cos its been a few days

i've been enjoying my quiet whilst the family is doing beach. And i've been accomplishing a few things... mostly Suzy things. But a few other things as well. I can't show them yet but i will soon. Let's say i'm having a good old time making ATC's (artist trading cards - similar to the ones i've posted previously except these ones aren't heritage.) Anyway it's been very quiet. I did have my Mom over for a few hours on Sunday but other than that its been quiet. No one around to distract me - well except my cats. My one cat, Frankie is our krazy kittie. He will show up at breakfast time and hover closeby hoping to get to lick my cereal bowl. Then he'll go off for a few hours and I won't see him until he's decided it's time for a snack. He loves Pounce. Then he's off again sometimes not even bothering to come around at dinnertime. He knows Holly will make sure dinner is waiting for him. How does she do this you ask? Well she'll go to the pantry door and meow. If i'm not in the kitchen area she will find me and meow. Obviously she doesn't wear a watch but her time keeping skills are impeccable. She knows when its dinner time. If standing and meowing by the pantry door fails - she then goes to her food dish and meows then takes a bite - as if to say - hey this bowl is almost empty - time to fill it up! If that doesn't work she'll return to the pantry. And wait. If i'm really preoccupied (ususally i'm making food for everyone else about that time) Holly will become a total pest doing a combination of all the above. The meowing gets a yelling quality to it. She is quite a character. Isn't she adorable? She is, as Eloise would say, my mostly companion. And I just love her to pieces.
Oh - while everyone was gone I rented myself a movie - Vera Drake. (yes Barbara i got it) It is an amazing movie - and if you visit the website and listen to the interview with the director you find out that there was no script for the movie - they make it up as they go along - which makes it even more incredible. Yes it is political but it is extremely thought provoking and worth watching - although not for children. ok... i'm off to run some errands. Everyone is coming back today.

I'm pooped

Howaboutchoo?
It's been a busy but productive day. I thought i'd stop in before i go grab a quick nap.
First off - i finally got my car fixed and inspected.
YEAH! (the crowd cheers and its deafening!)
I waited for a call this morning from the repair place - they called around 10:30 and said yes we now have the parts so come on over.
You don't have to tell me twice. They took care of it and in no time i was headed down to the gas station where we do our inspections (yes. that's how they do it in Virginia. crazy) Of course after i maneuvered past the 4 cars waiting for emissions testing there was only one car in the inspection line - with a sign on the back that said "Last car before Lunch Break". sigh
I went home for an hour and then the daughter and I headed out to get a few things done.
Dropped her off at Michaels hair place - she was in desperate need of a haircut. And then i headed down the street to the gas station. (Daughter would walk down to the station when she was done.)
This time there are 4 cars in the inspection line and the emissions lane was closed. A sign for that said "Emission machine down". I thought - good thing i don't need emissions this year! So i get in line (if you could only see the line - its on the side of the gas station which is situated on the corner of a very busy intersection in town. You say a little prayer your car isn't gonna get hit by either the traffic - cos the butt of your car is sticking out into traffic - or by someone inside the perimeter of the gas station. good times.)
The line moved fairly quickly - but considering it was 93 degrees and NOT in the shade - i was feeling a tad toasty. Yes, I turn off the car while i wait. (of course the guy in the very large SUV 2 cars back kept his running - yegods man have you heard of the ozone?)
I had my washington post style section with me - and today there were 2 crosswords so even with the heat i was distracted.
The car ahead of me had reached the miracle yellow line - means you're up next. The guy goes over to her car - she gets out - and he takes it and I move up. Then i see the guy come back out, go get the girl and i hear him saying "you don't need an inspection - you need emissions."
I thought that poor girl - she'd been waiting a bit longer than me (with her car off).
When the guy came over to me - MY TURN - he said the girl didn't read or speak English well so she had no idea what that sign said.
My turn lasted less than 10 minutes and i was paying my fee and up walks the daughter - can it get any better than this? i don't think so!
We headed off to Target - picked up the things we needed and we headed home - as Babar says "happy with our purchases".
I finished a little album i made for my husband for his birthday tomorrow- check it out

And today is my son's birthday - 21. impossible to believe. He won't be home today - but we'll see him on Thursday. Here's a card i made for him - i wanted to try and make some faux postage for the stamping event they were having over at 2peas all weekend. I hadn't done any faux in a while so i thought why not. It got a little busy with the words but yaknow - he won't care. And i had fun making it - I got to use this wonderful stamp Sue - ozzigirl gave me a while back - the postage cancellation that has my son's birthdate on it - so i was really happy. Sue you're a peach and I love this stamp! can't wait to use it on something for the daughter as her name is right there too!

Another ATC

i'm thinking a lot about beach these days. The husband and daughter (who will rendezvous with the son) are heading off to the beach house on Thursday. The yearly trek to "do beach" as they say in my husbands family. I think i've mentioned that he and his siblings own a lovely house in Bethany (that's Delaware for all you non east coasters). At this time of year - 'round 4th of July - they descend upon that house. It is rather a hoard. My husband has 4 sisters, 1 brother and they all have children. Our kids grew up at the beach (at one house or another then this one since it was built a number of years ago). And the kids have indeed grown up. One has married, one is engaged and in our case - one is turning 21 years old tomorrow (freakmeout ... still.... i cannot believe he is this old as I have not aged in the least - the only thing that would give me away, i daresay, is artfully taken care of by my wonderful Michael - the best hairstylist in the burg LOL) Those of you who know me know I do not partake of the insanity that is the beach house during this 4th of July holiday time. The family gets together en masse twice a year and i cannot bow out during Christmas. It's just not allowed (and strangely enough then everyone is cooped up in one house - talk about claustrophobic pour moi - cos the weather is not conducive to having Christmas outdoors on this side of the world - even if they were comin to Virginia... but i digress. as ususal)

Anyway - they will be heading out to the beach. They'll have a fabulous time and i do wish i could stand all that togetherness (we're talking over 30 people here folks - it is a large house) but their yearly time away gives me a little time off - to just be me. Not someone's wife or mom. (Yes, I'm still the good daughter but hey) So it's good.

I thought i'd share a little ATC i made a while back. The little boy at the center is my father. Wasn't he just a cutie? I am sure the beach involved is either in NY or NJ. That's where my dad, and then I, grew up - there are no beaches like those beaches. Don't even say it - I don't care. They are the beaches of all my memories so they will always be the best. My Dad was an only child (something he would say was the worst thing you could do to a kid - he said it - not me). My grandparents are there in the background - the back row in the center. The pic is one of those in that pile of photos my mom gave me. My Dad loved the beach. I grew to like it less and less (possibly because I got burned every time I went) but now I wish I could go spend a few quiet days there. Sans the hoard that is the family. We've done that other years. Take a week at the beach house to ourselves. But - not to be this year.

Ok... enough of my blabbering for one day.

