She's back . . .

Lily was gone for 3 weeks . . . and came back home this past Friday.  Oh how we missed her!  Her first day back was a day of hugs, swimming, squirt guns, and a bucket of goodies that  included nail polish.

She painted her mama's toenails . . .

 . . . and what wonderful colors to choose from.

She takes her nail polishing very serious.

 . . . and does a pretty good job.

OK - maybe not so serious all of the time.  How I missed this face.

Big decision here . . . what color should I paint Papa's nails . . . ????

He's a pretty good sport - but I think he agreed to this only because you can peel the nail polish off as soon as it dries. 

So good to have our Lily Bug back home!

4th of July

Hung up my large flag for the 4th of July . . . I think I may just leave it up for awhile.  I really like how it looks.  (Although I think I am going to have to move that line running around the house.)  Our weather has been so beautiful.  Usually by now - our temperatures are upper 90's and over 100 by this time of year.  I don't really mind the heat - but upper 80's and 90's with a breeze has been wonderful and I am going to love my gas and electric bill this month - haven't had to run the AC much at all.

We are going to BBQ today of course - may have to make an apple pie. 

Trash to Treasure Tuesday . . .

I don't have a trash picture . . . (I tend to forget to take a picture of the junk that I start out with) . . . This mirror came off an old dresser that a friend had given me.  I had thought about turning the dresser into an outdoor buffet (it was a monster) - but it just seemed like too much work at the time and I did not have a place to store it.  So I kept the mirror even though it wasn't anything really special.  I decided to hang it outside - but had to get rid of the ugly stain and peeling varnish.  So again - simple flat black paint, some sanding, and some stain.

It isn't hanging up yet - obviously . . . too heavy for me to do alone.  I have another larger mirror that I am deciding what to do with.  I think I need a barn - so I can gather up old junk and have a place to store it until I decide what to do with it.  On the other hand . . . good thing I don't have a barn - I would definitely gather up old junk and store it until I did something with it.  I really enjoy and get satisfaction from taking something old and worn out and making it new again.

Shower invites

Finally came up with these invitations to use for Abbie's baby shower.  I printed the poem on a pink paper though - had to have more PINK!  The poem may be too small here to read - but it basically asks the guest to bring a book for the baby instead of a card and start a library for her.  I loved that idea!

I included a book mark with each invitation.  I found these templates on Martha Stewart's site - liked the book idea and the simplicity of them.  They decided on a name . . . Charlotte.  Before that Luke and Abbie were calling her Bito (bun in the oven).  They used that enough - I'm wondering if that won't be a nickname that sticks once little Charlotte is here. 

Weekend stuff

We found this great little bakery on Friday. 

We weren't looking for a bakery - but it was next door to the place we were going.  Too cute not to check out.  Not a full bakery I guess - mainly cupcakes.

They had a great selection of cupcakes . . . it was hard to decide what to get.

We went with the French Toast and Bacon.  Delicious!  Now I want to go back and try some others . . . I am thinking I will try the Salted Caramel one next time.

 We spent the weekend doing things around the house.  I had this old cabinet that I painted, stained, and gave it a new look.

I have done this to a few pieces of old furniture that I have found . . . just painted it with flat black paint.  Sand the edges to expose some wood - then go over with stain.  Easy, inexpensive, and I love how they look.

Richard went to work with a chainsaw and turned the trunk of a tree that we had cut down into a couple of benches for the back yard.

 We got so much done in the yard.  We weeded flower beds and brought in quite a bit of dirt.  I think we were both exhausted by the time we finished up on Sunday. 

Summer Soltice

The first day of summer . . . and the longest day of the year.  I, along with a friend decided to make every moment count today.  So we started the day off on the roof of our office - watching the sun rise. 

This particular friend is much younger than me . . . but that doesn't seem to matter.  What I love about her the most is, when you talk about getting up and getting to work before 5:00 in the morning and climbing up a ladder onto the roof to watch the sunrise . . . it makes perfect sense to her. 

I haven't posted much lately - busy in a good way both at work and at home.  I have been working on some projects - and making progress.  I just have too many irons in the fire to post about any of them yet.  I hate that because I like to post about the things I make and do . . . but it's coming.

HAVE AN AWESOME DAY!

good stuff

So OK . . . this tomato is somewhat small- but I just had to taste a fresh tomato from the garden.

Our tomato plants are huge - but don't seem to be producing as much as usual.  Although, this sweet, little, sun-kissed tomato tasted wonderful!

Fresh fruit and vegetables seem to taste better than ever.  It must be summer! 

the past week

This week flew by.  I work at an elementary school and today is the last day of school - which means this week is probably the most chaotic week all year.  I don't mind - I function very well in that type of chaos . . . and the week has flown by.  I find myself looking at the clock at the end of each work day wishing I had  few more hours to get things done.  (Really? - why would I wish for more time to work?)  One way or another - it always gets done.

