead of her.. the worst.. half a thumb. I am grateful that the injury wasn't worse, but I am so enraged with this guys carelessness that I could scream!

Thank you to all who are my Facebook friends and have given me tons of prayers and heartfelt words of incouragement.. you are the best and I love you all.. it put a smile on my face when I needed it most.

Please if you have a dog, I don't care what the breed is.. use caution and never let you dog run loose.. you just never know.

Hugs,

Stella's got her groove back.... again

2010-09-17T08:22:00.008-04:00

Well, here I am again. After spending a couple days glancing over your blogs and seeing the awesome prims, quilts and recipes you've shared I became inspired and finally made the faux caramel apples that I bought everything for last year and never got around to making.

Not too bad, once I put a wrapper and bow on them you won't be able to see the extra "caramel" I got on the sticks.. lol.. even if they were real they wouldn't be perfect.

Then I pulled out some new fabric I bought a couple weeks ago and made 4 of these clothespin bags that I want to sell.

I was on such a roll I even made myself stir fry beef and broccoli for dinner. I rarely cook when hubby is out of town, cooking for one is just no fun so I usually pick at leftovers or just have cereal. LOL.. here is the recipe I used.

Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tbsp. peanut butter

1/2 cup water

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. vinegar

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/8 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

2 Tbsp. oil

1/2 lb. stir fry beef, chicken or pork

2 cups chopped broccoli, chopped to bit sized pieces

steamed rice

In a small bowl combine the first 9 ingredients then set aside. In a large wok or skillet heat oil then add beef and cook till almost done. Add broccoli and continue to cook for 3-5 minutes. When beef and broccoli are cooked and tender add the sauce and mix thoroughly, continue to cook until sauce thickens. Serve over rice. Yum!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! I'm off to Richmond to enjoy the city. I sooo need to get off the farm for a few days.

Big Hugs,

Question for those who can spaghetti sauce...

2010-08-15T08:00:00.004-04:00

I found a recipe from the Ball Book for canning spaghetti sauce so I made up 2 batches using 25 pounds of tomatoes.. smells great, looks great.. I did everything it said to do but I never heard the jars "pop" after they were processed. I don't think I've ever had that happen before. Does that mean they didn't seal right? They appear to be sealed and I can't push in the lids.. Anyone ever have this happen? I really don't want to serve my family some botulism with their pasta.. lol. I slaved for hours skinning, mashing and stewing and now I don't know what to do. Advise?

Seems I got a little over excited for nothing last weekend. I don't think I realized what "flea market" meant. I haven't been to one in about 20 years. I'm not gonna say I didn't buy anything.. lol. But once I made the trip down the first row, nearly every row was the same thing over and over.. knock off purses, perfume, t-shirts.. etc. I think the biggest disappointment was that there wasn't a cowboy in sight. Ha! I saw a few bulls though. WooHoo.. lol.

I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday! Love ya all.

Big Hugs,

Wanna do lunch?

2010-08-05T06:56:00.004-04:00

A couple weeks ago I saw an ad in our little local weekly paper for a day trip to Woodstown, NJ to the Rodeo Cow Town Fleamarket. We leave on a bus Saturday morning for a day of shopping, it says there are over 400 vendors. Woo hoo! I'm excited, I haven't left VA in about 5 years.. except to see my mother in law in NC.. so that doesn't count since I can't really have any "me" time.. lol. It looks like such a quaint little town with parades, the fleamarket, festivals and a weekly rodeo. From the pictures I'm thinking I want to move there.. lol. I'll let you know Sunday. Wish we were staying long enough to go the rodeo Saturday night.. as some of you know.. I love me some cowboys.. lol. Anyway, my girlfriend Marie and I are going to be there saturday if anyone is planning to go to the fleamarket or just wants to meet for lunch let me know, we will be there til about 3:30 .. I'd love to meet you!

Big Hugs,

Good thing for paint..

2010-07-24T07:07:00.003-04:00

Well, apparently painting is not like riding a bike.. I had envisioned a cute penny rug painted on top of the side table I have been working on but I seem to have forgotten every tip and trick I use to know. And it seemed like the more I tried to fix it, the worse it got....soooo.. I ended up just sanding it off and repainting the top with the same Sweet Earth color I had as the base. It's not as cute as I imagined.. but it's not too bad with a cloth table topper. I need to practice I guess. I use to be pretty good but I haven't painted in about 5 years where I tried to do any detail. Glad it wasn't a "good" piece.. lol.

On another note I've been busy this week making some blackberry jam, plum jelly, salsa, freezing peaches and zucchini.. I even made up a double batch of chocolate chip cookies and scooped them in individual balls and froze them so now when hubby wants a couple cookies I can pop them in the oven and have fresh baked cookies any time. Yeah me! I don't know why I've never thought to do that before. I think I'll make a few other flavors that he enjoys and freeze them as well.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! It's suppose to be 103 here today... come on fall!!!

Big Hugs,

Digging out the redos...

2010-07-21T09:11:00.006-04:00

I went on a wild spending spree about a year ago and hit every thrift store and yard sale I could find looking for goodies I could redo. My craft room has become so stacked with little tables, chairs and wooden items that I can barely walk in there.. sooooooo, in order to make room for more goodies I need to start working on the projects I have. I chose a random 3.. I swear I took a picture of this table before I started painting it but I can't find it on my phone.. so here it is after cleaning, sanding and painting it black and then a tanish color called Sweet Earth..

This was one of those tables that has been sitting in the garage for a couple years, it was white with chips and stains. I am painting a penny rug on the top because I plan to use it the bathroom of the farmhouse on our property. Now that all my children have moved out I get to play and redecorate the farmhouse.. yeah! When we first moved here I was going to make it look like a real 30's farmhouse but then one child moved in there.. then two.. and I never could get back in there, but now it's MINE again.. lol. I'm excited. I will show you the completed table tomorrow.

I also chose this picture and wall box.. I am going to paint the box black and then find something to cover the heart and stuff it with sweet annie. The picture I think I am just going to paint the frame black... these will also go in the bathroom .. I think. I really haven't decided yet.

Sometimes it's good to just relax and blow on a pinwheel.. I watched my grandson on Monday and it was so funny the joy and amazement he got out of just blowing on a pinwheel. This was the best $1 I think I've spent in a long time.. I got 3 for a dollar at the Dollar Tree....
I hope you all have a great day and take some time to relax and enjoy the simple things in life. I'm off to blog hop and then paint.

Big Hugs,

Blog Hopping pays off...

2010-07-16T06:43:00.013-04:00

Although it tends to waste the day away clicking on the comp I find so many recipes and crafties when I blog hop off your blogs. I don't know how many deep I went but I ran across a new to me blog called The Hand Me Down House.. if you haven't seen her blog I really think you'll enjoy it.. anyway, she had a post on Modge Podge solar lights made out of canning jars and they were the cutest!! Right now I need my canning jars for canning but she also showed how she made a candle jar out of a glass frame from a chandelier, so I followed that same concept and came up with a candle jar for my coffee table on the deck. First, here are her solar lights..

and her chandelier..

Here's what I did.. I took a medium size lidded glass canister from Walmart..

Mixed about 1/4 cup modge podge with 10 drops of green food coloring..

then I brushed it all over the jar and lid...

then I took a paper towel and dabbed it all over...

since I only had regular modge podge, I followed her directions for the candle jar and put them in the oven at 200 for 25 minutes.. and this is what I got.........

I love it. I wanted something with a lid so the rain wouldn't get it all wet. How cute is that?

I just looked on Amanda's blog and she is having a giveaway.. $40 gift certificate to CSN.. woohoo! Just click on this link to sign up.. http://thehandmedownhouse.blogspot.com/2010/07/its-time.html ! Love her site.

Have a great weekend my friends.. I'm off to blog hop and see what else I can find.

Big Hugs,

Anyone know what this is?

2010-07-15T07:36:00.009-04:00

We seem to have adopted this duck thingy.. it looks like a duck but it doesn't seem to be able to fly. He started coming up out of the woods about a week ago. At first I tried to shoo him off because I was worried about my german shephard attacking it but it won't go away. The first day we fed him bread but then I read online that it was recommended not to so I got him his own box of cheerios.. lol. He seems tame and isn't afraid of us. The only time he runs is when I am throwing him food but the rest of the time he takes his sweet time waddling across the yard. I don't think he can fly because I've tried to get him to but he hasn't even attempted to. I don't know if it's injured or it just can't fly. I've been looking online but I can't find a bird that looks like this. I call him bandit because of the red stripe around his face.. lol. Anyone know? I'd love to know what kind of bird this is.

Hope you all are having a wonderful day.. I'm off to blog hop and then mow.. woohoo.

UPDATE: Thank you Donna, I think you are right that it is a Muscovy Duck. I'm guessing it's a young one since it doesn't exactly look like the ones I could find when I googled them but it does have all the right colorings. Now I'm guessing he is coming from the farm behind me. I'm really hoping he isn't gonna be a dinner one night, I found lots of recipes for cooked Muscovy duck also in my search :(

Big Hugs,

Eeeeeeeeeek

2010-07-14T07:49:00.016-04:00

This is NOT what you want to find wrapped around your hose when you go out to water the garden... it was at least a 3 foot skin...wonder where the rest of him is????!!!!!

Last night my youngest daughter and her boyfriend came for dinner. She called to tell me she was worried about me being out here alone and so they were going to come visit. She's been telling me that he wanted meatloaf.. so that's what I made, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn and I found an awesome recipe for a cakedoctor chocolate cake on The Sisters Cafe blog. It was totally awesome.. here's the recipe if you want to try it, but also check out their blog, it is chockful of wonderful recipes.. Robert liked it so much this is all I have left.. lol

Super Moist Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 Devils Food cake mix (dry-don't make according to package)

1- 4 serving package instant chocolate pudding

4 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Place all ingredients except chocolate chips in a large bowl. Mix with electric mixer for 1 minute. Stir down sides then continue to mix on medium for 2-3 minutes. Add chocolate chips and pour in prepared bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes then invert on platter.

FROSTING:

8 Tbsp. butter (not margarine)

4 Tbsp. cocoa

1/3 cup evaporated milk

4 cups sifted powdered sugar

Melt butter in med. saucepan over low heat. Whisk in cocoa and milk. Bring mixture just to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in powdered sugar with electric mixer till thickened and smooth. Pour warm frosting over warm cake. Makes a lot of frosting.

I didn't have a devils food cake mix so I used Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Dark Chocolate Fudge.. YUM! Chocolate cake is good for breakfast.. right? I vowed I am no longer going to waste food.. sooooooooooo.. darn it all, I'm just gonna have to eat it myself I guess. Anyone wanna join me? Ohhh.. and a side note.. yeah, she might be worried about me, but she really needed a little cash to tide her over till she gets paid next week.. lol. Gotta love her.. she is my baby even if she is 21.

And lastly.. as I promised yesterday here is a pic of the desk I bought for $25.. I love love love it! I can't wait to start redoing it. Any ideas how to start? I just sand, prim and then paint? Any tips would be helpful.. I really want to use this piece and not have it stick every time I close it or something.

Have a wonderful day my friends.. I'm off to blog hop and then get to craftin'.. love ya!

Big Hugs,

How does your garden grow... and this and that....

2010-07-13T07:06:00.007-04:00

Hello my friends. Thank you for your posts after my husbands scare a couple weeks ago. That same evening started my husband's 2 week vacation so needless to say I think that night brought a lot of things in perspective and the little things suddenly didn't matter. I can't really explain what transpired but it seemed to change us both. Although it thankfully was just a threat, just knowing it could have been real seemed to bring us closer together. We really had a great two weeks together. We've been married 26 years and I hate to admit it but we really had fallen into a rut.. now we are making plans to travel and do things together... driving as much as possible :)

I just dropped him off at the airport again yesterday so I have this week to get back to my crafting.. woohoo! I'm going to do some blog hopping and then bury myself in my sewing room and see what I can come up with. I do want to show you this awesome pull down desk that I picked up at a roadside yard sale I found for $25.. needs some TLC but I've always wanted one.. I'll post a pic of it for you tomorrow because it's out in the shop and it's kinda drizzling a bit out there so I can't get my tootsies wet.. lol. I don't know what it's really called, it's one of those dresser type things with a pull down writing desk. I just love those! That was the first time hubby said I got a good deal.. lol.

My garden is coming along pretty good. So far I've made 2 loaves of zucchini bread, canned 9 pints of salsa and 3 pints of pizza sauce. I haven't canned in ages but I am determined that I am going to use/save as much of this years bounty as I can. I'm getting about a handful a day off my blackberry bush so I'm saving them until I have enough to make some blackberry jam.. yum. Here are a couple pics of the garden...

don't know why this pic is so small.. lol.. but this was my bounty this morning.. I picked all the big tomatoes that were ready yesterday for my sauce..

And lastly.. I just love it when my grandson takes his own photo with my phone. It's like a little treasure to check it out after he leaves and see what he's managed to capture.. this he took of himself last friday when I watched him.. look at those lips!!! I just want to smoosh a bit ole kiss on them just looking at the pic.. lol.

I hope you are having a wonderful day my friends.. I'm off to blog hop.

Big Hugs,

My excitement I never want to live again...

2010-06-26T10:29:00.003-04:00

Last night I was waiting at the airport for my husband to return as I've done hundreds of times. I try to plan it so I get there about the same time the plane does so he can just walk off and get in the car. I was there waiting for him as the plane landed in front of the airport where they normally let us wait as long as you stay with your car but last night they wouldn't let us stay there. His flight was due to land at 11:10 and by 11:30 I still hadn't seen him so I pulled into the cell phone lot to wait and then he sent me a text saying he was on the runway and something was going on but he didn't know what. I could see his plane at the end of the runway far away from the airport, blue and red flashing lights everywhere. A van from the local news pulled in behind me and I asked if they knew what was going on and they said that they had received a tip of a bomb threat. They had all the passengers stay on the plane for over an hour and then they finally shuttled them into the airport but they were only allowed to take their cell phone, wallet and keys.. everything else had to stay on the plane. They were detained until 4am. They didn't tell them what was going on until after they got them off the plane.. at first everyone was shocked but then it dawned on them that the authorities thought there might be a bomb on the plane but they made all 120 of them stay on the plane?! It was turning into a mob scene by 2am. Thankfully it ended well.. but boy am I beat.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! I'm not going to be very productive today.. but there is always tomorrow!