It's late and i should be in bed

but when did that ever stop me.
I thought I'd just drop in here and say i appreciate all the kind comments. I feel pretty good about posting my drawings now. Way back when, I started this blog just for that purpose. I have gotten braver along the way by posting other things i make but the drawings have taken a while to be posted. Perhaps cos the drawing is so close to my heart.
Anyway - i appreciate your encouragement.
Onward - we just watched a little movie - Miss Potter. About the life of Beatrix Potter. The movie started out a little flakey. I thought - are they going to make her seem like a total crazy woman? If you rent it you'll see what I mean. But after the first 10 minutes or so into the movie, it settled in nicely telling her story. She was pretty amazing for a woman of her day. Very ahead of her time. And she was quite an artist. It's a sweet movie and i would venture most people don't know a lot about her life. If you're at all inclined, rent it. It's very enjoyable - for the scenery alone. Ah - i dream of living in such a place. Absolutely gorgeous countryside to be seen in that movie. I hope to go there one day to see it for myself.

Rejection - Literally

For the past week we've been trying to get my van inspected and have it pass. Not happening folks. I swear I'm frustrated. We knew that when i got a little ding in my windshield months ago we'd have to take care of it. We watched as the crack got larger and were fascinated (i must admit) to see the direction it would take. When my husband went to get the car inspected the weekend before last the guy at the station said you know I can't pass the car with that crack. (Of course we knew this but we were stalling getting it repaired until we had to.. now we had to.) So we got it fixed the very same Saturday. But too late to go back then to get it reinspected. So this past weekend my husband returns to get it inspected and darn if there wasn't another problem - 2 problems. I don't even pretend to know exactly what they were but they had to do with brake shoes and lug nuts or sumpin. Anyway - Saturday we leave the car at the repair place. They can't finish. Give us a loaner (which i don't even want to use for fear it might break down). We pick the car up on Monday night and Tuesday was busy with orthodontia appointments and other things I couldn't get done on Monday. So today i decide to run by the inspection place and the line isn't too long so i say - great. Let's get this outta the way. The nice guy takes the car and i sit on the designated bench - with my Washington Post crossward puzzle. I get down about 6 answers and I hear "Ma'm can I see you over here for a minute". Long and the short - its not fixed up to VA standardss. I am annoyed.
So i call the dh and leave him a message and whilst I wait i start this little drawing. I'm done with it too. I hate leaving things undone but I also like working on stuff I like and this just aggravates me to now end. As I was waiting for my husband's return call, and as i was writing inthe word REJECTION it came to me that the Illustration Friday theme this week was Rejection. I'd been thinking earlier in the week what i'd like to do and it had gone out of my head. Well this is enough rejection for one week. I think i'll let my husband take care of those guys at the repair place (cos I swear if I talk to them ... well it won't be pretty. and we know i like pretty)

Drawing #32

what's this? I'm trying my best to fit drawing in everyday. I'd joined the Everyday Matters group a while ago. If you're not familiar, check out the Everyday Matters blog.But it was hard to keep up. I'm going to do my best this time. We'll see how it goes. There is a list of items to draw to as a challenge. (And we all know how I like a list. )

So here's my first drawing. Probably not the smartest choice - drawing something metallic but I had out my Quickutz Zoe font on Sunday to make that card. The tin was still sitting out on my drawing table yesterday and there you are. The drawing has a few problems. I could sit here and pick it apart but you have eyes, right? LOL All in all, however, I'm pleased. I haven't been drawing in this manner for a while. I posted that drawing I'd done a while back (see my Picnic post and it made me want to get back to this level of my drawing. Ok.

Father's Day

I posted an ATC I'd made yesterday about my Dad. I think about him every day so everyday is father's day in my heart.

Today I thought I'd post a card I made for my husband. The father of my children.

We seem to be a little nostalgic of late - my husband and me.

Our kids are getting older. I'm sure that's the reason.

Anyway I decided I would use a few photos of our kids - when they were babies.

The one photo on the right is a little dark - so you may not be able to see it too well. But i chose both of these 'cos I wanted the pictures to be ones in which he's playing with them. I have vivid memories of him playing with both of our kids.

(Actually he'll play with all kids if you give him an opportunity - he's really just a big kid himself. Thank goodness we have so many nieces and nephews so he can get a kid fix.)

No matter how tired he was when he'd come home - he would always play with them. He has and did have infinite patience. I remember one incident in particular. Our son was a very colicky baby. The child screamed for hours on end in the early months. My husband would get home and I would have had it. He would take our son and just walk him and talk to him. This particular time I'm thinking of we had the television on in the background. Some beauty pageant was on - Miss America or Miss Universe. Anyway, my husband had our son in his arms and was walking up and down the hallway - sort of half listening to the program. Taking a peek when he'd reach the end of the room where the TV was situated. Anyway our son had finally calmed down but my husband didn't dare stop walking. They were introducing contestants (lets say it was Miss Venezuela... i don't know who it was now - it coulda been any one of them). The announcer said "here's Miss Venezuela" and my son just screamed. My husband just kept walking and said something like "well okay now. if you don't like her all you had to do was say so..." and it was just so funny.

So the card is for him to remember that "then and now" he's a wonderful father. There is no more walking the hallway - but there is chauffering a daughter, and talking via cellphone with a son who is away at school about all kinds of issues. And there are silly things like watching a tv show together (in case you weren't aware - The 4400 - is on tonite. I know where my husband and daughter will be - sitting on the couch - watching together. It is their very favorite show. And its cute as can be to watch them watching together.)

I hope you all have a wonderful Father's Day.

It's Father's Day weekend

and as i am thinking of my father i will share a little atc i made about him

it's not a new one but its daddy-related and thats good enough this weekend for me

i gessoed a playing card and added some color (that pale aqua color) and printed out the photo on a transparency then attached it to the card.

isn't it just the sweetest picture? it was among the pile of photos my mom had and let me borrow to scan. There were a number of photos of my father as a little boy - they were all photos that had been my grandmother's. (that's a story for another day - when i looked thru a pile of her photos and found such sweet things - she saved things like my fathers lunchbox, a report card or two, a postcard from my parents on their honeymoon, a letter my brother wrote to her as a little boy - just the sweetest and most telling things)

Anyway this one is for my daddy. next up is the father of my children.

fathers day is approaching

so i needed to make a card for my father-in-law.

I need to make one for my husband too i think but hey i have a few more days

anyway i didnt spend too much time on this one

i need to get it in the mail yaknow?

i used Purple Onion Designs stamps - natch

the Four Score Small Alpha for "DAD" and the wonderful paisley stamps for the background. And i used my zipemate die to cut out the slide mount out of a scrap of Basic Grey i still had hanging around (gosh i love Basic Grey - that pattern was in the first edition they put out i believe - maybe the second - but its such great man-lee paper!)

