The Easter Tree

Here's my Easter Tree...just full of birds, butterflies, flowers, eggs and Beatrix Potter Characters..
Enjoy!

Steer this way

Well, I've been to a Horse Show and a Lamb Show but this was my first Cattle Show. Raquel's Heifer, Rogue, was in a local Cattle Show that the students use as a practice run.
The whole week before this show, she would run over to the farm and tend to her little girl by washing her and yes, blow drying her, combing her hair and clipping her. The farm was all a buzz and the students were very intense and focused. All went well and when it was all over everyone sighed with relief and exhaled. The kids had a good time and learned so much. From now on till the Fair (the end of July) it's practice practice and more practice.



















Lining up and ready to rock and roll!



Rogue and Raquel with a practically perfect pose





and lining up while being judge...what fun!
















For the Market Competition, which means the judges look at muscle and proportions and the physicality of the cattle, she received 7th place.

And for the Showmanship Competition which means how Rogue stands, behaves, hair and all the aesthetics...which includes how Raquel shows her heifer, she received 9th place.

Raquel is one happy cattle camper ~


update...she now has a lamb too and she had to read Animal Farm this weekend...Is it me or has my life turned into one big barnyard bruhaha?...lol I'll have pics of the little lambykins soon.

Eye of the beholder

The other day I dragged out the old sewing machine. I was on a mission to finish up a couple of things I had started by hand. Got everything together and noticed no thread in the sewing machine ..,.only the white bobbin thread. I needed blue thread so I did what I had to do to put blue thread on a new bobbin and then placed it back in it's bobbin place. I then proceeded to thread the machine...across, down, looped around, back up, through a hole thingy and back down through the eye of the needle...except I couldn't see the hole. Yes, I do wear reading glasses but sometimes I'm in denial or I'm just too focused on what I gotta do, so needless to say, I had to go get some...(I have 5 pairs in the house) and sat back down to thread the needle. I still couldn't see it. I turned on the dining room light and the light on the machine but still..my aim was not good. I came in on the right, the left, straight on, I cut the thread, I wet the thread, cut, wet, cut, wet...but NOOO, it wasn't happening. I wanted to cry out of frustration but I didn't want the machine to see me cry...yes, by this time I'm practically hallucinating and I believe my machine has it out for me. I am determined. I haven't stitched a thing yet and I have been sitting here for more than 30 minutes. Then I remembered Eric has a big magnify glass thing in the garage in one of the big red tool cabinets and I am seeing light at the end of this tunnel. I go get it and with grand confidence I aim it at the needle...Perfect!, I could actually see the needle....without a hole....WHAT? Where did it go? Then it hit me...last time I sparred with this thing, I broke a needle and being so pissed, I ended our relationship. This whole time I was trying to thread a needle without a hole. The moral of this story...well I guess there are several..
Machinery will always win, get your eyes checked on a regular basis and stock up on Ginkgo biloba ...I'm just sayin'

Craftin' Fool

I found a paper mache' box in my craft supply and decided it was time to do something with it.
I covered the lid with lavender paper and the bottom with darker lavender, then, decoupaged some flowers that I cut out from printing paper that I had, then, I poked holes in it and threaded it with purple ribbon. Perfect for Easter ~














then...


I printed out some images of several Beatrix Potter characters
- aside from Peter Rabbit, of course - were Benjamin Bunny, Squirrel Nutkin, Jemima Puddle-Duck, and Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. Including, Jeremy Fisher, Tom Kitten, Samuel Whiskers, Ginger and Pickles. Her "two bad mice" were called Tom Thumb and Hunca Munca. And, of course, the mischievous Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail. I cut them separately and glued them to some poster board, punched a hole on top and again, threaded each one with different pale ribbon. And now I have Easter ornaments for my Easter tree ~



and when I get around to it...I'll take some pics of the Easter/Spring tree, so stay tuned. BTW, I love Beatrix Potter so much that when Raquel was born, her nursery was decorated from ceiling to floor in Potter decor.....and I wasn't even trying to rhyme...lol


Oh Yeah..and I found these little birds at the dollar store..2 for 1 dollar. They were a drab gray so I first painted them purple, then applied some crackle stuff and painted over them with white so the purple could show through. I found some glitter in my craft storage and put them on the wings. They are now sitting on my front porch table...


right now I'm in the middle of stamping on fabric..I'm not sure about it yet...I'll let you all know......I get like this sometimes where I can't stop...like I got a craftin' itch, so I gotta go for it when the get'ins good..then I'll be a slug for a while...