Big Hugs,

Good Morning my friends

2010-06-25T07:53:00.006-04:00

I hope all is well with you my dear blogging friends. I think I am finally figuring out a system so I can blog.. I need to post my blog first and then read all your wonderful posts.. I get so wrapped up reading blogs I never have time for my own and then I can't think of a thing to say.. lol. So, I am going to attempt to post first although I'm just dying to dive into the blogs and read what you all have been up to.

I finally got my phone/internet issue fiqured out, I have had intermittent phone/internet for the last 3 weeks. According to AT&T they leased out my closest tower to Sprint and now it can't handle the load and since I am one of the ones furthest away I barely get a signal. The "say" that they have turned it over to the manufacturer and they will do what they do for more signal strength. Got my fingers crossed they fix it. I really love my iphone.

Here are the promised pics of the travel bag I made and a baby quilt. I really love the travel bag.. now I just need to go somewhere.. lol.

It has enough room for a travel pillow, book, water bottle and snacks and some handy dandy pockets in the front for your tickets. I think it turned out pretty good.

And this is the quilt I made for my daughters friend Robin who is expecting her first baby next month. I just realized I didn't get a picture of the finished quilt before I gave it to my daughter to take to her shower. I used the purple in the center to bind it. It was my first attempt to machine quilt. Even on a baby quilt I found that difficult to do. I really need to get my quilting machine set up.. I've owned one for 4 years and have yet to set it up. LOL.. it requires a space of 12 by 8 so you can walk around it but I don't have any space big enough to set it up.

Not much going on out here in the country other then melting from the sweltering heat. Today I get to mow the grass.. woohoo. LOL, hopefully I'll get some more sewing done. Okay, now I'm off to read your blogs. Have a great day my friends!

Big Hugs,

I'm still here..

2010-06-07T09:20:00.004-04:00

Just when I think I'm on a roll with blogging life gets in the way. The last couple months have been a bit hectic but hopefully now things will settle down and I can get back to you and start reading your blogs and posting my own. I've missed you all.

I love/hate country life as many of you who have followed me know but I haven't had cell phone service since Friday. I feel completely cut off from the world. I don't have a land line because both DH and I have cell phones so since he's been out of town I have no way of reaching anyone by phone.. this is my only way of communicating. I feel like Tom Hanks in The Castaway with my computer now named Wilson.. lol.

Since I can't send myself emails from my phone I can't post pics of what I've been up to :( I finally got around to making that Travel Case I have mentioned a time or two here on my blog and I love how it turned out. Hopefully I can post pics soon. I've also made a baby quilt and some burp cloths for my daughters friend who is expecting her first baby. Oh, and I made some ice cream cone holders so the ice cream doesn't melt all over your fingers. I can't wait to show you all. We finally moved our son out of the house so this was the first weekend I've had the farm all to myself since we moved here 2 1/2 years ago. Woohoo.. it was scary and awesome at the same time.

I just had to come back and edit this and tell you to check out Sugar Pie Farmhouse's blog.. she just posted an awesome giveaway and has a 25% discount on her new e-cookbook. I can't wait to get mine. I LOVE her site.. I would love to be her neighbor. The link is www.sugarpiefarmhouse.com If that doesn't work you can find her on my sidebar to the right.

Wilson and I hope you all have a wonderful day! I'm off to check out your blogs then get some more sewing done.

Big Hugs,

Lovin Annie...

2010-04-19T13:46:00.011-04:00

I just wanted to show you my lil Annie that I am put together over the weekend. I was thinking of making a little bag and putting some sweet annie in it for her to hold. A HUGE thank you to Sandy at http://oldecountrycupboard.blogspot.com/ for giving away such a great pattern. Check out her site if you haven't already, you will LOVE it. Thank you again Sandy.

I know I posted it before but this is another Annie that I made from Sandy's free patterns..

I have this little bobbin Annie sitting in my bedroom.. so far I've made the rickrack flower for my newest Annie.. tonight I will probably sit and make her a sweet annie bag.. but for now I'm off to enjoy the sunshine. Have a sweet day my friends.

Big Hugs,

Buttons and Bows

2010-04-18T22:47:00.006-04:00

I haven't found much lately in the GW or thrift stores but I did pick up this button card in our antique store.. it went with my sewing room so I thought it would be cute on the wall but the store clerk was telling me that these cards are from France and in the early 1900's the tailors would use these cards to order buttons.. kinda the sample card I guess. Anyone else ever heard that? I just thought it was an interesting story..

Today I cranked out the sewing machine once more and made myself this cute pincushion/thread catcher bag. I'll probably change the bow on top of the pincushion to a button but I couldn't find one in my stash I liked so I stuck that bow there that I've been trying to get rid of since the early 90's. To me it makes it kinda look like a cactus blossom.. lol. I'll change it when I find something else that strikes me.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend .. I'm off to sleep, it's past my bedtime.. lol. Night all!

Today is the day for this great giveaway!

2010-04-15T09:22:00.005-04:00

Phew.. I almost forgot to post that Karen at http://www.thebearlythereprimitivebear.blogspot.com/ is having a mystery giveaway today. She is being secretive of what the prize will be but if you haven't already checked out her blog run on over and sign up. ~ It was fun chatting with you last night on the forum chat Karen.. can't wait to do it again!

If you haven't already joined the Prim Pals Forum you gals are really missing something. It's a great place to chat and get to know some prim friends. I am having a ball! Just click on the Prim Pals logo on the right side of my blog and come on and join us!

That's it for now.. I am done with my taxes so today is craft play day! Yeah.. hopefully tomorrow I will have something to share with you.

Have a great day my friends!

Big Hugs,

Finally got my aprons done.. yeah!

2010-04-12T08:26:00.009-04:00

Good Monday morning my friends. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I know I did.. the weather was beautiful.. and so far my flowers are hanging in there, still got my fingers crossed!

I want to share with you an awesome prim doll that I ordered from Shari at http://homespunandprimitives.blogspot.com/ I just love her....

She has found a special home in my living room and sits with me while I catch up on my shows.. lol.

I finally completed my aprons I keep telling you about.. I'm only posting one pic because I used the same fabric for both.. I'm trying the new motto.. cut once and sew twice.. I cut out two of each item I make.. or I'm trying to.. lol.

I really like how they turned out.. now I'm excited to make more.

I went out to do some errands yesterday and popped into the goodwill store.. check out this neat box I got.. don't know how old it is... but I can assure you it smells old.. lol. Had to leave it outside to air it out before I brought it in..

and this cute little old typewriter ribbon tin...

and lastly.. anyone care to quess what this contains? LOL.. one hint.. ROAD TRIP!

Now this is my idea of a carry on.. lol

I can't believe they left the bacardi bottle in there.. it's just a tease though... it's empty :( lol

Hope you all have a great week.. I'm off to check out your blogs!

Big Hugs,

Cross your fingers we don't have anymore freezing temps!

2010-04-09T10:01:00.014-04:00

First I want to say thank you for the sweet words about Grandma Billie.. ya'll are the best!!! ~hugs~

I'm HOPING that since the stores are selling flowers that means we are past the frost and ready to plant... got my fingers and toes crossed. I wanted to share with you the flowers I picked up at KMart yesterday.. that's the only thing I shop there for but I've had good luck with them for the past 10 years .. so that's where I get them.. plus they are pretty inexpensive compared to most places...

I just love flowers.. I can't wait to get more but this was all I dared until I know for sure we are past the frost. Now I'm off to find something crafty to do.. I do hear a couple aprons calling. Have a great day!!

Big Hugs,

Trying to play catch up....

2010-04-08T20:20:00.003-04:00

I'm baaack! Seems like so much has happened since I've been away and wow have you gals been busy. I've only just begun to start to look at your blogs and I keep getting sidetracked with all the awesome things ya'll have been up to.

We lost Grandma Billie on the 28th.. DH is still pretty tore up but you have to keep going.. and that's what we are doing. She will always hold a special place in our hearts.

I tell ya, it's tough catching up after you've been away. Not only do you have to do the normal things you do, but you also have to do the things you didn't do while you were gone. I "thought" yesterday was going to be my catchup day but I got up at 3:30 am to take DH to the airport 60 miles away, then I had to go to Daughter #2's house to pick some stuff up, then I had to go to our vacant rental condo to make sure we didn't have a leak (others in the building were complaining so I had to make sure we didn't have one), then I had to to 60 miles the other direction to Daughter #1's house to pick up my gammy baby to babysit.. I was actually a little early so I stopped at KMart and bought some plants for my deck that gammy baby and I could plant .. and this was all done by 8:30.. then gammy baby and I made the trip home.. another 60 miles in yet another direction - just picture a very big triangle- played with Gammy baby all day and then at 4:30 I loaded up Gammy baby and took him back home, then turned around and made the trip home yet again........... I did about 350 miles yesterday...I was sooo beat!

Today is the last of our 90' weather for awhile and they are calling for thunderstorms tonight which will bring cooler temps for the next few days.. so I figured I had better enjoy what time I could outside "after" I rearranged my house that Gammy baby rearranged for me..lol.. I mowed and then planted the flowers I had bought for the deck. It looks so nice out there. I can't wait to just sit on my deck with a glass of iced tea and a book!

Tomorrow is my crafting day!! Yeah.. I really need to finish those aprons I cut out a couple weeks ago.. lol. Hope you all have had a great day, I'm off to read some more blogs.

Big Hugs,

Keep it Hopping for the Kids!!

2010-03-25T09:13:00.005-04:00

Hershey's is donating $10 (up to $5,000) to the Children's Miracle Network each time we bloggers post abut their Better Basket Blog Hop. I got this basket from Holli at http://www.wheretheroostercrows.blogspot.com/

All I have to do is pass it on to a few of you. Please anyone who wants to copy it go ahead.. it's for the kids!!

The Rules are Simple:

Copy and paste these rules to your blog post.

Create a blog post giving a virtual Easter Basket to another blogger - you can give as many Virtual Baskets as you want.

Link back to the person who gave you an Easter Basket.

Let each person you are giving a Virtual Easter Basket know you have given them a basket.

Leave your lint at http://BetterBasket.info/BlogHop comment section.

You can also find the official rules of this Better Basket Blog Hop, and more information about Better Basket with Hershey's there.

Hershey's is donating $10 per each blog participating to the Better Basket Blog Hop to Children's Miracle Network (up to total of $5,000 by blog posts written by April 4th, 2010). Please note that only one blog post by each blog url will count towards the donation.

So Marie, Jody, Janine, Sandy, Pam and anyone else who sees this post.. post it to your own blog.. I'm passing ya'll a basket!

Big Hugs,

P.S. If you notice up there I said "Leave your lint at.. " lol.. I did spell check and I thought I had read it but evidently I didn't read it too close before I posted.. I am leaving it as is because it made me giggle when I saw it.. lol. Just so you know.. I know :) Love ya all!

Thank you.. and making do

2010-03-24T08:47:00.009-04:00

First I want to say thank you for the sweet words regarding Grandma Billie. My daughters and I raced down there Saturday night and we spent all day Sunday sitting by her side. She slept alot so while she was sleeping we snuck out to Walmart and got some yarn and spent the time with me teaching my daughters to knit (yeah). All she kept asking for was her Buttercup (GammyBaby) so as long as nothing happens between now and Saturday we are going back down there this weekend to take her her Buttercup.

This picture was from this past Thanksgiving.. 5 generations of Gardner's. Typical man.. DH is occupying the whole couch.. lol. From left to right you have great grandma, great great grandma (sweet Billie from my post on Saturday), DH, our daughter Heather and my adorable GammyBaby Caiden. It was so much fun having the whole family together. It's been a couple years since I've had all 3 of my children together for a holiday.. and then we got to add Heather's husband Brenton to the mix. Heaven! I think we all knew that it would be the last with sweet Billie so we all made it as special as possible for her.. and us.

Now I want to show you a picture from a couple weeks ago.. this is how you "make-do" when you forget to take a stroller and you have 2 two year olds.. lol...

My niece was moving so I offered to take her daughter for the day and we joined her up with GammyBaby and took them to the aquarium. At first they were a little stunned with the wheelchair but they took to it in amazing speed.. it was actually pretty funny. They would jump out and look at the "fishies"..

Then race back to the wheelchair.. just cracked me up. I was surprised though at the looks some people were giving me.. but I wasn't going to let them ruin our fun.

Now what I've been working on... I found these anklets on a blog, sadly I didn't write down the name of the blog so if these are yours please let me know and I will post it.. but I just fell in love with them so I made a few last night...

I LOVE the little love tags on the clasp. They were really fun and a great way to take your mind away. Now I just have to get this jewelry glue off my fingers :( lol

Today I plan to work on a couple aprons I have cut out and will hopefully be posting those tomorrow.

Have a great day my friends! I'm off to some blog hopping to see what you are up to and then do some sewing.

Hugs,

It's a Sad Day

2010-03-20T13:56:00.002-04:00

I am off to NC to say my final goodbye to my husbands 97 year old grandmother. When DH and I married 26 years ago this month she welcomed me with open arms. Both of my grandmothers passed before I was born so Billie stepped in and become the grandmother I never had. It saddens me to know I will never be embraced in her tender arms again but she says she is ready to go. She is a devout christian and knows where she will be going and so, it seems the time has come. She has dropped to 74 lbs and all of her functions are slowing shutting down. I don't know what to expect when I get there but I know I would never forgive myself if I didn't at least try to say goodbye. I love that woman so.. One day I hope to grow up to be just like her.

Be well my friends,

3 Thumbs up!!!

2010-03-15T09:16:00.003-04:00

Holy cow.. grab some kleenex and your girlfriend and rush to the theater to see this movie. I was kinda slow in the middle but when you get to the end it all makes sense. I LOVE it. I can't wait for it to come out in DVD to see it again. I wasn't a big Robert Pattinson fan in Twilight.. though I am a huge Twilight fan.. but to see him without all the glittery makeup.. those sultry eyes.. the slow easy smile.. phew.. I am a fan now!

That's all I have for now.. it's a dreary rainy day so it's perfect crafting weather. Hopefully I'll have something productive to show you tomorrow.

Have a great day everyone!

Big Hugs,

Just a quick note...