Picnic

I was in need of a piece of bristol paper yesterday for another

project so i went to my closet where i keep my paper and pulled out that pad of paper.

And i discovered this drawing i'd done a few years ago.

I was very enamored with quilts at the time.

Heck i still am

Quilt patterns fascinate me

as does all pattern

(why i love all the scrapbooking paper)

Anyway i thought i would share this drawing with you.

I used prismacolor pencils.

And yes, its unfinished.

Note the few blades of grass at the top I'd left undone.

I'm not sure I will finish it.

I'm thinking i kinda like it as it is

howdy

i've been suzy homemaker most of the day

with a brief stint as suzy scrapbooker

http://suzyscrapbooker.blogspot.com/2007/06/suzys-back-in-town.html

and now i have a few moments to share a card i made over the weekend

finally using that adorable bazzill chip from my friend June

check June's cards out at

http://simplyelegantpapercrafts.blogspot.com/

i also used a cuttlebug embossing folder for the background, and quickutz flowers and alphas

gotta run!

I glue - do you?

i'm talking about glue therapy

yes

glue

back when i was a kid

i'd take the elmers, or modpodge or even the dreaded

scotch tape

and glue things down

my sister and i decorated lots o'shoeboxes in our time with things we clipped out of magazines.

lots of words

not - explore, dream or discover - mind you (3 words on my hit list - along with journey - i've removed awesome from my hit list - have you noticed its not said as much anymore by everyone much to my total delite?... digressing....)

but something akin to that i guess - in that we found words (pictures too) and cut'em out and glued them down - thus giving them more importance then they were originally intended by webster.

ANYWHO yesterday i was in a little bit of a funk - not depressed - and found i needed a little

glue therapy

i didnt realize it really until i was in full therapy mode.

Yes

I'll explain

I have this notebook - your basic black & white hard cover composition book - i've been using to paste my small smackerels into. My bits and pieces.

I have forever clipped things out of newspapers and magazines (see above... since childhood) because i like them. An image or an interesting story, a comic, ann landers/dear abby column... you get the idea. For many years I stuck them to my refrigerator - not all of them - important ones. The others would pile up and i'd move them from place to place. When i'd go into my crazy cleanup mode much of my clippings would end up in the trash - i just couldnt keep them all, no refrigerator was large enough and perhaps i really didnt need it at all. I kept only theeee most important bits and pieces. (smellapackrat? yup) When i was a kid i did paste some things to shoeboxes. I've been known to cover cigar boxes with them too. But over the years this has become unsatisfactory to say the least.

Finally, i had an idea. I had the aforementioned notebook around - so i started glueing things into it. Voila. Now i had one place for my smackerels - nice and tidyish - in a book. when one book gets full i can always fill another and so on. I should note here that i also glue things into my sketchbooks but i didnt want to fill up my sketchbooks (with paper thats meant for lovely drawings, etc ) with these tidbits. that'd be crazy right? (i know, i'm already there) I hate to waste good drawing paper - but composition notebook paper - no problem.

so yesterday i had out my composition book looking through it and decided wouldnt it be nice to cover it with some origami paper i had laying around. In comes the glue therapy. You were wondering weren't you? Ah. I started glueing the scraps of paper down on that cover - and i just don't know how to explain it - but it has a most calming effect on me. I wasnt trying to make a pretty covered book mind you - the result looks more like some kind of crazy quilt. I didnt even use scissors to cut the pieces. i just started laying them down and brushing on the modpodge and it was really quite relaxing. Almost as good as getting into that zone when i'm drawing. Best of all i wasn't trying to make anything pretty - its really kind of a pretty mess - but not something i do if that makes sense. Anyway i guess i'm saying if you need a little time to think things out and you're not sure what to do - try a little glue therapy. there are no rules of course - actually if you try to make something look good whilst you're glueing - you're not doing it right :-)

Happy Day

miss carolyn

hope all your birthday wishes come true

a little birthday card or 3

yeah yeah i'm back on my birthday card kick. i made this one the other day and i should have mailed it today but i missed the darned mailman. crafty thing he is - he came early today. regardless.

i am hoping the recipient likes it. Some pen and prismacolors again this time on white cardstock.

and the two cards below - well i needed some masculine birthday cards. and i had some nice scraps that i thought would fit that bill. (or joes in this case) the sentiment is probably my favorite Purple Onion sentiment stamp ever - its just so cute in that pink flamingo font. and the paisley is also a stamp by Purple Onion. I love that paisley.

My paradise

You know i like to draw and, in fact, i lurk frequently at Illustration Friday. I have never submitted anything there but i thought perhaps this week I might. (translation: fraidy kat) The topic of the week is "Your Paradise". I had a number of things go through my head - and they all had to do with my family. My husband and children.

My son, in particular, has been on the brain lately. This is the first summer he really won't be home. He chose to stay at school, working and taking more credits over the summer. And I find myself missing him a great deal. And not coincidentally his birthday is coming up at the end of the month. It's a big birthday. He'll be 21. This seems impossible. And I thought I would like to do something special for him. Make something special.

So as I was thinking about him, and thinking on my paradise, my thoughts turned to how life was anything but paradise when he was baby. That child cried more than any baby on earth - we were sure of it. He was colicky and he was hungry. He was hungry non-stop. And I was exhausted. Because the one thing he did more than cry and eat was NOT sleep. (This continues to this day - the kid is on wheels. I'd give a lot for just a tenth of his energy!) However, every once in a while, God must have known I was at my wits end. And my beautiful baby would sleep. He often slept with me (hey - i was feeding him all the time - of course he slept with me!)
And on one of those rare occasions my husband snapped a photo that is probably one of my favorites of this child. Him sleeping. So sweet. Angelic. Beautiful. So i used that as my inspiration.
So here is my paradise.
It's momentary, paradise.
But sometimes it makes you appreciate it when you get it all the more.

still making birthday cards

another one which is presently on its way to its destination. i hope she likes it.
same scallop & oval punches.
this time wee cupcake drawn on vellum, colored with prismacolors.
Let's see - anything else for today?
Ah yes.
We watched a very good movie (video on demand - very handy that) on Saturday nite which I forgot to mention.
The Good Shepherd with Matt Damon. I don't remember much hype for it when it first came out. After we watched the movie we thought - what a shame.
Wonderful movie. Although it was long, it really had us going from the very beginning.
Oh and a frivolous little mini-series that I'm thoroughly enjoying thus far : The Starter Wife on USA. Originally hadn't planned on watching and decided why not see what its like. I loved it! The premiere was 2 hours. I believe there are 4 more 1 hour episodes to be shown. If you didnt get to see it - i believe they're reshowing the premiere on Thursday maybe 5-7pm (check your local listings :-)) and then the next installment is on Thursday nite at 9pm. It's just fun mostly (here and there a little sad but mostly fun and entertaining). Oh - if your connection allows it - you can always watch episodes online.
i have some more cards i've made but i'm saving them for tomorrow :-) I need to do some other things so i'm outta here.

