Little Shack Out Back

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!.......

2010-11-28T21:46:00.000-08:00

Hmmmm.....thinking about dusting things off around here. Until I actually have the time to create what I want I will be kind of meandering around and tinkering with stuff. Carry on.

2010

2010-01-05T07:01:00.000-08:00

Wow...glad that last year is over.I can already tell that this next one is gonna be a doozy. I have no big resolutions but I have resolved to use this space as a holding tank if only for myself to record & catalog my thoughts & memories.

Damn......

2009-03-05T20:37:00.000-08:00

I did it again.....the problem is that I am a procrastinating perfectionist. That means that I can't just sign on, throw out a few quips and be on my way. No....I must sign on , spend 2 hours trying to figure out how to change the font, another 45 minutes looking for the perfect pictures, 20 minutes to remember why I signed on in the first place then I spend an hour looking at everyone else's blogs!!!!!

Noteworthy: I am in creative recovery. I don't make this stuff up. I am doing a 12 week recovery course to find out why I resent people who have the audasity to call themselves artists. Crazy right? Give me 12 weeks and I hope to be one ballsy bitch. :0)

It figures.......

2009-01-30T20:24:00.000-08:00

Wow. I feel like I have just found an old friend. Which is appropriate because I have treated this piece of me much like I treat the people in my life. When I first started "blogging" I jumped in with both feet...loved playing with all the functions and options but I soon drifted. It was not a matter of not enjoying it....I just fer real have a serious case of adult ADHD. I seriously FORGET to do stuff I like. Stuff like blogging, reading, (I have no less than 10 books next to me at all times......not just next to my bed....I carry books from room to room, you know... in case I get 5 free minutes, I am going to read something)and keeping in touch with my friends.
I decided to come back here because I want to be a part of "OWOH" (One World One Heart)rage...cause I like to give stuff away. AND I also missed getting to talk about myself whenever I want. AND because I didn't mean to leave....
I just forgot to come back.

What I did on my Summer Vacation........

2008-07-10T12:36:00.000-07:00

First things first....About a week ago Miss Jenny over @ Fated Follies Studios ...who by the way is AMAZING...tagged...-is that the right word?-...me to list eight things....so here they are

Eight things I say a lot:
1. Who raised you?!?
2. Go ask Papa.
3. What did Papa say?
4. Don't have SEX!:0) I say this to my kids when I drop them off somewhere...it cracks me up EVERY TIME!
5. CRAP!...what time is it??
6. Did we eat dinner yet? I seriously forget.....
7. Did you pray about it?
8. I Love you.

Eight books I have read lately:
1. My B.I.B.L.E...though sporadically..I know He still loves me.(sing it,it rhymes)
2. The Runaway jury
3. Abba's Child
4. Pillars of the Earth...not loving it but I started so now I have to finish.
5. VBS craft station manual
6. Sand in my bra
7. Boundaries.....again....I keep forgetting where they are
8. Narrative Essays

Eight movies I have seen at least 8 times:
1. Princess Bride
2. Now & Then
3. Ever After
4. FairyTale
5. Shreck
6. Notebook
7. The War
8. Big Fish

Eight things I am working on:
...besides the unfinished projects?
1. Learning how to let my son become a man...he will be 18 next month.
2. Dealing with the fact that same son IS going to be a Marine.
3. Remembering that God is SO good to me.
4. Remembering who I was supposed to be when I grew up.
5. Being a better friend....I really stink at it & I don't want to...sorry Renee :0)
6. My Space.....no not myspace....MY space where I keep all my art junk
7. Being able to say "I'm an Artist" without cringing or needing to explain it away
8. Losing 20 MORE pounds....I am down 20 since April. Yeah me.

I am supposed to list 8 other bloggers to make their list but I don't know 8 well enough......sooooooo I will just leave it open to all...just leave a post if you feel like doing it & let me know. Thanks & I hope this helped you know me a bit better!

Okay next....I didn't do diddly squat on my Summer Vacation because we have not taken one....yet...there is still hope because we homeschool & Summer ain't over Til I say it is. :0) BUT the P.I.G. (pretty important guy)& I are going to get away this month. We are spending a weekend here ...I know!!! right. Don't hate me. But seriously look at this yeahhhhh NOW who's laughing huh? A PT cruiser show AND FREE ART hidden all over town!! Please PLEASE PLEASE GOD let me find a piece of that free art.
I wanted to stay HERE but she is all booked up. If you have the time you gotta read her whole shpeal...I am going to go by & meet her when I get there cause I think I like her. My Other choice is HERE ...I really hope she has an opening cause she seems really nice too. You like how I choose my lodging based on whether or not I like the owner??? Who does that??? what a freak.

Picture time!