2010-03-14T10:28:00.005-04:00

I just want to share with you this awesome.. and I mean awesome new prim forum I just joined. I am having a ball getting to know other prim folks and I hope you all will join us too. Thank you Debbie and TJ for giving us such a wonderful place to share and make new friends. Ya'll come check it out.... the link is on the right or go to http://primpals.proboards.com/ Hope to see you there!

I'm off to the movies and lunch with my buddy Marie http://thespeckledhen.blogspot.com/ to go see "Remember Me" with Robert Pattinson.. yum. I'll give you my review tomorrow. Have a great day!

Hugs,

My Ah Ha Moment.....

2010-03-13T12:15:00.003-05:00

Ever have a picture taken that made you step back and really look at yourself? This was taken last night at the Pro Bull Riding event I attended last night with my GF Rhonda.. she is so cute. We had a blast.. we were dancing in our seats in between rides.. guess we were making quite a scene because the clown called us out from the center of the ring.. suddenly all eyes were on us.. lol.. it was a blast. But back to the pic.. OMG.. I look like a beefsteak tomato!!!???? When did that happen? I know I've put on weight.. I've watched the scale go up..and up.. and up.. but when did I start to look like this??? LOL.. I'm not totally freakin.. well, just a little.. but this is my AH HA moment. Holy cow! Pun intended.. lol... tomorrow I start on a diet! (lol.. notice I said tomorrow?!) Ok.. maybe today... after I finish the last Snickers.. oh wait.. I know I got a bag of peanut M&M's in the pantry.. and I'm sure I've got some peanut butter cups hidden away somewhere too.. and then I wonder why.............................

I didn't think I had a lot to say......

2010-03-12T08:59:00.014-05:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've posted last. I wish I had soooo much to tell you but I really don't.. lol. I've been reading a lot of your posts and keeping up with you on your blogs but I've been spending so much time blog hopping by the time I get done I'm burnt out on the computer and I don't get around to posting my own. Does anyone else have that issue? LOL.. I love reading blogs and I will start with one, but then there are so many yummy treats that that person follows that I just keep clicking until the day is almost over and then I have to sprint to do a days work in a few minutes.. no complaints though, keep posting and I WILL follow.

What have I been up to.. hmmmm.. not much really but I do have some goodies to show you. First I want to say a huge thank you to Jo-Anne who on her sweet blog The Carter Clan posted directions to make this wonderful dish towel.. I finally got around to making one yesterday and I LOVELOVELOVE it. It looks so cute hanging from my oven..

Last weekend I went to town and came across an auction.. so, having some spare time I stopped by. I am sooo glad I did.. I purchased an old teachers school desk that is going to be so awesome in my sewing room. Sadly I didn't get a picture of it before it was dismantled for me to bring it home but once I get it put back together I will be posting it. I can't wait.. I also purchased this white shelf thingymabob....

As you can see I almost forgot to take a pic before I started making it mine.. I first sprayed it an almond color but I wasn't too happy with it so.. going against all in me.. I went bold and painted it Krylon Bauhaus Gold.. I can see some sweet Gerber Daisies lined up on the shelves but until then... I only have one problem.... not only do I like it.. but it seems so do the birds :(

I also purchased this cutecutecute lunch box.. can't you just see some burly guy making his way to work with this in his hand? LOL.... oh the stories this lunch box has heard......

And lookie at what I found at Cracker Barrel...sorry for the blurry pic, I guess I was more excited to show you then I realized...

The cutest little measuring cups....
And lastly I leave you with one tip.... Ever have a candle that just doesn't burn right and leaves you with lots of yummy scented wax that just won't burn like this? I had a few of these so I took them all and.........

I poked a couple holes in an empty tuna can so that it wouldn't float and put the candle in boiling water to melt the wax and poured them all together in one larger candle jar and am now using them in my candle warmer.. I love food scents so you can just imagine how it smells all mixed together... awesomeness.....

That's it for today my friends.. I'm off to blog hop for the day then tonight I'm going to see the PBR.. mmmm.. can't wait to see me some cowboys.. lol. Makes me dream of home.. being a Texas gal and all. Hugs to you all.. you deserve it.

A redo, a find and a yummy treat...

2010-02-18T07:37:00.013-05:00

Good morning my friends. I tell ya, I have been having cabin fever with this winter wonderland we've had this year but yesterday I was finally able to dig out one of my finds and my paints and redo this breadbox I found at the flea market. First we had to open the...

Ahhh.. now we are ready..............

Here is the breadbox before.....

And here is the breadbox now.. I couldn't dig out my stencils so I went with my standby star...

Did you know that if you go to Walmart and ask for black paint they will make you pick out a color in the paint chip section? At least in my walmart. When I asked him to mix me up a black he told me to pick out which one I wanted but none of them were the black I wanted, the closest was Indigo Black so I gave him the little cardboard paint color and this is what he called black.. looks blue to me. He and I both agreed it wasn't black so he marked it down and gave it to me for $2..woohoo. I snatched it up and went to Lowe's where I should have gone in the first place but it was cold and I was being lazy. I love how it turned out and it felt good to be redoin' again!

Yesterday I went to town to run some errands and had lunch with my oldest daughter. It's fun now to really talk to her as an adult and listening to the antics of my grandson. We are on a whole different level now and I am loving it. Sometimes when I look at her I still see my little girl, but she has grown into a beautiful woman. After I left her I should of turned right and headed home but of course I turned left.. lol. But.. having made that error ::winks:: I did find the cutest little desk for my grandson..

Isn't it just the cutest?? I bought it for $20! You would not believe how sturdy and solid it is. I am going to paint it and put it in DH's office beside his desk. Once when Caiden was here Gampy/DH was busy getting ready for a new class and was studying at his desk and Caiden kept coming in and asking him what he was doing and the answer was always the same.. "I'm working". Later that day my husband went outside to take a break and when he came in Caiden was sitting at his desk and DH froze as he walked in the door.. there was Caiden.. permanent marker in hand and his notes spread out that took him days to write.. with a glance all he could see was black swirleys on each page and he asked Caiden what he was doing and with the most precious, serious face he said.. "I'm wurk'n"..

Needless to say DH learned a lesson on what "not" to leave out when the gammy baby is in the house. Do you have any idea how upset DH would be if I made a little teeny tiny swirley just to make sure there was ink in a pen on his notes? LOL..

And now.. the yummy treat part. Those of you who know me know that I LOVE a good recipe and while blog hopping I ran across The American Homemaker http://theamericanhomemaker.blogspot.com/ Wow does she have some awesome recipes and tips. I wanted to save you ladies so I plunged ahead and tried her homemade Almond Joy recipe. No use you making them if they weren't good.. right?! I'm in heaven. They are sweet but ohh soooooo good. See the empty spot?.. while the chocolate was setting that one just wouldn't be still so I ate him.........

Well my friends, I'm off to go check out your blogs then get busy finding another redo. See you soon!

Hugs,

What happened to the global warming?

2010-02-12T09:40:00.007-05:00

It seems like that for the past couple of years all we have heard about was how we were in the midst of the great global warming. Umm.. hello.. we on the east coast have had more snow then we've had in decades! Don't get me wrong, I don't totally disagree with our former VP or anyone else on the damage we are doing to our planet but my goodness right now I could go for a little global warming.. well maybe not global warming (gotta be careful what you wish for) but I am soooooo ready for spring. We have more snow coming on Monday :( We've had so little snow in the 14 years I've lived here that I dont' even own a windshield ice scraper.. I just use my jumbo spatula. Sad huh? LOL.

Anyone want to join me for some cocoa?

OMG.. I was given a recipe to make your own cocoa and it is sooooo rich and yummy. It makes a ton, I filled a 4 quart canister with it's lucious rich chocolatey goodness. It's a little expensive, but sooooooooooooooooo worth it. I will never buy premade cocoa again.

Thanks to you ladies I now know what to do with those fruits that are on the verge of decay. It seems that when I buy fruit, no one eats them.. but if there isn't any in the house that seems to be the number one request. Anyway, with DH out of town I sliced up the last of the oranges and lemons I had in the fridge and slow cooked them in my toaster oven. The house smelled so wonderful I ended up making a citrus pound cake that I found on the site Mennonite Girls Can Cook http://www.mennonitegirlscancook.blogspot.com/ OMG those girls can cook. I've tried many of there recipes! Thank you ladies for sharing! My fruit has yet to dry completely though.. I baked them for 8 hours on 150 and they are still a bit juicy.. I just put them on a wire rack and am letting them air dry.. hopefully they will dry before they get moldy.. lol.

And lastly.. Denise at http://primpatternsnhandmades.blogspot.com/ gave away a free pattern for this cute bunny on Tuesday with one hitch, there were no directions... wha? lol.. I can follow direction but use my own creativity??? I am stuck and now sure I like him/her yet. So far he/she has just sat on my sidetable in the living room while I study him/her till I decide what to do.. it might be done by next Easter.. lol. I can't even decide if it's going to be a him or a her yet.. I'm trying not to do what she did but that's the first thing I did..so I stopped and now I just wait for something to inspire me..

I hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!! Be safe and warm my friends.

Hugs,

Little this, little that and some down home good dumplings

2010-02-09T20:27:00.007-05:00

First of all I a want to thank Picket at http://www.picketsplace.blogspot.com/ for posting her chicken and dumpling recipe.. omg it is sooooo good. I found it on her site a few months ago and it has become my #1 comfort food and with all this snow and cold, I was desperate for some serious comfort food. She has a lot of good recipes and I've tried almost every one of them and she has become my "Julia".. lol.. love ya Ms. Picket. This is all I have left of the huge pot I made..

Oh, I almost forgot to show ya'll my new Pyrex bowls I found at the flea market. I found the large and small bowls together at one booth and the middle was at another booth.. what are the odds of that? LOL.. the middle bowl is a little lighter then the others but they have the same design so I'll never tell it wasn't intended to be that way.... I LOVE Pyrex!!
Ever make something for something you don't have? I made this fun Kindle keeper that I found the pattern for on the Moda Bake Shop blog, (link on the right).. but I don't even have a Kindle. DH has been asking me if I want one but I have 100's of books and I can't see the point of buying the books online when I have so many I still need to read. He says how "green" it would be, but I already have the books. Does that make any sense? Anyway, here's my Keeper.....

Has anyone seen the movie Dear John yet? I want to but I'm trying to finish the book first. I can't decide which is better.. to read the book first or read it after the movie. I was terribly disappointed with Nights in Rodanthe.. the movie cut out most of the elements that made the book a tearjerker. I went with my buddy Marie and I was loaded with kleenex but the only thing I needed it for was to wipe the butter off my fingers. Which do you prefer?

Oh Carmen.. in your honor I did make some salt doughs today using the recipe you gave me. Finally they didn't crack!! Thank you for helping me out. Now I need some serious help in the painting department.. once I got them basecoated I couldn't think what to do with them so I just made dots.. lotsodots.. lol.. I'm sure with practice it will get better.. I hope.

I'll post a pic once I get them all done.. right now it's a work in progress.

Well my friends, that's it for today. Hopefully tomorrow I can work on something prim...

Hugs,

Happy Sunday!

2010-02-07T10:10:00.006-05:00

Good morning my blogging friends! Well.. the Great Snow came and went and luckily we didn't get hit as bad as the weatherman was predicting.. although I know some of you were hit pretty hard. I hope you all have electricity and are spending the day with a mug of cocoa and working on your projects. This was the view on my back deck yesterday..

Sure is pretty but I've had my fill of snow for this year, I can't wait for Spring!! I've already started playing in my garden in my mind.

Since I couldn't get out and paint I decided to drag out my embroidery machine which I haven't touched in over a year and play with that. First.. I have a new computer since I played with it last so I had to download the software.. umm.. issue one, it's on floppies and my version is so old they didn't even have a download for that. Ok, digdigdigdig and viola, I found the little thingy you can put floppies in and attach with the USB cable... ok, we are on a roll... download complete. I find the design, open it in the software then go to write on my machine's disk... now we have issue 2.. it says it can't read to my card because it's too old.. holy guacamole! ok.. digdigdig to find one teenie tiny disk because I KNOW I have a new one SOMEWHERE.. digdigdig.... yeah, found it! How, I have no idea but I have a major mess on my hands now to clean.. someday. I started this process about noon.. and FINALLY at 7pm I made this t-shirt for my Gammy baby..

and I had so much fun with that and after all the work it took me just to make that I decided to make this potholder..

My girlfriend Marie at http://thespeckledhen.blogspot.com/ and Ihave decided to join up and start selling some of our projects and we came up with the name The Speckled Hen and Ewe and since I'm "and ewe" I made this for myself...

Snow, snow go away so I can go out and play...........

Have a great day my friends.. I'm off to go see what I can do today.

Hugs,

bet you thought I went away again..

2010-02-04T08:07:00.006-05:00

LOL.. but no, I've been dealing with a bad case of bronchitis and DH was home so I just hunkered in with the snow and waited till I could breath again without it feeling like my chest and head were going to explode. I'm almost back to 100% but I missed you so .... here I am.

Other then the normal lose weight, become more frugal and spend less (I have those resolutions every year and those are the first to go.. lol) I did vow that I WAS going to complete all the crafts I have started during the next year.. I want to start Jan. 1, 2011 with no UFO's crowding my craft room.. I have so many things I started years ago and for some reason I never finished them.. maybe I couldn't find the right button or a matching fabric.. who knows what was going on in my brain... but anyway, I am going to slowly trudge through and either complete them or rip them apart.. my first finish was this Bunny Pail that I cut out like 3 years ago and have no idea why I didn't finish it.. but now it is... tada.. woohoo.. one UFO gone, thousands more to go.. lol.

This baby quilt is only a few months old but I started it when I first found out my cousin's wife was expecting.. she's now due any day.. so I had to put a rush on it. That is also one of my resolutions.. to be a better person to my family and friends.. not that I'm bad or rude, but I tend to let life get in the way and I am terrible at keeping in contact with them. I know I don't need to give gifts to be a better person.. but hey, doesn't hurt either .. lol.

Ok.. so I completed one really old.. then I completed one semi old.. well.. to keep it balanced I decided to make something new.. lol.

See, doesn't take me long to fall off the wagon but I figure as long as I add something old in there then I will eventually work my way through my UFO's. About a year ago I posted a pic of my craft room and the mess I am dealing with.. that place is a mess.. but I'm going to make it through there.. one day.

I made this eyeglass holder for my glasses that I can keep by my bed so when I want to read they are handydandy. How have I lived all these years without one? Have any idea how many projects were started with that line? LOL..