Another one with ze scallop

i know i'm a little fixated on this punch but i like it so i'm a gonna use it.
It's such a classic design element.
I know it's very popular right now but really scallops (on circles, ovals, rectangles, and squares) have been around for a long time, right?
And in my case, they're not going away.
Okay. So the other day I mentioned I had two of my sweet card makin friends over for a visit. My dear friends June (hi June!) and Mary (hi Mary!).
Each of us brought an idea for our little get together - so we could actually make something whilst we gabbed.
June brought some adorable Bazzill chips - I'm still working on making a card with mine that does that cute thing justice.
And Mary brought a very cute card -we used a very clever tool by StampinUp! -the mat pack which has a paper piercing template - something i initially would've thought silly to purchase but i think i need one now. it made the piercing so quick and perfectly lined up - worth the $.
Any-who... Mary also brought some delicious little bundt cakes for us to eat. And I decided I would make her a little thank you. I used that scallop oval punch and the corresponding plain oval. I drew the little bundt cake on vellum and colored it with prismacolor pencils and mcpt'd it. I punched out the drawing using that plain oval as well. I wrote the sentiment and cut it out (using my trimmer and and my scissors). Then i curled it with my fingers and used pop dots to keep that curl when i attached it to the card. I also machine stitched all around the patterned paper.
Okay i'm off to finish up some more cards and maybe work in some Suzy stuff today. It's hard fitting in the scrapbooking when i have a lot of cards to do. June is a big month around here - Father's day, both the dh and the ds have birthdays not to mention the fil.
Have a good one!

I love ze scallops

ze fish - oh we had some dee-lish ones at a japanese restaurant last weekend

ze potatoes - i love the cheesy goodness of this scalloped dish

but my favorite scallop of all

ze scallop punch
no thats not some kinda funky drink
its a wonderful punch for paper shtuffs by marvy uchida
Witness the cuteness:

I had ordered these punches months ago. They are quite a popular item - not surprising huh? Scallops have always been a favorite of mine. I used to try and use my scalloped scissors but its difficult on things like ovals kwim?
Anyway, I received them yesterday. It took maybe two minutes out of the packages before I was a punchin fool. (I got the larger scalloped oval punch and a smaller oval punch - they nest one inside the other just right).
For these cards i used my quickutz cupcake die, a Cuttlebug embossing folder (i don't have a cuttlebug but the folder works just fine through my Zipemate) and cardstock and Doodlebug paper scraps I had in my stash. I made two of each color and I might just make more. I know I am going to get a ton of use out of these punches.

Been making a few things

Whilst i'm not stalking the sweet birdies, i actually have been making things. So today i thought i would share a few.

first a card for a friend who had a birthday recently

see http://smallsmackerels.blogspot.com/2007/05/birthday-queen-bestows-belated-wishes.html

I was dying to use my Purple Onion 2007 calendar stamp and this was a perfect opportunity. I stamped it on some Basic Grey paper, added some My Minds Eye and Making Memories ledger paper. All of them were either inked dtp or using a brush to stipple on the ink - you really have to be bold to do stippling for the Stipple Queen (that's the birthday girl whose stippling knows no match - she is the undisputed queen of that) I stamped the alphas using Purple Onion's Lettera32; i punched them out using a PaperShaper rectangle punch then stippled oer the entire shape. Pop-dotted the letters to make them stand out. Oh and its probably too tiny to see but i used diamond glaze over the date of her birthday to hilight it.

Now for something completely different - i've been experimenting with drawing and coloring on vellum. For both of these i used prismacolor pencils as well as my rapidograph for the inking. My subject matter? a photo of myself and my grandmother that i treasure. I'm pondering using this on a scrapbook page but really i just wanted to see how it would turn out. I made two drawings. The first try is on your left; the 2nd is on your right. i'm thinking i want to work on this some more. i wil tell you one thing - i haven't felt that focused in while so i must be on the right track

The kids have flown the coop - now they wanna drive

Last I posted about my little birdies -

they were all still in the nest.

Or i thought they were.

Remember their charlie's angels pose-

i thought one birdie was hiding.

From here on out we'll call him

Bosley.

He wasn't hiding at all.

Bosley had indeed flown the coop - or the nest as it were.

Monday early evening my husband called to me with an urgent voice.

I ran to his office which is at the front of the house. (Very close to the front door where the nest was built.) His office has large floor to almost ceiling windows. He called me because he saw Bosley - sitting on some bushes in front of the office windows. Here's a picture of Holly looking out the office window at Bosley

(i suspect she was thinking *#@!$%*&^!!! bird!)

here's a view from inside the house - see him there in the center?

so cute

I went outside to see what he looked like closer up. And found out something very interesting.

There were birds in the trees and atop the house looking down
He had a whole family out there

Keeping a watchful eye

so that little Bosley was safe (from us evil people i suspect)

it was a little like Hitchcock's The Birds (well i exaggerate a bit but still)

Upon seeing all these family members - i realized little Bosley was probably safe. The next morning Bosley was still on the bush outside the office. I saw adult birds bring him food. Sometime, mid-Tuesday, I checked the office and Bosley appeared to be gone. Later on my husband was out in the yard and said Bosley was definitely gone from the front of the house. He'd looked around and found a little bird, which looked an awful lot like little Bosley around the side of the house, sitting on an azalea bush. We figured that might be the last we'd see of him. The other 3 birdies were still in the nest but seemed to be making motions as if they'd be leaving too. Wednesday morning I took my daughter to school in the morning - when we left I was thinking about our birds and looked around for Bosley but he didnt seem to be in sight. Little did I know.

I came home and prepared to have some company - some girlfriends were coming over to make cards and chat. As they arrived I showed them our little nest. There seemed to be only 2 birdies visible at that point. By the time my friends left, no birds were in the nest.

I was a little sad. It seemed they'd decided to leave while i wasn't looking. Oh well i thought. I hope i get to see them around the yard.

Wednesday around 4:50 pm I went to my car - in the garage - to drive to my daughters bus stop. I opened the car door and put down my purse. I was about to pick up the mail and bring it with me (to read while i waited for the bus to arrive.) But I stopped dead.

There - on the dashboard of my van - was Bosley!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NO I'M NOT KIDDING

Let me back up a bit. Tuesday nite - when we'd lost track of Bosley - we had left the garage door open til maybe 10 o'clock. I went and closed it and it didn't open again until we left around 6:15 am. I often leave the car windows open if the car is in the garage. When i drove back into the driveway I was thinking of the birds and swore i heard a squeak in the car but dismissed it - i did have the radio on and I was thinking about the birds.

Apparently Bosley was in the car for the drive to and from the busstop on Wednesday morning and all day until i opened the car door on Wednesday afternoon. The garage door was closed all day so he couldn't have gotten in then - I suspect he got in the car on Tuesday nite.

