So Much Plum To 'Show 'N' Tell'!

(So Many Wines-Fine Art Illustration by natmontoya)

      Remember 'Show 'N Tell' when you were in school?!...I used to love that. :-) I still like the concept. I'm gonna try it today in fact...starting with 'showing' you all those different wines in the one pretty glass. Well, all pretty in the same glass...sorta kinda. :-) Ooooooo!...Ahhhhhhh!...Pretty!

     But there isn't gonna be a lot of 'telling' in this post. Just a lot of 'showing'! :-) My friend Cindy, of CinLynnBoutique, included my new purple boutonniere in a treasury that she curated...

 (Purple Crochet Boutonniere from Wuglyees)

        I wanted to 'show' you the treasury, and also some other 'plum colored' items I came across on Etsy! I'll show you the treasury in a minute.

      But first, I wanna 'show' you the other plum colored or purple items I came across...starting with the wine glass illustration (in the header photo). As soon as I saw it, I started to swoon! :-) And no, it was not because I was 'tipsy'.  :-)) I haven't had wine for quite a while. In fact, I rarely drink wine, or anything alcoholic, anymore...I don't know why I swooned, except that the construction of the photo, and those pretty colors, got my creative brain going! I'm already considering putting some of those colors together in some boutonnieres and lapel pins! :-) ...But that's for another day's 'telling'! 
       Today let me 'show' you!...

 (Cable Knit Beanie by BettyMarieJones)

 (Vintage Lucite Round Beads by RemmysSupplies)

 (Purple Yarn Ball-Original Painting by heatherfuture)

      Oh yes! Plum...or purple-plum...is such a pretty color!...Okay, let me 'show' you the treasury now!..

(Plum Delicious!!-Treasury)

      Believe me...there's all kinds of cute items in this treasury. I won't 'show' you every single thing though. You can click on the above treasury yourself, and go and check out each shop, if you want...But here's a couple...

(Genuine Leather Credit Card Holder by ChiqueFabrique)

 (Pen Accented With Clear Swarovski Crystals by USAITLLC)

(Frosted Glass Teardrop Earrings by TheJewelryChateau)

      Okay, 'Show 'N Tell' OVER!! :-]

     I wanna quickly apologize for being so late getting my post up today...(for those of you who are used to reading my blog at a certain time). I got a visitor this morning, and I had a package that had to go out, and...and...and....! ^_^ It's one of those kind of days!...Also it's 'Virtual' Date Night!! I had some arrangements to sure up for our date! :-) 

     Now I'm off to get to work on a custom order. It's an important one for me. I'll tell you about it tomorrow....Have a good day, Everybody! :-)

 Virtual trip

I really like to travel,
See the world, expand my mind.
But not getting on an airplane,
or hunting luggage I can't find!

I like a 'good ole' virtual trip.
Computer details. Music too.
Where you don't need a 'stinking' passport,
or have to wear a 'stinking' shoe!

But a little stay at home,
under covers, lock and key,
can also be expansive.
Even if it's 'virtually'.       

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner 'Run Away'!!

(Travel Photograph by shannonpix)

       First, before I talk about the 'run away', let me remind you all about the 'GIVEAWAY'! So far I have NO takers!! O_O At least...no one has 'said' they wanted to be entered!...Please click on the picture of the ring on the right hand side bar for the rules and details of the Giveaway...Okay, moving on! :-]

    Let's run away for the day, shall we?! Uhhhh....I say that, but the way hubby is cooking in here lately...maybe you all should run away to 'my' house! ^_^ You can help me eat some of his meals and concoctions! LOL...Although this morning there is no 'concoction'. I'm happy to eat this meal!! :-) ...

       And there's enough for all of us, don't you think?! ^_^ ...Boiled egg, grits and cheese, and home fries/potato chips!! {He used the food processor to do the potatoes for the first time! :-)}

      They're quite good too!......HELP!!!! ^_^ ... I didn't need any help with the boiled egg. I ate that all by myself, thank you very much! ^_^

       Now I'm probably not capable of 'running away' anywhere! LOL...Maybe at lunch time. ^_^ ... Although, even at lunchtime you all could 'run away' to my house! Hubby can make you a glass of lemonade...

 (Siesta Ware Lemonade Mug Set from cocomias)

       ...and share a bowl of leftover ham and potato soup with you! :-) That was the other delicious meal he made!...YUM!!...While we're chatting and sipping, I've be peeping away, trying to list some of these lapel pins I made! I REALLY need to make some time to get them into the Wuglyees shop!!...

     "You can't win, if you don't....LIST THEM!!!" LOL

     I have a few boutonnieres to list too...{pay no attention to the fuzzy camera-work!! ^_^}...

      I have to finish the backing on this brown boutonniere, and then list the matching lapel pin too...

      After we giggle a while, and maybe play a board game of Scrabble or something, it'll be dinnertime! :-) Maybe we can make a request of something light to eat...something that won't smoke up the house or have the fire department 'running away' to and from our house! ^_^

     And then we can sit and watch the birds peck away at the suet cage, while we watch the sun go down...like we did on my 'positive' Wednesday! :-) ...

      Ahhhhhhh!...It was positively lovely! :-] ...So was the whole day...mostly, except for some mail I got...Another phone call I have to make today, and probably more paperwork!! Grrr!.....WHATEVER!...I'm keeping it positive today too! We do what we 'must' do!!...It is what it is!! :-)

      Thanks for 'running away' with me......TO me! ^_^ Maybe we can do this again some time...to your house next time, okay?! ^_^ Anything for a reason to smile!