Here is what I have really been doing so far this Summer......

Background....we used to live in Glennallen Alaska...long story...later.
Anyway, the Funk family are an amazing family who have been doing missionary work in Hooper Bay Alaska for 20 years. Every year they bring a group of teens ,who have shown themselves to be leaders in the village, down to the "lower 48". They happened to be traveling close enough to stay with us a few nights. There is no road system in Hooper bay...you fly in on a bush plane and none of these kids have running water! They use Honey buckets....look it up. It was so much fun taking them to see a movie (they had never been in a movie theatre)and hanging out with them! It was also a huge eye opener that we were not just put on this Earth to exist...work ...& die. LOVE people...love.

THEN....it was WAR! Nerf war but still.....these are some more Alaska friends who come & stay with us every Summer...I am NOT in this picture for obvious reasons.I do however claim the four on the right.Sometimes.

Sigh...Nerf war Always Always Always.....turns into this

This happens at LEAST once a week around here.Who raised her?
(left is mine..right thinks she is)

Then I made this for my niece's first birthday... I threw it together in like 5 minutes but it felt good to make something!

My Niece

I got to spend some time with my sister(with her GRANDSON!) I have not seen her smile like that in a very very long time. It makes me sad & happy at the same time
:0/

And I saw the most amazing sunset....truly. I did not get a great picture but I am pretty sure it was the same one you saw. :0)

WoW. I did a bunch more stuff...but really How much can you take in one sitting?

This was exhausting..but fun..mayhaps I won't wait a month for my next post.Hmmmm.

I want to learn how to add a really cool cursive signature.....until then

Jalal

Unfinished Business.....

2008-06-19T21:20:00.000-07:00

I was piddling around my house yesterday as if I had nothing better to do and I realized that I do not know how to relax. I just can't. I am not even sure what the word means. I will sit down at the end of the day and attempt to watch a movie with my movie freak family and I just feel like crawling out of my skin! So I started thinking about what I do when I feel that way. I start a project. Notice I did not say I "work" on a project. No, I START a project. I looked around my living room and gathered all the projects that were laying about in various stages of incompleteness.
I swear these were all in one room. I don't have enough time to gather a whole house full of projects so I am going to work on one room at a time. Oh this is so sad.

Okay this is probably the most embarrassing...it is a YO-YO quilt that I started when I was pregnant with my last baby....She will be 14 next month! BUT I can tell you where every one of those fabric pieces came from...dresses I made for the girls, costumes over the years...so many memories.

This is a beautiful crosstitch I was working on for my sister's wedding gift. 5 YEARS ago. Worse than that....she is already divorced. I swear.

This is a crosstich I started for somebody's special baby. I have no idea who it was for....but I am sure they were my BFF at one time or another.

These are some really cool embroidered ornaments that I can still finish because really, Christmas comes EVERY year!

I HAD to have this book of paper ornaments this past Christmas. Apparently I needed to cover a spot on the floor that did not have a project sitting on it

OH! Okay ,this one is not really my fault. Seriously. I started it for my great nephew, never mind that he is a year old now. Anyway, I started it and was really proud of myself because I taught myself to crochet. but I put it down for a while & now I can't remember how to do it.So see...not my fault.

I am not the only one in my family to have unfinished business. My husband is a very very blessed man. Here is the set-up. We dated young,he had a motorcycle,HOT,it was stolen 15 years ago, he has pined for one ever since. Got it? Brings us to this past father's day...my friend mentions her husband is selling a motorcycle cheap. SOLD! My husband is tickled pink having a great time on his new toy. Fourth day he rides it to work it starts to rain..he decides to pull off into a parking lot..turns on his turn signal..comes to a complete stop..waits a few seconds for oncoming traffic to clear..hears a disturbing squealing of tires behind him..thinks to himself "This is not good"..next thing he remembers was being thrown from the bike, landing on his feet in a full run..turning around and realizing that he had just been rear ended on his motorcycle by a....DUMP TRUCK! A dump truck going 30 miles an hour.In the rain.Driven by a 74 year old man. And walking away from it with only a totaled bike & bruises.
I think it is safe to say that the man I am crazy in love with has some unfinished business to tend to.

Thank God.

My Brian,his dad,some random lady & his brother @ Disney World

*Soon I am going to post pictures of the most amazing thing I have ever received in the mail....just as soon as I get it where it belongs*

Crap!...I forgot.

2008-06-08T19:06:00.001-07:00

Okay here is something you should know about me up front.I suck. Well not at everything. But most anything to do with a deadline...or a schedule....or a commitment(except to my husband). I suck. I usually inform anyone who makes a move to try & be my friend of this flaw right away so that they can bail without any drama down the road. I totally forgot to mention that here. In fact tomorrow I am going to post about more of my flaws. Or not. You never know about me.