So there he was sitting on the dashboard.

It was 10 to 5 and i had about 10 minutes to figure out how to get him out of the car.

I talked to him and he talked back!

He also held his mouth open for food! That was hilarious - as if i had come to feed him. He did that over and over.

I didnt want to pick him up fearing it might either scare him to death or make him unwelcome in his little birdie community.

Finally i grabbed a small branch that was in our yard recycling. I thought i might encourage him to jump on it.

He flew closer to the car door.

(at that point i'd opened them all)

I prodded him again and he flew out the door onto the garage floor

One more gentle prod and he'd flown out of the garage and onto the front lawn.

He started calling to his family who were not immediately available.

A few more squeaks and some of his famille showed up.

I checked my watch and realized I had to fly!

We're keeping the garage doors closed from now on.

And we're not giving Bosley the keys to the car anytime soon.

the birthday queen bestows belated wishes

cos she's a little flakey these days.

the birthday queen screwed up. she meant to post yesterday but got caught up in all the birdie happenings. Forgive me Kris.

I hope your birthday was wonderful and filled with all sorts of birthday things - cake comes to mind (it always comes to my mind)

the kids are growing up (and other things)

Daddy's Home and he's brought take-out

Where'd he go?

Okay - let's pose for that lady

(i laughed my head off after i saw this picture - kinda charlies angels-esque - i figure the 4th birdie is hiding - either being Charlie or Bosley.... )

We are having the best time watching these sweet little birdies. I know I could get more today but it gets a little much. I have to drag a chair into the hallway and stand on tippy toes with arms extended upward with camera in hand and start snapping away. Yes I'm using a digital camera with a large screen so i'm able to see what i'm doing. But as much fun as it is to see them closeup through the photos, I think i'm ticking off the Mom & Dad (not to mention the babies). They fly in to feed them over and over during the day. If they see us near the doorway they fly back out to the pear tree, like this:

If you look really closely you'll see who I believe is the Daddy - with the reddish head - hiding out til the coast is clear. Once we saw both the Mom & Dad at the nest feeding the babies at the same time - I ran to get my camera but they were too quick for me. Oh well.

I don't know if those babies are long for that nest - we see them wiggling around, flappin their sweet little wings and we're thinking they are practicing to try out those wings for real. In the meantime i'm gonna enjoy them while they are here.

Other things...

we were sposed to have company for the weekend but someone ended up ill. It's been a fairly quiet weekend. We did have my son home for Saturday - he left Sunday. Saturday night the four of us went to a great Japanese Restaurant in town. The kind of place where they cook in front of you and chef is not just a chef - he's a performer. What a hoot that was - the chef was amazing and the food was just wonderful

Let's see - besides laundry, what have i been doing. I made potato salad. I haven't made that for 2 years i think. So yummy - we're having it again tonite. I really should share that recipe. Another of my mom's and its fabulous. Oh yeah - i've been playing around with a punch, watercolor crayons and a little stamping and embossing. General playing in my sketchbook - i think i may turn the flowers into a card. we'll see

lunchtime

Is it time to eat, ma?




Yes, dear.




bon appetit!

7 things about me

well my friend Linda tagged me so i'm going to give this a go and tell you 7 things about me (maybe you know these, maybe you don't)

1. I love old movies - i love most any movies (even the trashy ones on Lifetime) and have all kinds of movie trivia in my head - just ask me LOL
2. i love to cook - i really love to bake but i try not to do it too much because of i really like to eat!
3. i have been on some kind of diet most of my life
4. i love television. i know some people don't like it but i do. some people even say "oh i never watch tv" and well i've stopped apologizing for myself a long time ago. i watch all kinds of programs - i've got a wide area of interest - from animal planet to the history channel to the food network. all kinds of tv. because i'm interested in just about everything.
5. i have zero knowledge about digital anything - i'm a photoshop idiot. As much as I'd like to understand it, I don't. I am sure if someone sat me down and showed me, I'd be a quick learner but I don't get it. It's strange because usually I'm rather good at figuring most things out - but that stuff - i just don't know why but it thoroughly eludes me.
6. I love to read. I really love to read books but i'll read just about anything including the back and sides of a cereal box. I read the Washington Post everyday. I miss the newspapers I grew up with and read daily: The New York Times, The Daily Post, The Star Ledger and the Daily Record. The books I read are mostly for entertainment meaning although I've read a few of Oprah's Book Club type books - I really don't wanna think that much LOL! I want to be entertained and transported away. Rarely the transport takes me to unhappy places if you catch my drift. So the books i'm reading are generally fun although I like a good crime novel as well.
7. i really hate laundry.

So now who can I pick on, I mean tag, to let us know more about them.... I tag Donna, Barbara, Tina and Michelle.

Oh and speaking of movies - if you can please rent Pan's Labyrinth. We watched it Saturday night. It was amazing. A fabulous movie. Violent in parts - definitely not for children - its Rated R. but it is such a wonderful movie - you must see it. Here's a website to give you some info - just the website alone should make you run to your Blockbuster and get it

www.panslabyrinth.com

a wee birdy smackerel and periwinkle purse

A few weeks back I was walking past my front door and stopped to take a look out. On either side of the door there are windows. And for some reason that day I looked up and saw a wonderful thing.

A bird's nest

Our front door has a copper roof that sits atop two pillars. And under that roof, on top of the inside of the pillar (which are mostly decorative i believe) was the wee little nest.

Opposite the front door is our pear tree. I know I've mentioned this tree in another post

(friday march 16th). It is a gorgeous tree and has really grown since it was planted 10 years ago. Huge and a lovely home to a variety of birds. We regularly see all kinds of birds - my favorite being a cardinal who I am able to spy on occasion if I'm lucky enough.

So it wasn't a surprise when i saw a bird flying from the pear tree to the wee nest under the copper roof for my front door.

Initially the bird flew right out of the nest as soon as anyone approached the front door. Slowly, however, over the past few weeks, we have noticed if we are quiet or don't approach the door too quickly we can see the bird in the nest. It doesnt move - it just looks back at us - as if to say "ok, i know you now. I know you won't harm me or my eggs".

And because the little birdy is now one of the family she allowed me to take her photo this morning.

I am in love with this sweet little creature and I'm so looking forward to seeing if there are any baby birds (it's impossible to tell if there are eggs in there but that bird rarely leaves her spot these days so it makes you wonder).

Ok - onto other things....