I want to start my prim projects but until the snow melts I can't start painting.. so that will be coming soon.

I hope you all had an awesome week! I'm off to catch up on your blogs and see. Have a great day my friends...

Hugs,

It Pays To see who your Blogging Buddies Follow....

2010-01-26T08:14:00.005-05:00

Is she not just the cutest??? I found her on http://oldecountrycupboard.blogspot.com/ I just love her. I had vowed I wasn't going to post until I did something prim and I just couldn't resist this lil Annie. All I could find in my stash was bright, bright red yarn for her hair.. but I think she turned out pretty good.

I've been reading so many blogs and trying to catch up with all the wonderful things you all are doing that I can't remember who's blog I found her on but I'm so glad I did. Check out her site, it's awesome. Thank you so much for sharing her Sandy!!

Now on update to the housing issue: We countered back closer to our asking price because that would allow us some down for another home. The first offer pulled out and the second is thinking it over. You are all right, I do LOVE my property but I miss the socialization of my friends and family and that is what pulls at my heart. I've said since the day I moved here that if I could just pick up my property and move it back to Yorktown I'd be the happiest woman alive. I do know that's not possible so I just dream. We aren't desperate sellers and will only sell if the conditions are right. I might have jumped on the offers if DH wasn't dreaming of a condo.. where would I put all my finds????? I need a house.. lol. Until I can convince him of that I'm staying put. Thanks for your 2 and 3 cents.. lol. Big hugs to you all!!

Big Hugs,

Ever NOT wanted something but feel possessive when someone else does?

2010-01-24T19:22:00.002-05:00

That is my problem of the day ladies. For two years I've gripped and mopped about living in the country and not being able to do anything spontaneous (anything spontaneous requires an hour drive each way).. hanging with my friends, visiting my daughter and grandson.. you get the point. Anyway, we've had the farm listed for sale for over a year and not even one nibble and now we have 2 offers, but both are low and would require we would also have to bring money to table to close. Problem one is that I've given up on selling the farm, I pretty much have just ignored the sign and problem two is that since we wouldn't make anything we wouldn't have any money for our own downpayment plus DH and I can't agree what to buy. He wants "no maintenance" condo living and I want a house with my own backyard. I was so shocked when our realtor called yesterday and said he had an offer coming in and then he called this morning and said someone else wants to look at it today before we decide on the first offer. Needless to say I had to rush around and clean like a madwoman this morning before they got here.. and they also cut into my crafting time (I think that might be why I don't like them.. lol). Well, the realtor just called and they want to make an offer too but they want to get a contractor out here to see about tearing down the old farmhouse and building a new one in it's spot. WHAT??!! That's exactly what DH wanted to do when we moved out here. I like the old place. I don't know what to do, I'm sitting here with mixed emotions.. I've been dying to sell the place but now that we finally got some offers.. I don't. I just want to tell them to keep looking this is MY place... but then I think about how easy it would be to go to dinner or a movie with my friends. Any thoughts my friends?

Big Hugs,

You girls are such a bad influence...

2010-01-23T18:41:00.013-05:00

Well, I woke up this morning refreshed and after reading your blogs with all the awesome after photos I wanted to tackle my "finds" that I found so long ago and just left sitting all over my craft room floor. You would not believe how many I have to do.. lol.. anyway, first I had to make the drive to town to get my car worked on. DH is friends with the owner of the car dealership so when he saw me sitting there waiting he gave me a car to drive... uhoh.. what's a girl to do? LOL.. wellllllll... there was this lil ole flea market just down the street .. sooooooo.. ::shrugs:: I had no choice.. have car will travel dontchaknow :) Off I went.. the first booth I went to I found this haul for $5....

I just couldn't pass any of these up. The pitcher is huge, I can just see some flowers nestled nicely in it. The words on the silver container say "Bakery Bin".. too cute...

Off to the next booth I found this haul...

A wooden cutting board, a wooden stool, a wooden indented plate, a wood bread box that has a shelf inside and a wooden dresser top man's coin/key holder with a drawer...

Inside of the wooden bread box..

The drawer is missing the knob on the coin holder but that can easily be fixed...

I also found these wooden bowls, stool, cutting board, covered dish and pewter bowl... I just love the flea market....

Luckily for DH I didn't find much at the next few booths until I got to this one.. and lookie at what I found.....

A vintage mayo jar and a chopper....

I am in "find" heaven.. lol. Phew, I'm exhausted!

Hope you all had a wonderful Saturday.. I sure did. Now to tackle my finds and will hopefully be posting those soon.

Big Hugs!

I'm going to try this again...

2010-01-22T19:50:00.005-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted since October. Life sure has a way of zipping right past you. I have missed you all.. I made some really good friends in the short time I was here and one of my resolutions for this year was to get back into my blogging and being a part of your lifes. You have been such an inspiration to me and I've learned so much.. I really have missed you.

I have to admit that I quit blogging because I was having some issues with one of my children and I didn't want to come on here and try to pretend that all was well when inside I was hurting, I just couldn't do it.. so I stepped back.. got my life back on track and worked out my issues with my child. Life is good :)

I haven't done much with alllllll those wonderful goodies I got at the GW but I'm going to dig them back out and start redoing my awesome finds. I've been reading your blogs and re"primming" my brain.

I have played with my sewing machine, I made this snowball quilt top while I was snowed in a couple weeks ago..

And I made this notebook holder using some I Love Lucy fabric that I couldn't figure out what to do with.. I just love whimsy things. I had it out at the library the other day and got so many compliments on it. Made me feel good.. lol.

I hope all is well with you my friends, I am off to read your blogs and start catching up.. again..

Big Hugs!

Cross your fingers for me..

2009-10-06T06:57:00.002-04:00

Sorry I haven't been back but I think I lost my ability to post.. lol. Almost every day I've sat here and typed out stuff but then when I reread them I ended up just hitting delete. I haven't got an ounce of news since my last past. Sad huh?

So, I'm just basically touching base and letting you know I'm thinking of you all.. I have been reading your posts and catching up on your life.

Today I am going to do something productive so I will have something to share.. yup.. today is the day Stella gets her groove back... lol.

Hope you all have a great day!

Hugs,

I just want to share what I've been working on...

2009-09-25T12:48:00.007-04:00

My DH has been gone since last Tuesday with work so I have been busy at my sewing machine. I've always loved this desk deli tote by Quilts Illustrated.. and now I have my very own.. woohoo. I love the way it turned out.. now I just need to find somewhere to go to bring my lunch.. lol.

Next I worked on this HUGE purse. I didn't realize how big it was going to turn out but I absolutely love it. When my dd moved out of her condo I saved the curtains and boy am I glad I did.. they made an awesome purse!! Love it when I can recycle something

like this.. lol. It's a Simplicity pattern #2685.

I just love it when I have the house to myself... turn on the radio and just sew away. Don't get me wrong.. I LOVE my family but it sure is nice to get to spend some time to yourself from time to time.

After I completed the purses I got itchy to do more so I also made 2 quilt tops...

I still have to sew my rows together but I love how this one is turning out.

And lastly I made a pillow to match the first quilt top...

I love this time of year... all I need is a little chill in the air and give me my sewing machine or a good book and I am set.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!

Big Hugs

Sorry I've been away so long... I missed you

2009-09-24T07:50:00.007-04:00

Well.. I'm not quite sure where all the time has gone. I can't believe I haven't posted since May. Life got a little hectic so I stepped back but now I am ready to face the world again and come out of my hiding place. I have a lot of reading to do to catch up on what's been happening in your lifes. ::big hugs:: I have missed you all. It's nice to know that I could just step in for as moment and experience your joys or woes.... I need to remember that! I have made some awesome friends in the short time I've been in the blogging world.. I don't want to give up any of you.

What have I been up to? Well.. my eldest daughter got married last weekend. It was absolutely beautiful! Time consuming... stressful... and I found I had my hands full with my very own bridezilla.. lol. I have a whole new respect for the "mother of the brides".. lol. My other daughter has informed me she is just going to the justice of the peace.. after watching her sister.. who was once this sweet, loving, giving woman become the female version of Jekyll and Hyde she wants no part of it.. lol.

My grandson stole the show.. he kept touching Heather's dress saying "pretty". LOL.. it was a wonderful day!

Ugh... I've forgotten how to lay out the pictures.. lol. The second picture is all three of my babies. Ok, I'm off to start reading and catching up with you.. my friends.

Got some x'plain'n to do Lucy....

2009-05-22T06:25:00.009-04:00

Hello my friends... I can't believe it's been so long since I've blogged. Between my daughter coming home from college for the summer and working on my redo's seems like time has just flashed forward and I missed a couple weeks. Our area is going to be having a Rivah Fest on June 20th so I've been working like crazy trying to get my stuff together so I could have a booth. For those of you who have followed along with me know that I was thinking of selling my redo's in a consignment craft store but I've decided to just hit the local farmer's markets and festivals. I really need to get to know my neighbors... though I don't have a single one in sight.. lol. So I thought it was time to get out and meet some fellow crafters in my area. I actually lucked out though for the Rivah Fest because the local quilt store is letting me set up my booth on their lawn so I don't have to pay the $50 fee to be on the street... she says that having booths on her lawn will bring more business to her store... I can see her point but I think I would of at least charged us $25.. but hey.. it's her lawn.. sssshhhhhh. LOL.

Ok.. first I have to show you my winnings from Angie's giveaway at http://sugarplumpatch.blogspot.com/

I just love them.. thank you so much Angie.. I know we were having some issues with the emails in the beginning.. but I'm soooo glad my goodies made it home. You are awesome! If you haven't checked out her site run on over.

And now here's some new "do's" I've acquired since I've seen you last. I keep telling myself "no more buying" until I can get some of this stuff done.. but I swear I hear the TS calling my name as I'm trying to mind my own business and just drive by. My car just gets a mind of it's own.. I mean.. "I" am steering the wheel straight but vroom.. the car becomes Christine and I have no choice.. if I don't get out of the car I am forced to listen to Don Ho non stop until I do.. Isn't that just crazy?!

I love the cabinet and the the candle stand.. I'm trying to figure out what to do with the black box, the purse emblem is actually tile.. any ideas?

Actually after looking at these pictures I guess I've been to the TS more then I thought, I know I have newer stuff hidden somewhere.. lol. I'll have to look around and see what I can find. I did get the blue box for free because it has a combination lock and no one can get it open.. sounds like a good project for one of the kids.

And now.. Drum roll please Mr. Ho.... my grand finale..... I got my soap all packed up and ready for sale and I packaged some fixins that smell out of this world.. I am a proud mama..

So far I've packaged Vanilla Frosted Grahams and Homemade Sugar Cookie.. mmmm 2 of my favorite scents.. my girlfriend said it smelled like walking into Yankee Candle.. so I will take that as a compliment.. lol.

Well, that's it for now, I need to get back to my redo's and paint some more signs.

I hope you all have a wonderful Memorial Day and have some fun and enjoy your families! I've missed you my friends....

Hugs,

I found my mojo.... woohoo

2009-05-08T10:46:00.012-04:00

I got my mojo back. I was beginning to get depressed because I have all these wonderful TS finds and I was getting overwhelmed with them.. and when I do that I tend to not do anything. I know it sounds nuts but I almost feel like I am going to hyperventilate when I look at it and try to find something to do.. and there is just soooo much I don't know where to start.. so.. yesterday I walked into my craft room and just grabbed the first few things I could find.. the hardest part was not allowing myself to start walking around the room looking for a particular item because I knew that I would defeat myself before I even started.. so here is what I got....

I found the blank sign and the wooden flag at the TS for 25 cents each and the candle holder was $1.. not bad for $1.50.... and I had some boards cut for signs so I made up 3 .....

here is the "after" of my days work..........

Sorry Janene.. we gotta all tilt to the right again.. lol....

I just added gel stain to the flag, I really like how it darkened it and made it more prim.. I stenciled the saying on the wooden board and then added a daisy, which I need to fix.. it didn't seem to like the stain.. and then 2 candle holders which I painted, sanded and then stained.. I think they all turned out pretty good..

Now for my signs...

This one isn't exactly prim but it just makes me smile.. and I know someone who it would be perfect for.. lol... besides myself of course.

And I have to tell you.. I was feeling so good creating that I made a couple loafs of banana nut bread and a pot of Sue's (our really empty nest blog) potato soup... I know it's not exactly soup weather but I was in need of comfort foods and they hit the spot..

Banana nut bread anyone?
I just realized I cut into the one that had fewer nuts.. and I didn't realize they had evidently all sunk to the bottom.. oh well, it still tastes like nanner bread... yummy.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and I can't wait to see what you are all up to.. you are my inspiration.

Hugs,

I'm off to the races..

2009-05-02T11:46:00.003-04:00

Good morning Ladies.. I just wanted to stop in for a moment to wish you all a wonderful weekend.. I'm heading out to Richmond to watch my "other" man.. Jeff Gordon.. woohoo!!!

See ya all tomorrow!

Hugs,

Book Club News

2009-04-29T16:37:00.005-04:00

First I want to thank you all for the wonderful birthday wishes. I had a wonderful day and when I saw your messages I was touched. You are a beautiful group of women... thank you.

Now... with a new month drawing upon us it's time to start our new book for our online bookclub. This month I have chosen the selection.. and I'm ashamed to say that I chose the book by the cover.. lol.. it looks like a fun read.. I hope I am not going to be disappointed.. if any of you would like to join us just jump over to http://literarysisterssociety.blogspot.com/ .. I hope you do. It's a new group, this will only be our 3rd book so come on and read along with us. My choice this month is Lorna Landvik's "Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons"..

the cover looks cute.. so we will see.........

I hope you are all having a wonderful week. I need to get back to my redo's to post.. I've been working in the garden all week so I still haven't finished my redo's.. shame on me....

Hugs,

I won!! and it's only just begun....

2009-04-24T15:34:00.007-04:00

Yeah.. I won Angie's giveaway at http://sugarplumpatch.blogspot.com/ I'm soooo excited.. I just love her stuff and can't wait to display them in my home.. I'll be posting a picture once they get here and have a little time to get rid of their jetlag.. lol. Check out her blog if you haven't.. she is awesome.

And while I was posting my comment to Angie the dog's got excited and started barking which of course out here in the middle of nowhere can only mean one thing..... company!! Ok.. it was the UPS man, but out here everyone is company even if you are only here for a couple minutes... lol.. and guess what he brought me?..............let me show you....