Smell ya later

It seems that the older I get, my smell radar gets picky. Most smells really bother me and I have been know to move over a seat or two or hold my breath just to get away from it. Their not bad odors like stinky stuff, although I would jump hurdles to get away from that, but what most people consider homey, sweet, delicious and wonderful ones. As a kid I never liked the smell of coffee, yep, you read that right and no I'm not an alien life force from some other planet....I just can't stomach the smell let alone the taste and still this day, it makes me gag. And, on top of that, the smell of "new car", "theater popcorn" and "laundry detergent" send me up a wall. Some smells I actually seek out..bread, pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon..hmmm, I see a pattern here, but my sense of smell has always been rather sharp and it seems it's getting pickier and pickier with age, but then on the other hand...when I'm at the stables, I'm so used to the smell..it doesn't bother me...go figure.

Anyways, this morning I was at the lab getting blood drawn (im fine) and as I was walking out of the double glass doors to leave, a man, nicely dressed, was coming in and held the door open for me. We smiled, I said thank you and he nodded and said your welcome....but he smelled SO good. All of a sudden this aroma hit me, it was subtle and faint and I don't know what the hell it was...but I liked it. Imagine my surprise when the smell of a pure stranger peaked my curiosity. What was he wearing? Who was he wearing? Should I ask? Will he think I'm trying to flirt with him because, I could of very easily...Note: I'm an expert flirt,I know I am. I've been told I flirt when I'm not even trying, so I could of got it outta him but honestly, I was taken by surprise and I was on a mission to get to Michaels, and I'm a fast walker and so by the time this was all in my head I was opening my car door....but man! I honestly loved that smell so much so that I'm blogging about it...not that anyone's interested, but aren't 'there certain smells that just send you over the edge in a good way? I'm just sayin'

My button fix

I've seen these all over the place on peoples blogs and I really liked them so again I thought...I can do that. My twist on it, is that I used my buttons. Very easy...



First, buy shipping or luggage tags which are very inexpensive~
I dyed them in hot tea and baked them for about 10 minutes to give them that worn look~
Stamped them~
then embellished with buttons and ribbon~









click on pic to get a closer look and if you want details on how to do this, just send me an email right here on my sidebar....then....

I had to snazz up a candle a little so I threaded a few vintage buttons and tied it to the top edge of it




then...I lost one of the Coach emblems on the side temple of my favorite sunglasses...

the side with the emblem and the side without.
The frame is discontinued
and so are all the parts. So I decided to take out the remaining emblem and replace it with...yep,
you got it....










some buttons. But hmmm, which ones should I choose?

I sniped off the loop on the back of the button and then filed it down to make it smooth, then hot glued it in place...

Here you go...Super Optician Crafty Cheap Bunny to the rescue!!

Beach Bunny

Not sure how guys feel about shopping for swim trunks or if they even care. I guess as long as the mesh inside holds down the fort and the waist band can expand while slinging back Margaritas, it should suffice. But us women folk...HELL NO! It's no secret that I am a beach bunny and that I spend a lot of time at the beach or swimming laps at the local community center in the summer, so being in a bathing suit is not new to me. Having been a plus size gal, my attitude has always been, there's always someone who looks worst than me....and there usually is. Yeah, there was always a little more jiggle and a lot more buoyancy than others but it never stopped me from going out and buying a couple of new suits per year...I need two because I always wear one out.

So, it's that time again where the bathing suits are out (don't know why...it's Spring) and I wanted to see what's out there before they were all gone and I'm forced to wear a gunny sack. Having lost weight lately, I had no idea what size to try on. All my clothes are big on me and I'm too cheap to run out and buy a whole new wardrobe, knowing or rather hoping or perhaps wishing I'd lose more. Needless to say, I am now wearing two sizes down from last year, but that's not the shocking part...Oh No, it gets better. Because I've lost weight, my bum if full of wrinkles or at least I think that's what that is. When your a full figure gal the skin is somewhat tight and OK looking, but now, my ass looks like a freakin' Shar pei dog...you know the type, face and body full of wrinkles and crevasses....lol I got an crevasse ass. So instead of me asking my husband if my bum looks fat in this thing, I should probably ask him, " what breed of dog does my ass look like?" Cellulite, wrinkles and crevasses will not stop me from enjoying myself but, DAMN!!, can't a girl get a break? I'm just sayin'