Yesterday in the mail I received a long awaited package. If you all recall i made a felted purse for my dear friend. (see march's postings - there are pictures there) I wanted to make one for myself but they've been backordered on the color yarn I wanted. Periwinkle. A gorgeous periwinkle. When i saw the package in the mailbox i could not wait to rip it open - and there it was - just as gorgeous as I'd hoped. Now i took a few photos this morning but i dont think the color in the photo is true - which is MOST annoying. However i'm going to post a few pictures in hopes you'll get the idea that the color is just spectacular

i placed the yarn on top of things i thought would help show off the true color. The photo on the left - the yarn is on top of a magazine article about a local artist who does the most stunning work in pastels - the color is amazing. And oddly enough there was some periwinkle in that particular piece he did. The second photo i took next to an easter card my mother had given me. The iris on it was a lighter more lavendar color however it improved the photo as the camera seemed to be picking up a little too much blue if you ask me. Anyway i really am looking forward to getting started on my purse. A little wild for a purse for me - but hell - i could use it!

Got a minute

grab a can of spray paint and do like this
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1246174515665636969
my daughter sent me that link
most cool
makes you wanna just make something fast -
no editing yourself
just doing it.

"Personally, I think alligators have the right idea....

they eat their young."
now isn't that a great line for Mother's Day? no...
well it is one of my favorite lines from a great mother's day movie
Mildred Pierce
starring Joan Crawford (the title character - won her the academy award - self-sacrificing mother who would do anything for her selfish daughter - Vida) ,
Anne Blythe (as the aforementioned daughter - Vida - what a pip - on your worst day, no one deserves a daughter like her),
Eve Arden (plays Mildred's friend - she's got the best lines in the movie - the alligator one as well as this favorite of mine - she says to another male character who is eyeing her up and down, "leave something on so i don't catch cold") and
a whole host of other great actors.
Fortunately this wonderful movie was on earlier this afternoon and I was lucky enough to catch it. I try to watch it every time it's on. It is such a great movie - and it doesn't make you cry. There is a an absolute tear-jerker of a mother movie - if you want a real good cry - rent the movie Stella Dallas starring Barbara Stanwyck. A-mazing movie that at the very end will totally reduce you to tears. What a mother will do for her child. Ugh. i'm getting teary just thinking about it. Not the same realm as Mildred Pierce - as Mildred's daughter is endlessly selfish and Mildred means well but doesn't know when to say no. In Stella - the mother and daughter love each other very much and Stella makes a huge sacrifice for her daughter to ensure her daughters future happiness.
Okay one last movie about mother's Imitation of Life - the version with Lana Turner and Sandra Dee and Juanita Moore and Susan Kohner. Oh the tissues!!! The final scene - I dare you not to cry. It's not possible.
Ok - so i've got you set to rent some faboo old movies. Now how about some newish movies you might like to rent?
Last nite we watched Little Children with Kate Winslet and Jackie Earle Haley. Got oscar nominations for the two of them. Interesting movie. I liked it but it was entirely different than what i'd expected. Rent it - and for those of you with kids - it is not for their viewing.
The Pursuit of Happyness we rented that week before last and while it is ultimately a happy ending - wow - it was a little rough - a little hard to watch if you ask me - very depressing. Great message and all but by the time the payoff at the end came I was happy to see it over. I guess I'd prefer something a little less real.
The Queen last weekend's rental and a definite great movie. Very interesting to see what was going on - or at least what the movie showed happening behind the scenes at the palace in the wake of Princess Diana's death. Get it.
So other than watching a movie today i was just a lazy mom. One child is not home for this mother's day and the other one is busy doing homework and that's fine with me. She's here and that makes me happy. I just had the other child home for a quick visit so that will have to suffice. My mother is coming over and we're going to enjoy some our dinner cooked by my husband who always tries his best to take over all my duties on mother's day - so i can have a day off. I think i'm going to help him out a little with dinner just so we eat tonite. He actually cooks quite well however getting it all to appear on the table at the same time - in my mind at least - takes years of practice. He can do it all, and quite fine but i don't mind helping him so he's not completely stressed out over it. He doesnt complain - it is his idea in fact to do it each year - and i think he actually enjoys doing it all. His own dear mother passed away a few years back and I think it makes him feel good to do it for me and my mom.
And then later - after my mom has gone home - we have a date to watch Survivor - tonite is the finale. I don't know if you watch but we do and this year has been extra good!
I'm rooting very hard for Yao Man - i just love him to bits! here's a link
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivor14/survivors/yau_man.shtml
if you watched only one show of this years survivor you'd think - hey this is an old guy. he'll be going home in no time. I had no idea he is as young as he is - only 55. And is he wily. What a smart guy not to mention clever and athletic! well gotta go... talk to you soon

asbestos fingers and charming insanity

so sometimes you find you are just too busy to be bloggin.

that's sorta true lately round here
to be bloggin i find i have to:

1. be in the mood
2. have something i wanna talk about
3. have some time to deal with the method of bloggin (for the most part blogger is most cooperative but every once in a while....)
4. and its nice if i have some kind of photo or something to add

so in keeping with the above list

1. i'm sorta in the mood
2. have nothing really to talk about but we know that never stopped me
3. i just sent my son on back down south (he's working this summer as well as taking some classes) as well as having baked and cooked this morning (more on that in a minute) so i have some lovely free time
4. and i actually have a photo of something i made semi-recently to share

first of all the temperatures are quite annoying here yesterday and today - we're heading in to the 80's again today. i am not a fan of warm weather - at all. I like spring time. i feel i got rooked this year. winter, a few teaser spring days, and some evil hot days already... and now we're pressing right on into summertime temps. yuk. but that is the way it is so....

I decided I'd do the real cooking for our dinner this morning in an effort to keep things a little cooler round here come dinner time. One would think with all the windows we have in this house and its fairly open floor plan the circulation would be good - just open the windows and things would be comfortable - but not so. (when the summer really gets rollin i have to have the AC on prior to noon to have any hope the house will be cool )I think the high ceilings are to blame but i digress.

I cooked up a whole batch of meatballs (we'll have salad, pasta and garlic bread added to that - but no sauce - trust me - its good) and baked some of my chocolate chip brownies (here's the recipe: take a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough made from the tollhouse recipe on the nestles chip bag - dump it in a 9x13 pan, bake for around 25 minutes at 350 and voila - yummy brownies.) i finished all that by 10:30 am. My son's ride showed up and i entertained her while he packed his things in the car and they were off. I finished cleaning up in the kitchen, threw on some more laundry (isn't there always some of that?) and here i am.

I was in a swap recently with some dear friends - a charm swap. I've done a goodly variety of swapping in my day but never a charm swap. Well i must say that there were some pretty gorgeous creations - all very talented women, my fellow swappers. Here's a picture of mine. Note the paper plate - a lovely way to display your fine art pieces.