Aren't they beautful? Sunday is my 45th birthday and these came from my husband's company in California.. (they do know the secret.. keep me happy and I won't nag (as much) about him traveling all the time..lol).. I just LOVE sunflowers.

I do have to apologize, I know I promised to show the finished redo's but life got in the way and I haven't finished yet.. so that's what I'll be working on today.. but I will show you my latest finds.....

I got this 3 bottle wine rack, a tray is hidden underneath, this large candle shelf, the old cake pan which I can see many pantry cakes being made in, the metal tray and a couple candle pans... I have really got to get busy redoing all these great finds, they are starting to stack up.. and I know me, once they do I will get overwhelmed and never do them.. lol. Keep me motivated ladies!! I love reading your blogs and seeing your "do's".. that motivates me.

Here is the tray that was hidden under the wine rack.. I just love it.. I can see candles and fixin's sitting in the little wells....

The quilt the items are sitting on is one of my latest quilts I've completed.. I just love this pattern. I was going to send it to my brother who retired after being in the Navy 20+ years.. but.. well.. it's still here.. he did get a nice card... lol.

Ok.. I'm off to read your blogs and get motivated for the day.. I'll be back soon and show you what I've got accomplished. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Hugs,

I love the smell of Lavender.....

2009-04-21T17:12:00.008-04:00

I have to tell you, I was scared opening up the soap mold to see how my lavender soaps turned out but they came out awesome.. I was quite impressed with myself.. I turned out the mold and used a taping cutter I found in the hardware section of Lowe's and they cut like butter.. now they have to sit 2-3 weeks and they are ready for use. I'm so excited, I could definitely get carried away with this stuff.. but since I live in a teeny tiny house I don't think DH is going to like so many aromas going on at once. So I have to learn patience.. though my mother always told me I have the patience of a flea.. lol.

Here's my soaps... I'll post a pic again in a couple weeks when they are ready for use, I already have an idea how I want to decorate them but I'll save that to show you...

They are still a bit opaque but according to the directions they will whiten up as they dry.. so we will see.

With DH out of town I played today with some of my finds.. as you may know, those who keep up with my blog, I am debating selling my goodies at a local consignment shop. I still don't know which way to go.. I think you've all pretty much convinced me that $40 is a big debt to incur when you are first starting out. So.. I am just going to continue making things and then either sell them online or take them to her and have her buy them outright (I think my hesitation on that is she won't want them.. lol.. I am terrified of rejection.. whereas if I had the booth myself I could put anything there).. Anyway.. here is a sneak peek of what I am working on today.. I will show you the finished items tomorrow...

I hope everyone is having an awesome Monday.. see you tomorrow.

Hugs,

Rainy soapmaking dayz...

2009-04-20T15:04:00.005-04:00

Woohoo.. another craft notch on my belt. Thanks to my blog buddy Carmen and a few frantic emails back and forth I made soap today. The first batch I made came with the soap mold.. it has brown sugar, cinnamon and oatmeal.. yum... then for the second batch I made Honey Almond and Oats that smells so fresh and clean. Here's what they look like:

I just love this mold I ordered. My favorite thing next to roosters is sunflowers and when I saw this mold I just had to have it.

Since I was on a roll and having so much fun making soap I decided to try out a cold process recipe for lavender soap that I had already ordered months ago and had never dared attempt. It certainly takes alot longer but I love how creamy the soap looked as I poured it into the mold. It has to sit 24 hours before I can show you the final product but here it is after I poured it into the mold...

It doesn't look very good in the picture but it smells heavenly.. I hope it turns out half as good as I'm hoping.. lol, I have high hopes.

Thank you again Carmen for all your help. This was soo much fun today. You are an awesome teacher.

Hope everyone is having a marvelous and craft day!

Hugs,

Pay it Forward...

2009-04-17T17:50:00.004-04:00

I received my Pay It Forward surprise from Jessica at http://countrywhispers.blogspot.com/ She sent me this cute purse.. I can't wait to use it! It's much bigger then it looks in the picture. I want some of this fabric!!

Thank you again Jessica.. I love it.

On another note.. I just got my package of soap making supplies today Carmen so I am going to be making soap on Sunday. I was hoping it would be in before today.. but it finally showed up about an hour ago.. sooooooo.. I will be adding soap to my list of things I am learning. I'm excited.. I ordered from the places you told me about and the box smells yummy. I'm not telling what I am making yet.. but you will see on Monday.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Hugs,

What would you do?

2009-04-16T09:15:00.003-04:00

I am soooo excited. Yesterday I stopped by a consigment craft store with some of my items I've made and the storekeeper loved my redo's and candles. She asked me to sell them in her shop and I have three options.. a) sell them to her and she will resell them.. b) sell them on consignment.. or c) buy my own booth space, I can get a 5x8 shelving system for $40 a month plus she gets 10% commission for selling them. Which way do you think I should go? My personal opinion is c so that I can sell what I want and decorate my space as I choose. Am I thinking correctly? I've never done this before but when she told me that what I am making is exactly what she is looking for in her store you could of knocked me over with a feather. I felt awesome! I know.. patting myself on the back when I owe it to you all for teaching me.. so thank you! You are the most awesome group of gals, I feel honored to call you friend.

I'm off to get busy redoing all these awesome finds I've found. Anyone else have "issues" with selling your finds? LOL.. I already have regrets selling my stuff and I haven't even sold anything yet.

Have a great day!

I made candles Carmen!

2009-04-09T08:23:00.008-04:00

Happy Thursday! I didn't get a chance to sign on yesterday to update you all on my progress but I was busy busy yesterday. Following some guidance and tips my buddy Carmen http://waxedoutcreativelife.blogspot.com/ gave me I made my first candles yesterday.. I had picked up these little latte cups at the TS for 25 cents.. how did I do Carmen? I used coffee scent for the main part and vanilla for the cream.. they smell heavenly. I like the little thing you did with the curly wicks.. Next week I promise to attempt soap....

And then I pulled out the paints again.. remember the dried Herb hanger from a couple posts ago? Well this is how it looks now...

I used chalkboard paint for the inset and wrote "towels for sale". I thought it would make a cute display for towels to sell.

And then I sat and made some rag balls while I watched Marley and Me.. that is such a good movie.. it really touched my heart because I lost my lab to cancer about 3 years ago so by the end I was drenched in tears and using my rags for tissues.. lol.. not really, luckily I had tissues nearby.

Any thoughts on how to spruce up the jars? I have a lot more to make, so far I only used 6 fabrics.. but it's a fun craft for tv watching and a good way to use up fabrics.

Today won't be as productive craftwise.. the yard is getting long after all the rain we've had so I guess I'll tackle the outdoors today. I hope everyone has a great day!

Hugs,

2009-04-07T21:35:00.009-04:00

First off I want you all to check out the wonderful Annie giveaway, just click on the sweet Annie on the sidebar. I LoveLoveLove her dolls. She does some awesome work. Check it out.

Wow, what a busy day it's been. I started the day by working on my redos.. Friday I posted the wine rack and I teased ya with what I was going to do with it.. well.. here it is now...

Looks like I need a few more rolling pins.. oh darn.. lol.

I've decided to sell some of my wares at the local Farmers Market and maybe hit a few craft shows this summer so I started by making some grubby candles...

Tonight I've been working on some rag balls that I am going to put in mason jars and then tomorrow I am going to attempt to make some soaps.. wish me luck!

And now, just for you Holly... I got off my lazy hiney and opened the red striped cake stand to show you.... tada! Night ladies.. see ya'll tomorrow.

I finally got some new do's....

2009-04-03T20:15:00.013-04:00

First all I have to tell you all this awesome news... my friend Carmen with a C.. is lajdfuaouioangaklajk at her blog waxed out creative life so owuroweiralknklasdfnaoi[ty98aewyerowejjkankl;a9iuti oueroiaeurklaj;kljdoiantlkjaoi eowuiriowejlkaknao roiuwierqak..oyuoueouivkajoiueanlkuaoitioruaioknazklarp8yae....youaida.. Rush on over....

Got that? Good.

Ok.. I'll translate.. sigh....... but you have to wait till the end....ha!

I'm so excited.. today I went to Richmond to pick up my new computer and while I was there.. well.. ya know.. I just HAD to check out the TS.. and guess what.. my supply doesn't dwindleth.. yippee.. lookie at what I got...

Ooops. In my excitement I forgot to turn the picture...sooooo.. here we go again.. everyone ready? Lean your head to the right.. ya with me.. I know we look silly.. but whatthehey.. we are getting some excercise. This is the neatest wooden wine rack.. I already have a wine rack but I know what else I can do with it.. can you? I do, I do.. and I'm not telling.. hahaha.. you'll just have to wait till next week when I get it done.

Lookie what else I got....

I just love the little mail holder, I cut it off in the pic but there is a rooster on top.. I also got the premium cracker tin, as soon as I saw it I had to have it.. we always had one growing up.. I got the little crock, the wooden toy, a wooden candle trough and can you see the little potty mammy? Let me give you a closer look...

Isn't that just a hoot? Cracks me up everytime I look at it. Let's see what else I got...

I love the wooden herb hanger.. then I got a white tineware thingie, and a wooden screen doohikie.. and see the red and white striped box in the back.. I got lazy but inside is a red and white stripped cake stand.. let's see what else is in the bag.. oh yeah...........

Come on ladies.. clap..stomp.. snap.. tilt your head again. YOU..clap..stomp.. can do it. Can't ya see me smiling and cheering you on like Denise Austin? Come on ladies.....

I just love this picture and I found this adorable little chair that I can't wait to get my hands on and redo for my grammy baby.. and.. finally........

this cute little cabinet.. phew.. I'm exhausted now. I need to go lie down and eat my bonbons to rejuvinate myself. I hope you all have an awesome weekend.. and get lucky...in the TS.

and now for my translation...........

My friend Carmen with a C is having a giveaway at her blog waxed out creative life She makes the most awesome soap and in order to be entered twice for her giveaway I had to tell you about it here on my blog. But I have sad news for you.. they are mine.. MINE I TELL YA.. muhahahahahah.. ok.. I am nuts.. but truly her soaps are so good it'll smell better then dessert! Rush on over.....

Have a great weekend!!!

Toodles!!

Happy April Fool's Day!

2009-04-01T15:49:00.005-04:00

Happy April Fool's Day. Sometimes I think whoever started this day was a relative of mine. Sometimes I think I am a "woman of the world".. smart, clever, witty....... but then there are the days that the fool in me rises and I just can't do anything right. My friends would laugh but ya know.. I wasn't trying to be funny. Ever have those days? LOL. I do love playing a good joke but .. well.. I pity the fool who crosses me.. can't ya just hear me saying that with my best Mahammad Ali voice? LOL.. I actually did say it outloud in my best impression.. I think he had another about Fly like a butterfly sting like a Bee.. or something like that.. anyway I'm getting off track. I remember in school I always dreaded this day because you never knew who or what to trust.. I think someone won the lottery today too.. lol.. yeah.. see me rolling my eyes Janene? LOL.. ya just can't trust no one today I tell ya. Be careful out there til the strike of midnight! Then the fool will turn in his lil pointy shoes til next year. I'm counting the hours!!!

On another note.. DH and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversay yesterday. We went to Richmond and shopped then had dinner at a Sushi/Hibachi Grille.. it was nice. We had been planning on taking a trip for this anniversary but with the economy the way it is right now we decided to save our money and hopefully next year things will be more settled and we can take that big trip. What I did get was a new computer.. yeah! I've been having so many issues with this old laptop.. I was getting frustrated because it would just eat memory like crazy. If I looked at too many blogs or websites it would just go black on me and I'd have to reboot the whole thing. And then it started making all kinds of whirring noises like it was going to take off.. it was kinda scary.. lol. So.. tomorrow I will drive back up to Richmond to pick up my new baby and then I can blog til my hearts content.. yeah!!!! DH got new running shoes.. lol. Who's the fool now? LOL.

I don't have much to add to the redo department.. or the new finds because it seems I've been doing everything but lately.. but DH will leave again this weekend and then I am driving to NC to see our own Retha from Cinnamon Creek to pick up some items I purchased from her and we are going to do our Laundry Swap exchange that Char organized on her blog THE PICKLED PEPPER PATCH I can't wait!

I'm off to catch up somemore on your blogs.. everyone have a great day!

Hugs,

Mmmm.. the smell of fresh cut grass

2009-03-30T18:28:00.003-04:00

Well, I know yesterday I said I was going to post some GW find redos but then I remembered I had a Nora Roberts movie saved on TiVo so I sat down with some knitting and watched it instead. Now this morning.. I learned a valuable lesson.. never show DH your redo's.. he now has me redoing some cabinets for a condo we own. LOL. I don't mind.. but it was such a wonderful day and I had planned on redoing my own finds.. but alas.. I was painting cabinets. While they dried I mowed the grass... mmmm.. I just love that smell. I don't know why but we have a ton of onion grass ( don't know what it's really called) and wow.. when you mow it it smells like a toss up of being outdoors and the kitchen.. 2 of my favorite places so I don't mind. Once the iced tea is done.. I'm off to the porch and just smell the fresh cut grass...

On another note.. my buddy Carmin with a C.. and I did our own swap. She wanted the sign I painted and I've been drooling over her candles since I first found her in this vast blogland. I wish you could smell this candle.. I just want to eat it.. and she included the cheesecake soap.. They smell so real. I wish I could find a bakery that could make something that smells half as good as this stuff. I just love them. I can't bring myself to burn the candle or use the soap.. I just want to walk around with them in my pocket.. lol. Sad I know.. but wow.. I think I've lost 10 pounds just by drooling on them.. lol.. (I wish!!!!!). Carmen... you are AWESOME!!!!! Check her out at waxed out creative life . Have a great night everyone.

Hugs,

I'm back....

2009-03-29T14:50:00.002-04:00

Gosh I missed you all but life got a little hectic this week so I wasn't able to spend any time on the computer.. but... I'm baaaaack. I have a lot of catching up to do, ya'll have been busy. It's a beautiful day so I am going to drag out some TS finds and get busy.. I'll post pics tomorrow. Just wanted to say howdy and let ya know I am back. Hope everyone is having a great weekend!!

Hugs,

Super Saturday Giveaway........