All this to say that I forgot to post about my "Trash to Treasure" for the show & tell over @ Sugar*Sugar BUT it is only 9:30 so I still have time.I sorta had an excuse today though cause I drove 2 hours to go to my 9 year old niece's birthday & then turned right around and came home. I just took a few quick pics...trust me there is way more trash around here that I did not take a picture of!

This is a little ladder that was in my garage when I bought my house.I have been collecting vintage hankies forever but just kept them in a box. You know that time right before you wake up in the morning? Well I have these amazing epiphanies during that time....this was one of them.

I got tired of cleaning my fireplace but I still wanted to see something on fire...this was better than setting the curtains ablaze.

My husband,who by the way will from here on out be known as "The P.I.G." (trust me, he thinks it's funny) bought this radio for $20 at an auction. it is still up in the air whether it is "trash" or "treasure"

Found these in the garbage

The boy & his friend dug these out of our back creek

Birthday winners.......

2008-06-04T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hey Girlies!!!! I had a wonderful birthday Thank you very much. I am now 37...it is one of those weird "off" birthdays where nothing really changes.....EXCEPT MY HAIR!....okay true story...I have had the same hair-dresser for about 12 years, I love her.Let me just say that up front. Her daughter & my daughter are good friends, we hang out on occasion & I trust her the way you only trust a hairdresser. But that woman thinks I am a Rock Star! Seriously....look at my head!I am rockin' the cut but the color(s)! wow. I tried to cover most of it with a scarf...no luck.I think I will be making a trip to Walgreen's hair color isle in the morning.Seriously.

OH...& I will expect to see pictures of these 5 women in their new earrings!

1. Sherry
2. Jenny
3. Elizabeth
4. Maggie
5. Rhonda

Thank you all for sharing your favorite gift with me.Congratulations Girls! Enjoy.

Renee.....you can come over & just take whatever you want from my house you silly.

Happy Birthday to me!

2008-06-02T21:12:00.000-07:00

It is now 12:12 June 3rd. That means it is officially my birthday. We love birthdays around here...they end up being birthday "weeks" and it just so happens that Mother's day, our anniversary & my birthday all fall within a few weeks of each other so I am pretty spoiled this time of year! I used to feel bad about it but the older I get I think I deserve it.HAHA. OKAY.....since I get to be spoiled I wanted to spoil some of you too! I had so much fun with the give away that I thought I would just keep going. I am going to give away 5 pairs of those fabulous earrings Up there. All you have to do is drop in within the next 24 hours and tell me the best gift YOU ever received. I will draw out 5 names & send them (you) the blingage! I am assuming at least 5 people will drop in.......we'll see.

*The earrings are not quite as orange as they look in this picture*

Changes....

2008-06-02T15:48:00.000-07:00

Okay so my kids introduced me to Picnik and I just can't stop playing with it!! What do you think of the new header...to much? i like it, for now anyway. I'm kinda known for being fickle. Off to make dinner...

It's Time!

2008-05-31T05:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know some of the host's are waiting until later in the day to draw but I have to go to work & then I have a hot date & won't be home until after midnight ;0)
Sooooo........We have a winner........and her name is......
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?
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DEB! from the Land of Nod Studios

Congratulations Deb.....& Thank you to everyone who joined in.

This was so much fun! I can't wait to travel around & see who won everything.

Tuesday is my birthday & I am going to have a special surprise for you if you want to stop by

It's Almost Time....

2008-05-30T20:11:00.000-07:00

OH MY GOSH.....I AM SO EXCITED!!!

Seriously. I can't sleep. I have to work in the morning ya'll.
I want every last one of you to win. I am so nervous for you!

On another note.... I am just going to come out and admit that the reason it took me so long to add people to my "blog Roll" is because I knew how to do it...and then I forgot. I am pretty sure I got the hang of it now though so look out.

Okay I am going to bed But I am going to be up bright & early to draw a name.
GOOD LUCK!

Give away!!!!!

2008-05-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Okay I am WAYYYY New to this whole blog thing...obviously. BUT I wanted to join in on the fun so I could not pass this up. I hope I don't mess it up!

Kim, who hangs out here The Twice Remembered Cottage put this together and I am very excited to offer these wonderful goodies to anyone who leaves a post between now and May 30 @ Midnight. I will put all names in and draw one at random. I think I will keep it as simple as possible for my first give away, so only one post per person. If you do not have a blog then please leave your email so that I can contact you. Have fun & make sure you go and enter ALL the fun!