So as the week flew by . . . we still had time for rescuing baby birds, finishing a pink beanie (finally), attending an art exhibit with a painting of our sweet Sadie, and most important - seeing Lily Bug and Owen.  Looking forward to the weekend . . .

little girl colors

For some reason this little beanie gave me trouble from the moment I started it.  A simple little beanie - and I've made dozens of them . . . but at first I was off on the count as I increased each row.  Not a big thing when it comes to a simple little beanie - I could have just kept crocheting, but being slightly OCD - that doesn't work for me.  When I finally got it going right - the yarn had a big dirty section.  Again not a big deal - just cut the yarn and keep going.  When I decided to use the eyelet - I grabbed the wrong piece after I had cut it to fit and sewed on a piece that was too short (something I didn't discover until I was nearly done).  I take this as a sign that I need to spend more time doing stuff like this. 

I like the eyelet trim. 

You can' really tell from the photo - but this hydrangea is the biggest one I have ever seen.  A little girl gave it to me at work this morning.  They are her favorite flower - and she knows how much I like them too.  She told me that when she is grown up she is going to plan her wedding around the time of year that their hydrangeas are in bloom. 

Babies . . .

It was a wonderful, busy weekend.  Friday night a local art exhibit which included a water color painting of Sadie and some great Mexican food after.  Saturday included a bridal shower for my friends daughter and a wedding.  We were gone all day.

So today we stayed home . . . and with the temperatures nearing 100 - we convinced Lily to get into the water.  The first time in with me - she was hesitant . . . later Kasey took her in and before we knew it she was jumping to Kasey from the side of the pool, and getting her face in the water.  She had a blast!

We had both Lily and Owen visiting today.  Lily loves helping with him.  This always makes for a great day! 

Lily got a new pillow case dress from Richard's boss.  She sells these on-line - along with some other things here . . . Just Precious Boutique

At first Lily didn't want to try it on - then decided it was ok.  As soon as she got it on she said to me,  "Clare Helen, I want to show everyone." 

This picture just makes me smile! 

One last baby . . . caused a bit of excitement this morning.  We noticed a female blue jay acting quite aggressive with one of our cats.  At first we didn't think much about it - just sort of wondered if the bird would be sorry if she kept it up.  Abbie walked outside and noticed a baby blue jay next to a rock in the front yard.  I am not sure if our cat had spotted it yet - I am thinking not since it was still alive. The mother bird was determined to keep the cat away from her baby.  So what to do . . . It wasn't hurt and seemed very healthy - but wasn't quite ready to fly and even if we knew where the nest was - we probably would not be able to reach it.  So we ended up taking a hanging basket - lined with a towel, some twigs, and some leaves and hung the basket up in the tree.  The baby fell out a few more times and the mother would come and go.  But she did eventually find the baby in the basket and seemed to be feeding it.  So we are hoping for the best. 

3 month check-up

Me sitting at the dermatologist yesterday . . . back for my 3 month check up.  She biopsied two moles again. (Better safe than sorry).  As much as I have tried to stay out of the sun - and wear sunscreen, I can still see the tan lines on my feet from my flip flops.  (I guess I need to be even more careful).  As always - I will be glad to get the results back from the biopsies.

Looking forward to the weekend and the last week of school.  Oh yeah - love the color of my toenails!

Portrait of Sadie

Our neighbor was outside one day while Sadie was out with us.  She took a couple of photos of her and told us she was going to paint Sadie for one of her classes.  Even better - her painting made it into an art exhibit at Fresno State - and we are invited to a reception.  Richard works in the building where the art exhibit is displayed - so he sent me this picture this morning.  I made the comment that it really looked like her - but did not capture Sadie's sweetness . . . he laughed and pointed out that I may be somewhat partial.  She is the sweetest dog - she deserves to have her portrait in an exhibit.  I can't wait to go see it!

3 lovey days off!

Here's to three day weekends and swinging three year olds!

braided bracelets

These bracelets are so fun and easy to make that I had to make a few more last night.  I find myself wanting to cut up my clothes in order to have some fun colors to work with.

Now that I have a bunch of t-shirt strips cut I would also like to try crocheting with it.  All kinds of ideas swirling around in my head . . . 

Have an OK day!

Telephone doodles . . . I tend to doodle when I am on the phone - then tuck them away to use in my journal later.  Doodly, Doodly, Doo!

"When you realize how perfect everything is

you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky."  ~Buddha

 . . . OK - so honestly, PERFECT??? - probably not, but somehow things always work out . . . and laughing at the sky seems to be a good idea every once in awhile!