2009-03-21T11:54:00.003-04:00

Holy Cow.. don't miss this giveaway...jump on over to One Prim Girl blog.. this is what she's giving away...... run..............

Have a great weekend everyone!!!!

Hugs,

Do You?................

2009-03-20T18:56:00.003-04:00

Barefoot Contessa...............

I wish I could be more like Ina. I tape her show every day, not only for her recipes but to follow her in her friendships as well. I know she is making the food for the show but she is always involving her friends or making special dinners for them. What I wouldn't give to have a friend call and say "hey, I made too much.. want some?" I'd be at her door with the phone still in my hand.. lol. She has such a good time setting the table for her and her girlfriends just to hang out on the back porch and visit over a good meal. I want that.. I want to just hang with the girls.. or me and DH with another couple.. just enjoying life over a good meal. (I'm kinda hoping a can adopt a friend like Ina so I am the one showing up with the bottle of wine... but hey.. someone has to start.. lol). I don't know.. I was just watching her today and I started thinking how fun it would be to invite a few girls over and just enjoy each others company. I think that will be a goal of mine.. once it warms up.. start a girls night once a month. I wanna..........Barefoot Contessa. You?

ReDo's to my own Do's....

2009-03-18T19:24:00.006-04:00

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Wednesday. I decided to do a little redo on my own do's today. I've had these two items for years.. the wall drawers belonged to my mother, she always had this in her sewing area..and now it hangs in mine.. this spice rack I have had for about 10 years.. I use it nearly every day and I've always hated how it was so dull in my kitchen..

soooooooo.. now they look like this....

I forgot to show you all the little wire bunny I got at the flea market.. it was only $3.. gotta love it. And see Janine.. DDP at the ready!!

I covered the heart in the drawers with this rusted star.. it's a little big but hey.. with a name like Stella.. you can never have too many or too big of stars. Yanno?! LOL.

And one last thing.. lesson of the day ladies..............

Wear gloves.........................

Hugs,

Happy St. Paddy's Day to ya...

2009-03-17T09:54:00.006-04:00

I hope you are all having a wonderful Tuesday. I am spending it cleaning..fun, woohoo. Can't you see how happy I am? LOL. Yesterday I said I made some laundry soap..well I made both powder (thanks again Janene) and a liquid.. I love them both and I have done a load of laundry this morning using each one and I have a to say I am quite impressed. I tried making laundry soap about 7 years ago.. I don't remember the recipe I followed but it was more like slime.. and it was like muck green to boot so I never tried again.. but after seeing so many money saving blogs I decided to give it a try again. Janene sent me the following youtube site to make powder detergent http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey6nH6uovM4 (Janene also gave me a tip to use 2Tbsp of detergent rather then the one the poster suggested) but while there I started searching around and I also found this one for liquid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al4EK59ta9A .. I followed it step by step, she is very easy to follow, and this morning I was able to fill 4 containers I saved plus I have about 3" left in the 5gallon bucket I used. I figure I can make about 4-5 more batches with the washing soda and borax I have left, all I need to do is buy more soap, so for about $3 more I can wash and wash and wash.. hey, wait a minute.. what have I done???? Ok.. now I know.. I have more TS money.. YEAH!!!!

I know you do.... but do you know how much money it cost just to buy each of these containers I used filled with All and Tide?? Never again!!!

Have a marvelous day everyone!!!

Hugs,

A lazy day and a couple redo's...

2009-03-16T19:23:00.008-04:00

I hope you all had a glorious weekend.. ours was pretty wet. I didn't get much accomplished on Saturday and Sunday I took DH to the airport for a quick out of town trip. I was going to go to the TS as has become my habit but I have vowed to myself to work on the wonderful stuff I already have.. so rainy Sunday was spent making homemade chicken stock for the freezer.. the house smelled yummy. If you dont' make your own stock you should give it try.. it's sooo much more flavorful then the canned stuff. This morning I made a batch of homemade laundry soap (thank you Janene) and then I pulled out a few TS finds.. here's what I started with...

A wooden backgammon travel board, a desktop letter holder, this cute star milkjug tea light and lastly this little vase that I can't wait to put daisy's in for my table... and here's what I did with them this afternoon....

closeups

I think they turned out pretty good. I am really enjoying re-doing things I normally would of walked right past and never given them a second thought.. now I'm scratching my chin saying "hmmmm".

Have a great week everyone!

Hugs,

We have a winner....

2009-03-13T16:10:00.004-04:00

Thank you to those who entered my Easter Basket Giveaway.. I drew the name of the winner and it is.........................

Robin

of The Robin's Nest Congrats Robin.. just send me your mail addy to StellarCreations4ewe@yahoo.com and your hurricane will be on it's way.

I'm painting some salt dough ornaments but I can't take pictures till I can get some batteries for my camera.. soooo.. I'll let ya see on Monday. Have a great weekend everyone!

Hugs,

My name is Stella and I'm an addict....

2009-03-12T17:16:00.006-04:00

Brrr.. it's hard to believe that yesterday I was hanging outside in capri's and a t-shirt and today I'm back into jeans and a sweater and tomorrow is suppose to be worse.. cold, wind and possible snow/sleet. I'm so glad I enjoyed the day outdoors. Thank you all for your comments on my signs I made. And I also have to say that I am so happy to have so many friends defending my addiction to DDP, though I have to admit I did leave it on the table intentionally because all of us who follow Janene's Blog Primitive Lifestyle know that she is addicted with a capital A and I was just doing it to tease her.. though I didn't know that she was out or I wouldn't of done that to her.. well... yes I would (just messin with ya Janene).. lol. We sista's all have to stick together. You all made me proud.. lol. Love ya all!!

Today I didn't do much since there was such a change in weather but I did work on some eggs I bought at Joanne's that were too "new" looking. Before I found you all I would of just used them as they were but I now know I can coffee stain almost everything, it's just amazing.

They don't really look all that good in the picture but they are really cute all done. The top two I left to show you what they looked like before. I have them all hanging on a wire basket now but my camera battery died on me so I'll have to take pictures of that later. While they dried I sat and read some of my book for bookclub. I didn't want to like this book but I'm hooked now.. I was suppose to stop at chapter 30 for monday's discussion but I can't.. I have to know how this ends. Ever been obsessed like that? LOL.. not crazy obsession like a love of DDP (Janene).. but just a can't put it down kinda obsession.... lol.. sorry Janene.. I know you aren't feeling well today and can't defend yourself but I lub ya :)

Hope you are all having a great Thursday.. I'm off to catch up on your blogs and see what you are up to.

Hugs,

Guilted into craft'n.. but lov'n it

2009-03-11T17:45:00.006-04:00

Oh my gosh it's a beautiful day. As I found myself alone on the farm I grabbed my book and nestled in on the outdoor couch and started to read.. blissful. Then I decided to take a break and check emails and blogs and everyone was so busy I felt guilty.. so I put away the book and drug out my stencils and made a couple of signs. It felt so good to be outside sawing, painting and sanding.. I can't wait for Spring............ Hope everyone is having an awesome possum day!!!

What? How did that DDP get in there? Shameful....

Hugs,

Hold on tight, I'm doing the Happy Dance..

2009-03-10T15:14:00.003-04:00

Woohoo.. I was luv'n me some mailman today. I am now the proud owner of 2 of Pam's baskets and one of her Annie's. I am so happy with these I can't stand it. I've been going all over the house trying to find the perfect spot. This is my first Annie so she has to have a special place... don't want her to get drooled on by my Gammy baby Caiden.. love him to pieces but some things just belong to Gammy dontchaknow?!. Ok.. I'm a little wacky today.. can ya tell? I'm just so excited. Run on over to Pam's selling blog and see what goodies she's got today... primitive basketcase

Hugs,

In a good place....

2009-03-09T18:02:00.006-04:00

Thank you for your comments yesterday.. it really wasn't meant to be a downer. I was just on an emotional rollercoaster.. but anyway.. it's a new day and I am in a good place.

I am slowly going through my pile of treasures and today I worked on the.. well actually I'm assuming it's a potato bin.. anyone got any idea? The doors open down so I can't imagine anything staying in it so I've decided to use it in the kitchen to hold my cookbooks.. here's the before...

And the after...

Hope everyone is having a great day.. I'm off to read some more of my bookclub book.

Hugs,

Wedding Bell Blues..

2009-03-08T20:48:00.004-04:00

Today we drug out my mother's wedding dress that she wore when she married my father 50 years ago this year. The dress was sealed after her wedding and for the past 50 years the box has been carted from place to place and cared for first by my mother and then it was passed on to me after I lost her 20 years ago.. needless to say it's been an emotional day. In so many ways it's been good because my daughter is getting married in September and wants to wear it.. but it also opens the wounds of losing my mother. I don't say this for sympathy.. but I beg all of you.. my friends.. who are even considering divorce to please be careful. I won't go into detail.. but my mother had planned to divorce my step father, she was only waiting for HIS daughter to graduate high school and she was only a month away.. he got wind of it and shot her in her sleep. For that, I am grateful for they tell me she never knew.. but I will never forget the phone call informing me that the man I called dad had taken her from me. If you had asked me 10 minutes before he did it if he would ever hurt her.. I'd of said no..never. There are no explanations..nothing can undo what was done.. but not a day goes by I don't feel the pain all over. I probably shouldn't post this.. but I am in tribute to my mother...

disclaimer and book club news

2009-03-07T16:48:00.005-05:00

First of all I want to make a little disclaimer about my giveaway.. it's not a used hurricane.. it's new in the box.. lol. I think I've scared people. I guess I should of waited till I had more stuff to add but I just love these hurricanes and as a Southern Living at Home rep I have a lot of extra items I use as Hostess Gifts and I thought I'd share one. But now I find myself looking at them and wondering why I didn't think to paint them before.. lol. Nothing is safe anymore.

Not much going on today, I joined the online book club with Robin at The Robin's Nest: Book Club News... so I've been just lounging around reading all afternoon trying to catch up. It's a slow start but now I'm hooked. Anyone else want to join? I thought it would help me to expand my reading and force me to read things I wouldn't normally pick up. I did try to read this book twice but never made it past the second chapter but now that I'm on a timeline I stayed with it and am actually enjoying it. Our read this month is The Host by Stephenie Meyer. It's beautiful today.. hanging out on the deck with my diet dr. p.. nice beeze, balmy high 70's.. reading the day away... this is living. I think it's really what I've needed to get out of my funk... life IS good!

Hope you are all having a great weekend!

Hugs,

My Easter Basket Challenge and a Giveaway...

2009-03-06T15:43:00.006-05:00

Here's my easter basket for Gen's Easter Basket Challenge. I saw that Gen is sick and is going to postpone the challenge til next week but I don't think the candy will last that long in my house.. lol. I've had those old stand in nearly every room in my house over the years.. I've used it in the bathroom to hold soaps and washclothes.. I've used it in my bedroom to hold jewelry but the picture really doesn't do it justice, it's huge.. the bunny beside it I've had for years.. it was a garage sale find about 15 years ago and he is about 3 feet tall. I just love the pansey's in the top basket.. definitely puts me in the spring mood!

I know I still have a ways to go before I hit my 100th post but I decided to do a giveaway. I was going to use this 13" hurricane for my easter basket but I found I have 2 so I am going to give one to some lucky gal. Just leave a comment on this post and on March 13th I will draw a lucky winner. If you post about it on your blog and let me know I will enter your name twice. Good luck!

I hope everyone is having an awesome day.. I need to run to the cleaners and then maybe pop into the TS and see if they have any new goodies for me. I'll keep you posted!

Hugs,

Some of my great TS finds...

2009-03-05T15:10:00.007-05:00

Hello Hello Hello.. wow, I've been busy this week working on my craft room. I was tempted to take pics but I still have a lot of work to do so I'll wait and show you the "after". First I want to say a big thank you to the Olde Dame for the cute graphic she made me for "My Current Read", I asked her if she could make me something and I just love it!! You are awesome.. if you haven't checked out her site.. run on over, you won't be disappointed Penniwig's

I do have some fun TS finds to show you that I promised last week and never got around to.

Ooops.. I forgot to flip this one.. so lets all tilt our head........... now you see it? LOL.. In the first pic I got a cool flower pot that says BLOOM I can't wait to plant in.. this awesome red tray, a blueberry candle, a Chocolat teacup and saucer, a battery operated candlestick, a glass canister with a neat tin wrapper which I've used to store my cookie cutters and three picture frames.. I love the rooster in the frame, he might just stay the way he is... in the second pic I got a wooden tray, pasta canister, 2 crock bowls, stone coasters that have prim houses on them, a small cup with a candle in it, a wooden tray and a shelf.

Next I got:

I just love these little wooden cut outs, I might just age them some with Briwax and leave them alone... on the table I got a couple iron candle holders, a wooden candle holder, 2 wooden sheep, a couple americana pics and behind the wooden candle holder is a little pitcher.. I now have 4.. woohoo..

As soon I can get my craft room done I can start redoing my finds.. but in the meantime.. I just keep finding.. lol.

Have a great day!!

Hugs,

A new day...

2009-03-02T08:40:00.007-05:00

First I want to say thank you to those that left comments on my blog and left me emails about my son. In order to type it out it I was forced to actually think about it and I have vowed to do all I can to fix this situation.. first thing I decided was to take charge of the farmhouse. Yes, as many of you suggested I will get him to do the actual fixing up of the place but what I've been dying to get done was my craft room. When we moved in I took one room for me but I haven't unpacked a single box because I kept waiting for it to be my place as I planned, well, I realize that's not going to happen too soon so yesterday I trudged over and eeeeek.. look at the work ahead of me...

I unpacked nearly every box yesterday so now I have pile after pile of stuff.. lol.. I could open my own craft store/library. I have renewed energy to take back my life and not flounder along with him, hopefully if I change my ways he will as well.

On another note....YEAH.. we got snow yesterday. It is beautiful! It started about 6pm last night and snowed all night long. As I sat and watched the snow swirl I put on a pot of Sue's Potato Soup Our really empty nest: Sue's super yummy, hope you like it too, Potato Soup.. YUMMY. The only thing I did different was put some frozen corn in it and viola, corn chowder. Guess what I'm having for lunch? LOL.. give it a try.. I've also made her chicken tortilla soup and it got rave reviews. I love to try out new recipes, I have so many cookbooks even I am amazed. Actually, I have so many some I haven't opened again since the day I "just had to have it" because of some recipe I found in it. I do have one easy one I made the other night that I found in a cookbook from our local knitting guild.. it's called Cowboy Casserole.. on a night you need something kinda quick but yummy give it a try..