I used a die (of a slide mount) to cut out some shrink plastic that i had already inked with blue. then i separated the pieces and stamped on them using a lovely floral background stamp from Stampinup and a face stamp by renaissance art stamps. Then i put the pieces in the oven to bake and shrink. Well whenever i get these bright ideas i never quite realize until i am in the midst of it how insane it will really get. One would think that the pieces would fit back together but people i am here to tell you that shrink plastic is an imperfect art. And you can fit a rectangle into a square if you work it right. and have asbestos fingers.

i added some sugar dust all around and a flower bead at the top (and my version of a jump ring out of wire - not shown in pic above - cos no jump ring known to man - or any store in the greater leesburg area- will fit thru that damn bead.... i am wire impaired - we'll just leave it at that).

so you can see why i haven't blogged in a bit - my burned fingers and relative insanity after finishing those charms.
off to change a load of laundry - see you sooner than later

various and sundry

things
thats what i've been doing
stuff.
rest assured i'm still here
i did make a card for my sister for her sage advice last week
frankie the cat was about to be renamed
"mr. sneeze-a-lot"
i was beginning to worry as he didn't seem quite himself (on a regular day his alias is "krazy kitty" cos he's zooming around here making a regular silly pest of himself)
so i called my sister (you would if your sister was a vet, right?)
and after discussing mr. sneeze-a-lot's symptoms she reassured me he'd be fine
so i sent her this silly little card from frankie
I used alphas from www.purpleoniondesigns.com as well as dot stamp from Hero Arts and this cute Cuttlebug die (I ran it through my zipemate.. with a little effort it worked!)
Over the weekend we rented the movie "Notes on a Scandal"
now that was a pretty amazing movie. Dark - yes. Not cheery subject matter but the story was tightly written and no filler - i hate it when there seems to be superfluous stuff in a movie - you know that added fluff that just makes it longer? well none of that here. REally wonderful performances in that movie - we were riveted from the very moment it started to the last second of the movie.

Not a great week

here in Virginia

I won't belabor the topic

Suffice it to say i am grateful my son decided against transferring to Virginia Tech for this year.

God works in mysterious ways.

If you lived here in Virginia you would notice the great pride we take in our schools. Everyone has a bumper sticker or license plate holder for the school their child attends or they themselves have attended.

Particularly in the fall, I notice alot of UVA and Tech decals - flags for the schools when a big game is being played. Now I'm noticing those Tech banners and flags going up around the neighborhood but its for a much different reason.

It is heartbreaking and makes you want to hug your children or call them (like I did on Monday) so they know just how much you love them.

Anyway today I worked on a scrapbook page - see the Suzy link to your right.

And then I decided I'd go pick up a few

Frosty's from Wendy's and head over to my Mom's

When I was a kid we didn't have any McDonald's - seriously - there were none in the NY/NJ area until much later.

We did however, have Wetson's - a small chain of burger places and they had shakes. (They went out of business I believe in the late 60's)

Nowadays people do fast food without much thought - but back then - with a family of four kids - we didn't do fast food often. It was a big deal to go out to eat in the first place.

When we'd go we'd pick up the burgers and we'd go home and my Mom would make her own shakes - of course we'd want the ones from the Wetson's thinking they'd be so delicious, right? Well I remember we got the shakes once and they were pretty awful. My Mom's concoction, however, was dee-lish. (My mom is the best cook on the planet - just so you know. Everyone says it, so it's not just me.)

My Mom would make her shakes here and there over the years. I never found anything that tasted remotely like it until one day my husband and I decided to get a Wendy's Frosty.

Yum. Now they have a vanilla version but the original chocolate Frosty is what I'm talkin about. I think somehow Wendy's musta found out how my Mom made her shakes because they taste so much like hers its amazing. She used a lot of ice cream and chocolate syrup and milk and a blender. Totally, sinfully delicious.

So today I thought she and I could both use a Frosty.

Five years ago today my brother passed away.

He also loved her shakes and her cooking.

And I think he'd love it that we were just sitting around, talkin about the world, eating Frosty's.

We didn't even need to talk about him - it was an unsaid, given thing.

Kwim?

Now i've heard it all

I got a call from my daughter about an hour ago

She called me from school -

I knew it was something important because they're not allowed to used cell phones on school property - except if its an emergency kinda thang

They just cancelled school

No - we didn't have snow

We have

W-I-N-D

I think it's official

I've heard it all

Now i appreciate they are trying to be cautious

There are a few schools in the counties surrounding the Washington DC area that have cancelled school today because they lost power

My daughter said they haven't lost power

They're just worried about the severe winds

And they are severe

The wind is absolutely howling outside and it might get up to 60 miles per hour today

We aren't expecting any tornadoes or anything

I guess i just don't get it

They must be really worried however

My daughter was supposed to go on a field trip to the National Gallery today - they had 10 busloads of high school kids going on that trip. The Gallery is about an hour from here - maybe a half hour from the school (not sure on that)

My daughter was a little bummed about not going downtown - she was really looking forward to hitting the gallery today

But she was more bummed about missing the after school stuff - working on sets for the musical at school.

Me - it actually works out fine for me. I needed to take her to pick up her eyeglasses - and the kid has such a full schedule that doesn't coincide with the doctors office we didn't know when we'd get there - so bonus for me.

Anyway - this weekend we were sposed to be doing a yard sale - i did a lot of prep work for that sale but for reasons that are too lengthy i won't bother to post it all. Suffice it to say i have sectioned off a space in my house to put the yard sale stuff and we'll do it another weekend.

We did have time to rent a wonderful movie this weekend.

If you have a chance, rent "Bobby".

I loved this movie

Maybe because of my age - I actually remember his running for President and his being assassinated. But it is just a wonderful movie. Tons of history woven into a fictional account of that last day before he arrived at the hotel. Great acting, great story. Just amazing movie. Go get it.

I also had a chance to make some Thank You notes. I needed to send one to my brother-in-law and his wife for a lovely Easter dinner. Daughter needed to send a few for gifts she received for her birthday. I pulled out a quickutz Goosebumpz die for the Thank You and added some Chatterbox paper and ribbon. These were quick to make and did the job nicely.

Hope you all are having a non-windy day wherever you are.

"Don't know if I ever told you bout Old Reliable"

Do you remember Trusty in "Lady and the Tramp"? He was the bloodhound with the southern accent and he always said "don't know if i told you bout Old Reliable"

Well here is my "Old Reliable".

It's a coffee pot.

My parents used this coffee pot for years.

My Dad did not cook but he made some great coffee in this here pot.

And I took it when they put it up for grabs.

I love this old pot - for the memories it holds for me and the great coffee it can still make.

And thank goodness I have it.

We drink a lot of coffee around here. It seems like all the automatic coffee makers made these days don't last very long. I think i get a little over a year out of the ones I've bought. I don't ever buy the de-luxe models. I did that once and I'll never do it again. They wear out as quickly as the $20.00 Proctor Silex or Black & Decker ones that last a year. Last time we had a coffee pot conk out on us I decided to try the Mr. Coffee version. Well that Mr. Coffee lasted the longest of all. I was just thinking the other day how that coffeemaker must be 2 years old. Quite remarkable really. And I also thought - it's gonna conk out on me soon.