List of Loot:
5 Candle holders of various design
2 Vintage Dresser cloths...1 rayon fringed....1 rose embroidered
3 Paper Peonies handmade by Moi
4 Rose postcards
1 fabulous set of earring bling
3 Rhinestone flower picks
1 Scrumptious card from Papaya paper
1 Little charming lampshade
1 Piece of scrap fabric with little birds on it....that I did not even know I had til I went digging in boxes!
& 1 pink zipper that just looked cute with all the other stuff!

Happy anniversary to ME!

2008-05-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

This is the sign the kids (not really kids...they are 20,18 & 13!!) got me for Mother's day.

Today is the thirteenth anniversary of my marriage to an incredible man. I am so blessed to be able to share my life with him. We usually don't exchange gifts but this year he bought me a beautiful little table for our porch. Now we can sit out there in the morning with our coffee and pretend we are on vacation! We are off to dinner in a bit but I wanted to post some pictures first. Enjoy.

What I have been doing with my time........

2008-05-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

I have been helping my "baby" brother plan his wedding!! & going to punk rock concerts with my 13 year old....but more on that later.

My brother and his sweet bride Brandi had to move their wedding date due to work/insurance reasons sooooo my sister,Carol, her daughter Kindra & I kicked into turbo mode & planned this thing in 3 ...yes I said three.....weeks!
And believe it or not it was wonderful! They really are a sweet couple and they are working hard to make a good life for their baby Graycie. I am proud to tears of them both. I volunteered to make the wedding cake for them......I am not sure why I did this, seeing as how the icing barely makes it onto the cupcakes in my house!!!
I have to say it actually turned out pretty good. I used a "Faux Fondant" technique which involved paper towels & lots of rubbing.

This is my brother Adam & my husband Brian, who is a Pastor. He performed the ceremony, which was beautiful & personal. He has known Adam since he was about 15 (he is almost 30 now!) Adam looks a little afraid :0)

This picture just cracks me up!....Yes.....We are from Kentucky!

My sister(on the right) & I with Adam

The wedding party

My son & Adam

PINK!!

2008-03-18T11:37:00.000-07:00

So I was thinking it would be fun to add some pictures of little spots around my home because I actually cleaned yesterday (truth be told I mostly bossed the teenagers around). Anyway, I kept being drawn to "Pink" things....I didn't even think I had a lot of pink in my house,but obviously I was wrong. I have been coming down with spring fever BIG TIME! I am even going to update the picture of my "shack" to a spring one and later I am going to give the history of it. It is a pretty sweet story.Enjoy the pink for now
Flowers my sweet Brian brought home to me

My kitchen window

My "coffee box"

Tissue paper flowers Jo(my youngest daughter) & I made

A sweet little tin with tiny dried roses

A funny Bunny Under Glass....I LOVE this guy!!!

My Mantle

An egg I made last Year...I lOVE GLITTER!

This lady is known as the "porno bust" because according to my son...one of her "girls" is exposed. Did I mention he is 17, so I think his vision is skewed!

I adore the little pink cheeks on this bunny!

Blue....

2008-03-14T09:45:00.000-07:00

Wow this page is really blue. I am just figuring all this out so I think I need to brighten this place up a bit. Even though it is rainy and cold here today & I feel like crawling in a hole! I am going to go play with my glitter and maybe make some new paper ornaments. That always makes me happy!
Here are the instuctions for making them...
http://buzabouts.blogspot.com/2007/10/tutorial-paper-folding-pine-cone.html

2008-03-08T20:38:00.000-08:00

So.......I have been spending WAYYYY to much time perusing the Internet spying on other people's lives. Which in and of its self was fine. Until I started creating all the wonderful things I kept finding! Now I find myself thinking..."Oh this is just to cute not to share". Never mind the fact that it has already been created and I was in fact only "RE" creating. Details people, mere details. So this may end up being a blog about my journey through & testing of various blog projects. Or it may not. You never know about me. Here is a bit of what I have found so far...

Last week I found the most wonderful St. Patty's day project to satisfy my NEED for a daily dose of glitter here http://afancifultwist.typepad.com/

THEN today I found an amazing doughnut recipe here http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001561.html

I decided that since we were snowed in and all 3 of my teenagers AND my lovely husband were here to insure that I did not eat them all myself that they had to be made NOW!

So I gathered all the bowls & spoons & food stuff needed....Where is my cookie sheet? I know I washed it the other day. Where did I put it. Where it belongs....don't be silly. Search the kitchen...nope. Search the living room....don't laugh..I did mention the teenagers right. No luck. Search the dining/craft room. Oh. There it is. Covered with GLITTER from my previous project. *See above*

The doughnuts were amazing by the way, if not a bit sparkly.

And so it begins. I have started taking pictures of my food. The trick now will be to get a decent shot in before the afore mentioned teenagers attack. Let the games begin.