COWBOY CASSEROLE

1 1/2 lbs. lean hamburger

1 large onion

Brown meat and onion together and season to taste.

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes

Mix together in a saucepan and heat.

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

1 (12oz) package Tostado chips

1 large can ranch/chili style beans, drained

Line 9x13 glass pan with chips. Use about 1/2 of the bag. Pour hamburger mixture over chips. Layer beans and cheese. Pour soup mixture over cheese. Crush remaining chips and sprinkle over the top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Easy and yummy.

Ok.. well I guess I'm going to drudge back over to the farmhouse and get going again on my craft room. Have a great Monday everyone!

Hugs,

Just popping in to say hi....

2009-02-27T15:00:00.002-05:00

Hey everybody.. you can't see me but I'm waving madly. DH has been home the last few days so I haven't blogged but I was able to sneak away and do some TS shopping. I can't wait to show you my finds but I have to wait till after he leaves tomorrow so I can bring my bags out of hiding and take pictures.. lol. Shhhh. Our secret. You know, until I found all you great gals I haven't been in a GW in YEARS. It's a prim shoppers haven. Everything I touch now I wonder what I can do with it.. and I've actually amazed myself a time or two. Thank you so much for giving me a new hobby and addiction...lol. Anyway.. I need to run to town to pick up DH's clothes from the cleaners.. but you know what else........................ I'll have time to pop in the TS to see what else is new to add to my stash. Until tomorrow.. have a great day ladies.

Hugs,

Some Redos and a MakeDo

2009-02-23T08:01:00.005-05:00

I had a productive day yesterday. I am slowly going through all my great TS finds. If you look further back in my posts you will see the before pictures of the bowls, candlesticks and the little paddle. I really like how they turned out, although I do think I was a little heavy handed with the Briwax (thanks Janene!).. it is definitely a learning experience.

Now for my Makedo... I haven't really decided if I want to put this on the candlestick or if I want to use them as a bowl filler.. what do you think? Maybe make some of the sweet potato fixins or something..

Let me know what you think. Have a great day ladies!!!!

Hugs,

We won Grand Champion

2009-02-22T10:30:00.007-05:00

Yeah.. I say we because we got here by all the early mornings mom (me) spent driving to barns and horse shows.. early feedings, afternoon feedings.. holding the horses for the farrier.. I could go on and on.. so yes.. WE won :)

I didn't get a whole lot accomplished craftwise yesterday because I just couldn't resist the opportunity to spend the afternoon with......

Gammy's baby Caiden...

Aunt Kalee also gave Caiden his first ride on the "dog".. in Caidenism everything with fur is a dog.. sooooo WWWWEEEEE.. we rode the big dog.

Today it is raining and icky so it's a great day to craft... put on a pot of soup and work on my projects is the plan of the day.

I did join Gen over at EWENIQUE TREASURES in her Easter Challenge. You don't have to send anything or swap.. you just make an interesting easter basket using your imagination and post your pics on March 6th.. sounds like fun and I'd love to see what everyone comes up with. Hope you'll join us!

Well, I'm off to start some soup then get busy with my crafting.. hope you are having an awesome day.

Hugs,

Where oh where is my Sweet Annie?

2009-02-20T21:14:00.004-05:00

I have a question I hope someone can help me with, where does everyone get their sweet annie? I've been looking in every store around me for the last couple weeks and no one seems to have any. It must be plentiful somewhere.. I see it in almost everyone's blog.. but I can't find any :( Can someone point me in the right direction?

Well I was hoping to have my makedo's done today but I didn't get them completed in time before I had to leave to go get the oil changed.. and as you will learn if you follow with me in my blog.. any errand takes a minimum of 2 hours since we live waaaay out in the middle of nowhere and when I go to the city I try to get as many errands done as I can in that trip.. needless to say I didn't get home until 7:30pm. And then tomorrow my 20yo has a horse show in the morning.. she is in the first division which begins at 8am, which means I have to leave by 7am.. ahhh.. I thought I was done with the early morning watch your children do their sport thing when she graduated high school.. it never ends....ugh.. so by the time I go to the horse show, do my errands (since I'm in town) and then drive back home.. it might be Sunday. LOL.. kidding.. but truthfully I really hate leaving the farm.. I have them cut, painted and ready to be put together so hopefully that will be my post tomorrow.

I do have a couple tips, at least they are to me.. lol. I have been trying to become more thrifty and one way I've found to help is to save the styrofoam trays that comes with the meat we buy at the store.. they make great paint trays. And also I've been saving the coffee grounds after we have our morning coffee. I place the filter on a rack and let them air dry and then pour them into a canister so when I am grunging I have some coffee grounds that I would have tossed out anyway to add. And lastly I found a way to get rid of the last bits of candle wax that sticks inside the jars.. I know to put them in the freezer and then they pop out but sometimes there is still built up residue inside.. I found a neat way to melt it and again not waste anything.. after I made dinner one night, after I turned off the oven I took an old cookie sheet and lined it with a paper towel and turned the candle jars upside down and set them in the oven, by the time the oven was cool my jars were spotless. Don't know if any of these are "tips" for you but I have found them useful.

Well, guess I better scoot since I have to be up at dark30, heh.. what to you bet tomorrow will be the one morning I don't wake up at 4am.. :( Night ladies.. see ya some time tomorrow. Have a good weekend!!

Hugs,

2009-02-19T20:30:00.007-05:00

First off.. here's to you my friend...........

Secondly.. I just had Sue's Our really empty nest Max and Erma's Tortilla Soup.. wow, it's as good if not a bit better then the real thing.. you really need to give it a try.. it's awesome. Along with it I made a loaf of Rustic Italian Bread in my bread machine. I am feeling so good right now. Tomorrow night it's Carmen's Meatball Subs then Saturday is Sue's Potato Soup. We are eating good around here!

I've been productive this time while DH is gone. Last night while watching American Idol I worked on this stitchery.. I don't know where it came from.. I was trying to find the site again because they had the sample done in colors and I wanted to see it one more time before I started.. but since I couldn't find it I just did it in blackwork.. I think it turned out pretty cute being my first stitchery.

Today I painted the old brown box I picked up at the TS and posted a pic of in an earlier post.. I was excited to try out one of my new stencils.. I don't know what I'm going to put in it but I like the way it looks.

A closeup of the stenciling.

Tonight I'm cutting out a couple of makedo's and hopefully tomorrow I'll be sewing them together. I really need a bigger house :(

Hugs,

I just finished a redo...

2009-02-18T14:30:00.007-05:00

Remember the cutting board a posted earlier that I found at the TS.. well here it is now..

I followed Char's directions THE PICKLED PEPPER PATCH: Freebie Friday! and I painted this little guy on the cutting board. Now it sits on the ledge around the fireplace in my bedroom. I don't think he turned out too bad considering I haven't painted in awhile.

I did encounter one problem on the candlesticks I painted.. when I applied the matte sealer the paint bubbled up.. anyone have this happen? I'm not sure what I did wrong. I'd appreciate any help or tips you can pass on.. not only do they look aged.. they look like they also survived a fire.. lol.

I don't know if you can see it.. but the blue candlestick bubbled up all over, the orange mostly just around the bottom.

And now some of my treasures from the hunt yesterday..

I got a rolltop breadbox for $5 and the shelf was 3.25.. then I got 4 frames for stitcheries, a small cutting board, candlesticks, the black tray, a little quilt rack and a few wooden boxes.. Yeah.. now I need to stay away from the TS until I finish allllllllllllll this stuff I've collected since I met you ladies.. lol. You are really a bad influence on me.. LOL.

Hugs,

It's 4am and I can't sleep....

2009-02-18T04:49:00.003-05:00

Ever go through a phase where you wake up the same time every day? I've been waking up at almost exactly 4am for the past week.. it's driving me crazy. I keep wondering what the significance is of 4am... am I suppose to be doing something? remembering something? be somewhere? It's thrown my sleep pattern all out of wack because I'm exausted by 9pm. When I woke up this morning my first thought was please let it be any time other then 4something.. but no, I peered my sleepy eyes at the alarm clock and it's 4:17.. I have been trying to stay in bed til a more reasonable 6 but since DH wasn't here I can be as loud as I want so here I sit listening to the radio. It doesn't matter when I go to bed, I'm wide awake around 4. Any ideas? My DH thinks that I've been thinking about this too much and that's why I'm waking up around the same time....... believe me.. I'm too tired to think.. lol. Help!

On another note, I did do a little TS shopping after I dropped him off at the airport yesterday and I have a redo to show you.. just a little teaser till later when I can turn on the lights without blinding myself. Hope you all had an awesome Valentine's Day.. I love it when it falls on the weekend and you can make it more then one day. I'll be back later this afternoon and show you my goodies. :)

Hugs,

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-16T16:23:00.003-05:00

Happy Valentines Day!!

I know I'm late but DH has been in town this weekend so I've been enjoying the weekend with him, but he'll be heading out tomorrow so I'll be back to relying on you, my blogging buddies to keep me entertained while he's gone. I cherish the friendships I've made in such a short time with you ladies, you help keep me sane (well, some of you.. lol). I love to see your "finds" and enjoy being a part of your family. Let's all keep Ms. Pickett of Pickettville in our thoughts while she battles the computer virus.. dirty bird. Talk to you all tomorrow!!

Hugs,

Look Janene and Carmen...

2009-02-12T09:31:00.007-05:00

I too now have a little white pitcher.. woohoo.. it is just too cute... now all I need is a wooden whatchamacallit.. or wait.. now I need those pottery measuring cups.. darn it all lol

Also, I missed a couple more of my great finds yesterday when I posted.

This wooden bucket is huge.. I see it prim'd up with dried flowers.. any ideas? And this sleigh is huge too.. a perfect spot for santa and his snowmen army come next Christmas.. I can't wait for garage sale season............... Have a great Day!

Hugs,

I'm baaaaaaaaack...

2009-02-11T12:45:00.009-05:00

I had such fun yesterday at the TS.. I wasn't planning to stop because I still have to work on my finds from last week but as I was driving home after dropping DH at the airport I started thinking of these ladderback chairs I saw there last week and for some reason I didn't get one.. the more I thought about them the more I needed one but it was about quarter til 6 and I was afraid they closed at 6.. so off I raced, tearing down backroads, talking :) to the slow drivers ahead of me.. I peel into the parking lot, the door flies open before I put it in park and off like a flash to the door.. they close at 8.. phew.. okay. I grab a buggy and head down the aisle where I saw them and YES they are still there.. but even better, they were 9.99 last week and this week they are only 6.99 YIPPEE.. my GF Marie happen to call me on my dash so I got her one too.....

and since I was there.................

I'm not quite sure what the thing is with 5 pedestals but I could see candles on it.. I got a shelf and wooden bowls

plus...

a couple picture frames, the white wooden holder thingy, an unpainted apple, some wooden schoolbooks, the metal tin, another shelf.. and

A wooden cutting board, a little wallhanging cup, a wooden handle thing and the cheese platter with a wooden squared dish around it.

The speckled hen just tickles me.. he kinda reminds me of Elliot from Pete's Dragon lol. Ok.. I'm off to paint. I'll be checking back in later. Toodles....

Nights in Rodanthe...

2009-02-11T08:50:00.003-05:00

Did anyone else read the book then see the movie? I was sooo disappointed.. I loved the book, I read it in one day I was so engrossed in the story and I was excited for the movie to come out. I love Richard Gere and Diane Lane together. It's one of the few times I went to see a movie on opening weekend. Me and my GF walked in the theater, bought our popcorn, sat down and suddenly I remembered I forgot to bring in the tissues I just KNEW I was going to need so I saved the popcorn napkins. But I didnt' need them. They left out so much of the story that MADE the story in the book. Don't you just hate that? I won't say what they left out for those of you that haven't read the book yet.. but the book is a must read, it's sooo much better. Ok.. done with my rant.. I just saw the preview that it was out at Redbox so it made me think of it.. lol.

I am going to double post today because I had some AWESOME finds at the thrift store yesterday but they are still in the car so I'll post again later this afternoon.

Oh.. and my cabinets I primed all nice and black/red.. my 20 yo claimed them for her apartment :( I have such mixed emotions.. I was proud as a peacock when she admired them when she came home over the weekend (so I could do her laundry...lol) but as she left she claimed them for her own saying how great they would look in her kitchen. She does have limited space.. but.. but.. but.. they were mine..............the things we sacrifice for our children.

Have a gread day and I'll post again later today to show you my goodies.

Pay it Forward...

2009-02-10T22:01:00.004-05:00

I'm back!! Sorry I haven't answered some of you but again DH was home so I didn't even check the computer because he was only home for 3 days.. but I"m back and it's time to play catch up. I have decided to join the fun and play along with the Pay It Forward game that has begun. The concept is simple.. the first 5 people that comment to this post that state they wish to play will receive a handmade or store bought gift by me.. I will send them a note asking for their likes/dislikes and sometime between now and 6/1/09 they will receive a package from me via snail mail. Be sure to include your email so I can send you a note and get your home addy. Those 5 people must post in their blog that they are playing and this will hopefully continue and over time we will all get a goody in the mail. Sound fun? I think so.. if I have confused you just let me know.. **The only requirement to participate is that you MUST make the same offer on your blog**. A small gift goes a long way towards lifting the spirits of a total stranger who quickly becomes a friend. We all love to get gifties in the mail.. it doesn't have to be anything big.. just something to fit the other person.. it's up to you.

It's late and my computer is acting up so I am going to hit the hay and then sit here in the morning with my coffee and catch up with you.. my friends. Night ladies :)

Hugs,

Working on the old and in with the new....

2009-02-05T16:32:00.010-05:00

I've been working on the projects I showed you from the TS and so far here is where what I have done.. these were the white cabinets..

eeek.. funny how you don't see things till you take a picture.. I forgot to paint the legs. lol.. it's a work in progress.

and this was the frame

This is a copy of a photo of me and my big brothers.. gotta love the plaid.. lol. The original was buried with our mother. I'm so glad someone thought to copy the picture before we put it in the casket. It'll be 20 years this April :(.. it never gets easier.. ok.. not gonna cry.. not gonna cry.....breathe...................continue.