Well today was soon. I got up as usual at 5:30. Went downstairs. Got the coffeemaker all set up and turned it on and set about getting the kitties their food. I was about to leave the kitchen (to take care of the litter) and I realized the coffee hadn't started brewing. Darn!

Out comes "Old Reliable".

You see I need my coffee.

Old Reliable doesnt need to get plugged in. You do need to boil some water. Old Reliable has a permanent filter you just fill up with coffee grounds. You put Old Reliable together, pour the water in and it begins to drip drip drip. It makes wonderfully delicious, reliable, coffee.

So of course on todays list of things to do is make a trip out to purchase a new coffeemaker.

I got a Mr. Coffee again, natch. See how pretty?

Then I came home and washed and dried out Old Reliable. I put it back up on top of the refrigerator where it will sit, waiting patiently for its next opportunity to be my Old Reliable.

Peep Show

i promised the update on the Peeps Diorama Contest run by the Washington Post.
The winner and finalists are all shown here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/gallery/070402/GAL-07Apr02-69859/index.html
the related story is here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/05/AR2007040501976.html
my personal favorites :
Dream Peeps - so simple and just so perfect
and
Soylent Green is Peeps
how great is that! (obviously the winner is amazing but Soylent Green is just too perfect isn't it? i mean did you see how the peeps went in and then they are coming out green - toooooo funny. If you've never seen the movie -which is horrid btw- you're just not gonna get it... )
I am going to have to consider entering next year - you should too!

i love your face

well actually i love this face
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/06/AR2007040601986.html
it's an article about the birthday (anniversary?) of Helvetica
i love Helvetica
When i was in school, as a graphic arts student, one of the classes i took was typography.
We'd do all kinds of projects using type
And, inevitably, i'd choose Helvetica
I couldn't seem to help myself
I know my professor got a little frustrated with me
I was totally infatuated
My friend Boo seemed to love anything with serifs
I thought she was crazy - serifs were a stinker to draw
(remember back in the day - and these were the days - we didn't use computers for any of this graphic art shtuff - there were typesetting machines - but not in college thats for sure)
Ah - but Helvetica is sans serif
and although I could do the serifs, none of my designs lent themselves to serifs
no - i was definitely a sans serif kinda girl
After reading the article, I felt vindicated
After all these years, it's nice to know I am not the only one who loves Helvetica
I dearly wish i could get to the MoMA and take a look at that original set of lead

Easter Images for you

Just like she did for St. Patrick's Day - Lisa Vollrath is sharing some wonderful images on her site - check them out here:

http://www.tentwostudios.com/countdown/

i love the other sites she has now too - how about that one called
Go Make Something http://www.gomakesomething.com/
- one of my favorite phrases :-)
tons of cool stuff there.

we're expecting snow here in Virginia.
Is that not ridiculous or what?
Have a wonderful Easter everyone

Birthday Tourii

About 16 years ago today i was feeling pretty lousy - i'd been sent home from my obgyn's office. He didnt think i'd deliver for a few days - it was a Thursday and the dr said why don't we see you on Monday - thinking if i made it through til then well then we'd induce. By April 4th, 1991 i was already 4 days past due.

Like i said i was feelin pretty crummy and the feeling didnt go away. By the time we decided to go to the hospital (a 45 minute drive) and had the person who was watching our son in place - well we barely made it in time. This kid was trying to be born on the drive to the hospital and she barely waited for the doctor to arrive. After all these years i still find it amazing the doctor took so long getting to the hospital. He lived around the corner - but I guess he didnt think i was really ready. Everyone was telling me to hold on - wait for the doctor - but my Lizziebelle. She didn't want any part of that. She appeared at about 11:40 pm. Thee most gorgeous little pink bundle there ever was. I'm getting all misty just thinking about it. Lizziebelle and i were talking just yesterday about her birth - and how the experience of bringing her and her brother into the world was unmatched. Nothing will ever surpass it - for her Dad and me.

OK... I'll stop now :-)

So today we are on spring break and seeing the birthday girl's week is pretty much spoken for (between eye dr. and orthodontist appointments and friend commitments) today was the day we decided we'd go into Washington, DC and take in the Cherry Blossoms and possibly a few of the memorials we wanted to see.

Yes - we are a wild family.

What can i say - we like this stuff.

Unfortunately Mother Nature had plans of her own.

Yesterday it was 81 degrees and glorious

Today was maybe 50 - cold and overcast and it had rained bigtime in DC overnite.

But we are troopers.

We made plans and we were stickin' to'em

We hit the Washington monument (didn't go in - just walked around it to get to the stuff on our list )

The World War II memorial. This is very impressive. When it was being planned and built we kept reading about it in the Washington Post. And it was better than I imagined. Just a beautiful, very meaningful memorial.

At the edge of it is water leading to the big reflecting pool

You know the Reflecting Pool

The big body of water in front of the Lincoln Memorial

Ok ... did you see Forest Gump?

Oh THAT body of water...

Okay so you can walk all along the reflecting pool up to the Lincoln Memorial which was our next stop. Here we are - Birthday Tourii at the Lincoln Memorial.

See the long distance between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln.

Think - sore tootsies.

No

Sore calves.

Before we did the Lincoln we walked over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. This one always gets me pulling out my tissues. I wore a POW bracelet for years. Some years back we finally went to see this memorial for the first time. They have books set up so you can look up a name you want to find. It lists the location of the name on the wall as well as the birth date and date of death. For all the years i'd worn this man's bracelet i'd always assumed he'd returned home - but i never could find his name listed in the newspaper as troops returned home. Well i was devastated to find his name asterisked as MIA. So today i went looking for him and took a photo of his name on the wall. and i had a little cry. If you could just be there - see all the flowers and photos (laminated with a little write up by some loving family or friend) sitting up against it - well you couldn't help but cry. It is very moving. This photo is from a distance.

We moved on to the Korean War memorial which is also quite impressive - all these statues of soldiers walking. It is something to see. They are life sized. Just past the scope of this photo off to the right is a marble wall with etchings of photos from the time - all faces of people - soldiers, nurses - it is haunting.

Last but not least are the Cherry Blossoms. Quite a big deal here dontchaknow. Warnings on every newscast (presumably for tourii visiting the area? also for ma-roons who live here I suspect) that the National Park service begs you not to climb on them (duh - but people actually put their children in the trees to take photos! i kid you not) and certainly do not pick the blossoms off - You will be fined. (big fines - $500) We were walking along and i heard some woman say to her small boy - don't do that (i didnt see what he was doing) - the Park Ranger is gonna get you. I thought to myself don't give the Park Rangers a bad name. Be a parent. Tell them not to do it because they shouldn't for heavenssake! (Can you tell i have some Park Rangers in my family?)
So it was an exhausting day. We walked for probably 4 hours. I need a nap before cake and ice cream with my birthday girl.