I'm still working on the candle holders I purchased.. BUT I did come across a couple other good finds.. lol.. ready? Check these out..

I can't wait to use the sewing basket.. I can sooo invision that sitting beside my chair and all my lil goodies hidden inside.. and I've always wanted a cranberry scoop and now I have one. Oh.. and don't you just love the ducks? LOL.. those will be the first thing ripped off.

And last but not least.. the chocolate pan did work.. my buddy Marie and I made the dough recipe and added 1/4 cup cocoa and they came out looking like chocolates.. what do ya think?

I'm going to play around a little more with it but not bad for the first try. Hope you all are having an awesome Thursday!!

Thrift Finds and Grungy Candles...

2009-02-03T08:18:00.006-05:00

Well, I didn't get to post yesterday because I was so busy trying to redo my thrift market finds. Here's what I got..

The white cabinets were reallllly ugly and had green flowery contact paper on the shelves.. so I ripped it out and started painting them black but then I ran out of paint so I had to run to the store.. but running to the store from where I live is like saying your going to Siberia "be right back".. lol.. I am in the middle of nowhere.. so off to the store I went.. I got home 3 hours later because I had to stop at just one more thrift store while I was in town and got a few more goodies which I will post later. Anyway.. I finished the black paint and was able to get one coat of barn red on them before it got dark sooo.. that's todays project. But.. I did make my first grubby candle yesterday!! Yeah.. I was soooo excited.. I've been drooling over everyone else's blogs and all their grubbiness and I wanted to have some... and I found a tutorial over at Char's.. I learn soooo much from her site.. here's the link....THE PICKLED PEPPER PATCH: "Tuesday's Tutorial & My new Etsy Shop!" .. here's how mine turned out.. I'm a proud lil' mama.

Can you believe the flavors International Delight comes up with? Chocolate Eclair.. YUMMY! I love flavored coffee but my DH doesn't.. so this is my compromise.. and I'm enjoying a cup right now.. Heaven.

And last but not least.. my new find from Williams-Sonoma.. normally I just drool (heh.. I'm beginning to think I need a bib) walking through that store but I found this brownie pan that says "chocolate" on the bottom and when you cut them it looks like little chocolate bars.. and that got me thinking of the cinnamon buns I made from ***For the LOVE of Prims***: MiNi-CiNnI bUnS rEcIpE & A sMiLe AwArD :) I wonder if I put cocoa in the recipe if I could make them look like mini candy bars... anyone know of a good chocolate dough recipe? That was something that made me say "hmmmm"..

I'll post pics later of my new thrifty finds and what I've done with yesterday's treasures.. Have an awesome Tuesday!!!

The Best Chicken Salad EVER!!

2009-02-01T20:39:00.002-05:00

I haven't had much to post this week, hubby was off so we had some "us" time.. so I thought I'd give ya'll a recipe I have. It's from a deli I use to frequent.. I lived for this stuff and a disgruntled ex employee gave the recipe to a local credit union for their cookbook.. so now I can have it any time I want at a fraction of the cost.. yippee.. I half this recipe.. but it would be great for a luncheon or get together.. let me know if you try it, I think this is heaven.........

Chicken Salad

6 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 head chopped celery
1 cup chopped roasted pecans
1 large white onion
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
1/4 cup whole grain mustard
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. dried thyme
1 Tbsp. dried dill
1 Tbsp. garlic salt
1/2 Tbsp. white pepper
1/2 Tbsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. sea salt

Combine mustard, mayonnaise, thyme, dill, garlic salt, pepper, nutmeg and sea salt.. mix thoroughly then add chicken, celery, onion, cranberry and pecans and stir to coat. Serve over lettuce leaves or on croissants (my favorite). I doubt you'll have much left over.. this stuff is addicting!

Now that hubby is back to work, I can get back to crafting tomorrow so I'll keep you posted. Have a great week everyone.

Stella

Letter Holder Finished!!!

2009-01-26T12:11:00.005-05:00

Well, I did sit back and try to forget the little black dot and what I was going to do it with.. which we know how it is to forget something when you "try" lol... anyway, I ended up painting a heart on it then sanded it to distress it some. I don't think it turned out too badly. Not exactly what I had in mind but from a distance I don't think anyone would know how much stress it cost me..lol. Here it is finished......

While I was brainstorming what to do with the tile, I made Char's Love is in the Air Pinkeep.. and notice the brown spot in the "v"? Yup.. I am here to attest she is correct about watching it in the microwave.. it was that last 30 seconds.. it was perfect.. just a little damp so I gave it one more go.. wrong... but since I am using mine for decoration in my bedroom I decided to use it as is... it's a little crusty in places but I like it.

Thank you Janene, Char, Picket and Kath for commenting about my post.. I am loving it here!!!!

I need some guidance

2009-01-24T23:42:00.006-05:00

I need some guidance.. I am working on my letter/key holder that I posted about yesterday but I don't know what to do with the round tile circle.. I painted it black...then brown..then antique white and now it's black again.. I can't figure out what to do with it.. here's where I'm at.. any ideas?

I haven't stained it or anything yet until I know what I'm doing with it. I would love any help anyone wants to lend.. The photo frame on the right is from Char's blog THE PICKLED PEPPER PATCH she posted this awesome project yesterday to make primitive framed poems.. this was the only wooden frame I could find (we moved and most of my stuff is still in boxes.. pout).. but I think it turned out pretty cute.. I chose a saying on contentment because I once told my DH of 24 years I was content.. He didn't really appreciate it.. but I meant in the best of ways.. it was a happy content.. does that make sense? I'm hoping this verse will say it better then I did... it says "Contentment is not the fulfillment of what you want but the realization of how much you already have." That's what I meant.... really. :) I thought I'd give this to him for Valentine's Day.. he is always kidding me about being "content". I kinda panicked when I saw how the tea stain kinda floated around the crow.. but then it grew on me.. I like it. What do you think? I'm likin this prim thang.....

Freaky Friday

2009-01-23T20:33:00.009-05:00

Ok.. this blew me away.. I was spending my day trolling blogs and I came upon Janene at Primitive Lifestyle and look at her kitchen...

now mine

side by side

she even has my fridge

Just kinda blows me away.. but I like her taste. Ha!

Also, I saw that Janene has begun a challenge Primitive Lifestyle: Are You Ready to Accept A New Blog Challenge??? and I've decided to give it a whirl.. though I know nothing yet about painting anything prim.. I am looking at the blogs and picking up tips.. this will be my first attempt.

I ran across this old letter sorter/key holder.. I am going to attempt to make it "prime". Cross your fingers for me...

2009-01-22T20:52:00.004-05:00

Well, I didn't get any sewing done today but I did discover "another" new obsession.. lol. I made these today using the directions I found on .. ***For the LOVE of Prims***: MiNi-CiNnI bUnS rEcIpE & A sMiLe AwArD :) these were so simple and they turned out great.. I already fooled my son. Wasn't planning to but it ended up being a double bonus.. ha. He thought they were real. They do smell heavenly and I love the display.. I just need to add a little filler and tada... awesomeness...

2009-01-19T23:13:00.004-05:00

Yeah.. I sewed today.. lol. I made 2 towels for my kitchen...

And I made a change purse for me.. as you can see I LOVE coffee fabrics.. and chocolate.. cakes.. anything food related really...

Hopefully tomorrow will be productive too.. I really need to start my UFO's.. but these fast projects are giving me my groove back.. lol. Yeah!!!!

2009-01-18T00:28:00.003-05:00

Gosh.. where has the month gone. It feels like we just celebrated New Years and the month is already half over. I have yet to make any project for this month. Sad. Ok.. this week is definitely it.. I'm going to drag out my sewing machine and make my travel case. I don't know what's wrong with me.. lol.. I have everything to do it, I just haven't. Beginning to see a pattern here ladies? Ha.. I have such good intentions but I always find a way to get sidetracked and never seem to get anything done. I am going to do better this year.. I'm only two weeks into it so there is plenty of time to change. I still have hope.. or was it faith?.. lol.

I think a lot of my problem is that we moved to the country and I had these grand ideas for the old farmhouse on our property.. that was suppose to be my play house. The whole top floor was going to be my sewing haven and now I have two 20something children living over there and my stuff is still in boxes so when I want to do something I have to dig through the boxes to find what I need.. it's driving me insane and by the time I am finally ready I am beat. I never thought I would dream to be an empty nester.. ha. I love my kids.. but .. well.... I wanna play!!!

Ok.. got my frustrations out. Tomorrow I WILL sew!!! Night ladies.

2009-01-03T17:53:00.004-05:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! It's a new year and I'm ready. Wow, was there a lot happening last year. I am soo glad that is over. Time to clear the slate and take out those resolutions. I have so much I want to do and this is year I am going to do it. Heh, ok, I can feel my buddy rolling her eyes over there at the Speckled Hen and saying "yeah, yeah".. but I am. I have so much fabric, patterns, buttons.. etc, etc.. and this is year I am going to create. It's finally MY year. Kids are grown.. so, I vow to make this year my year. I'll keep you posted along the way. Maybe ask for advise from time to time.. but mostly.. I will cherish your friendship. Let's all pull up a chair and have some tea and get to know each other a lil better. Here's to us!

This is going to be my first project.. yeah, I got all those UFO's.. but I like this one. It's a travel bag that holds a u-shaped pillow, a book, water and a place for your tickets for travelling.. I don't travel very often... but you never know when you might need one. Heh. I got it from Annie at Patterns for Fashion Accessories it's the last pattern on the page.. she was awesome to work with and I ordered on Friday and had my pattern by Monday.. who could ask for more? Thanks Annie!!! What are you working on?

2008-12-25T13:52:00.002-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Gosh, I can't believe my little guy is already a year old. This is "Gammy" and Caiden as we celebrated Christmas Eve. Isn't he just the cutest lil thing? He just cracks me up, as you can see. I hope you all are having the best christmas ever.

2008-12-22T13:18:00.002-05:00

Ok.. I'm back. Life kinda got in the way with my blogging. Ha. To update my last entry... I don't know what I did wrong with the bread but when I went to get it out of the bread machine it was a yeasty soggy goop.. so, I had to scratch that and made the recipe on the back of the flour bag, that was a winner. It's called "Rustic Italian Bread".. I just enjoyed the last piece this morning with my coffee.. yum. The granola is a must have too. I've been mixing that with some yogurt in the morning. I'm feeling pretty good here. And... thanks to Angela I was able to finally get a label made for my quilt and got it sewn on this morning and now I'm off to the post office. Here's a picture.. what do ya think? I'm kinda proud of myself.. Hopefully 09' will be the best year ever and I can finally get myself on track.. which track is still a mystery though.. lol. Have a great day and I'll be back bloggin soon. Much love...........

2008-12-17T12:28:00.002-05:00

Ever just have one of those days? I woke up this morning with new inspiration, maybe this blog is just what I need to keep me motivated.. I mean, you can't really blog "yeah.. I sat on the couch and watched soaps, Dr. Phil, Ellen, Oprah.. oh, I walked out to get the mail.. woohoo". Heh, so.. trying to stay productive so I got something to say so far today I have a some chicken breasts roasting in the oven along with some potatoes baking (no use wasting energy.. yeah, pat on the back to me, I'm learning), I have granola cooking in the crockpot from A Year of CrockPotting: CrockPot Granola Recipe (this is where I began my post.. I got everything together in the crockpot, stirred, plugged it in and about a half our later I checked.. still looked the same.. duh, I forgot to turn it on......lol), I have rolls whirling away in my bread machine from down---to---earth: Our daily bread and vegies - UPDATED ... AGAIN! and I just brewed a batch of iced tea.. and it's only 12:30. The house smells unbelievable.. so many gorgeous homey aromas going on. Now all I need is my best buddy Marie to come out and we can taste all my goodies. Since moving out to the country we don't get to see each other much anymore but hopefully one day that will be remedied. I miss my buddy :( I cleaned yesterday so I guess I got the rest of the day to work on some crafties.. hmmm, what to work on first. I know, the UFO's are calling.. but I got some new patterns and fabric....sooooooo which should I do? LOL.. I'm sure you know the answer. When all my goodies are done I'll take pics and post and let you know how I did. I need to run to the post office and send out the gifts for the in-laws, then thanks to my buddies at backporchfriends : Quilting and block swaps loved here! I now have some ideas for a label for the quilt I made.. thank you sooo much ladies. Liz, you are soooo awesome. Ok.. I'll be back with pics when I'm done. Have a great day!

2008-12-16T07:58:00.002-05:00

I woke up this morning excited, trying to figure out what I wanted to say "in my little spot in the world" and I drew a blank.. lol. I need to get busy finishing up those last minute christmas presents. I made a quilt for my husband's boss (hopefully that will keep him employed a little longer.. heh), santa placemats for all the in-laws.. I just realized how wrong that is, but anyway it's wayyy too late to try to make more quilts. Add that to next year's goals.. Now can you see why my goals keep getting extended every year? LOL. I have some goals that I have carried over for at least 20 years going now. One day I WILL get to them. Have an awesome, possum day!!

My First Blog

2008-12-15T20:32:00.000-05:00

TADA.. Wow.. here I am world. LOL.. I feel like I did the day I left home at 18. Well, maybe not exactly that drastic but this is a big move for me. I am usually just a lurker but after a bit of prodding from Angela at The Country Cellar I finally made my own blog. I usually sit for hours and read the exploits of others and now I have my own home to write my own. The first blog I read was of woman who moved to Maine after a divorce, (I can't remember the link but if I find it I will post it later) I followed every thread of her life, I laughed at her antics of chasing bats and I think I "awe'd" along with her as she described seeing her first Moose. I don't know if my blog is going to be that inspiring but I hope I can reach you in some way to make you feel at home. My name is Stella, hence the name Stellar Creations, I dabble in a lot of crafties.. definitely a master at none.. ha! My problem is I tend to get frustrated when I encounter a problem with a project, and instead of trying to fix it I just throw it in the UFO pile and start another. I think I could run a craft store just with the fabrics/buttons/zippers/paint/etc. etc. etc. that I have invested in my so-called UFOs. I've been reading a blog down---to---earth: November 2008 in hopes of being more "green" and simplifying my life.. my 09' goal is to finish ALL my UFO's.. heh.. I think that was last years too.. but, cross your fingers for me.. I still got faith.. well.. let's go with hope, faith was last year too. LOL.