       Have a good day, Everybody!

Reasons To Smile

I don't really need a reason,
to let out a great big grin;
But I do from time to time,
just to exercise my chin.

Sometimes I do it just to see
what reaction I will get,
in the places where I've gone,
and the people that I've met.

Sometimes it's just for me!
To amuse some silly thought;
Or to show just how excited
I have been at what I bought.

Sometimes a smile can change my mood,
when weather forecasts make me blue;
Or when I see a baby playing!
Oh yes! Oh Yes! I smile then too!

Truth is, I really don't need a reason.
Frowns just,frankly, aren't my style.
I could sit and write about it,
But even that would make me smile.

Positively Things I'm Loving Right Now!

(RED BEE HANDMADE Jewelry Brooch by FaithAnnOriginals)

       I made the mistake this morning of getting up and turning on the television. I did it to catch the weather, but I had to wait out the local news first...*sigh*...home invasions...lots of guns being stolen...people going crazy over the Powerball lottery...dangerous bacteria on pork...roll-over car accidents...etc. AARGH!!!!...Off went the television!...after I found out that no more 'snow' is due to come today. :-)

       We didn't really have any 'snow', per se, anyway! I mean, it 'did' snow...and it snowed ALL DAY too, but there was no accumulative snow on the ground! Not a bit! :-) I guess the ground was too warm for it to stick...YAY! I wasn't ready to watch my backyard covered with snow yet anyway! :-]

       What I 'am' enjoying in my backyard these days...is watching the slew of different birds I'm getting now, with all of their different 'bird music'...chirp songs! :-) The suet cage near the tree is the gift from my girlfriend that keeps on giving! :-)

      The birds will keep me in a good...positive...mood. That's what I'm working on this week. Being positive! :-) ... Actually, I'm usually pretty positive anyway, but I've noticed lately that so many 'not so good' things are happening around me...and TO me!...friends getting serious illnesses...deaths...loss of jobs...financial stress...pain!...that my 'positive' is taking a hit!! I'm having to REALLY work at it now!!

      When I was studying some of my 'Watchtower' magazine yesterday, for my meeting Sunday, it reminded me of something that was very encouraging for me. It said: "...God's word tells us: "A joyful heart has a good effect on the countenance..." (Prov. 15:13) Medical researchers have long recognized the curative value of positive thinking..."

       It also reminded me of the scripture at Proverbs 24:10 that says: "Have you shown yourself discouraged in the day of distress? Your power will be scanty."...Soooooo true! And I needed reminding!!....Okay, Bible lesson over!! ^_^ ...That wasn't for YOU anyway. That was for ME!!! :-] Forward!......Positive!

        Okay, changing gears...but still keeping it positive! :-) ...I wanna show you a few of the things I'm loving right now! They're from shops on Etsy. Shops that I 'have been', or am, keeping my eye on!...

(Triangle Lace Scarf by SenaShop)

(Special Metal-aluminium art (old city) by starlife)

 (Czech Glass Gold Plated Elephant Earrings by CinLynnBoutique)

 (Wooden Owl Brooch Pin by JullMade)

 (Turquoise Dragonfly Pendant by MyGemstoneDesigns)

      So, there you go. They're all 'positively' beautiful, aren't they?! :-)

      Okay, I'm off to finish my breakfast and get some crocheting done. Have a 'positively' wonderful day, Everybody!! ;-)

How Can You Be So Positive

"How can you be so positive
with everything so bad?
When folks are so unkind
and all those doctors make you mad?"

"It's easy!" I assure them.
'Cuz one thing makes it okay.
I wake up every morning,
and I'm breathing every day!

When I can't move a muscle
and can barely lift my head,
I think of all the folks I've known
who now are gone, yes, dead!

No matter what my problem is,
and if I stand or lay,
I'm thankful that my mind still works
and I'm breathing every day!

So how am I so positive,
When things sometimes seem bleak?
It's easy, 'cuz my breathing
keeps on going every week!

Oh yes, I have a choice!
I can be miserable and whine;
Be mean to folks around me,
Be demanding and unkind.

But who would make that choice,
when there's a better way to be?
I mean, who's breathing every day
and writing poems?...ME!     

This Isn't What I Was Gonna Talk About!!

(Tiger Eye Multifaceted Eco Resin Ring, {size 7.5 thin} by RosellaResin)

      First, Let me say: Please check out the Giveaway on the right hand side bar!!!...Now, aren't these rings beautiful?!...All of that rich amber brown with suspended gold leaf, wrapped up in all of that tiger eye inspired beauty! :-)...Yep! Beautiful!...And yet, this isn't what I had originally intended to post about this morning!

      My original post was gonna be about a couple of things...For one, things 'for men'...frankly, because I made some new lapel pins last night and I wanted to show them to you! ^_^ ... Okay, I'll 'still' show them to you! ^_^ ...This is what they looked like without their backs and centers finished...

    And this is what they looked like ALL DONE!...

         Now all I have to do is photograph them individually, write a description for each one, price them, etc....*sigh*...I'll get to it!.......some time! :-))

        I also wanted to show you the full moon we had over the backyard last night!...Okay, I'll 'still' show it to you! ^_^ ...

      The last shot wasn't taken over the backyard. Hubby wanted to get another look at it with town lights under it. :-] ...Oh, the mind of a photographer! ^_^ ...Maybe he'll get some good shots of the light snow we have going on right now too...or maybe not! I'm trying not to look at it! ^_^

      Anyway.....the reason I was sorta kinda distracted from my original post is because I read some bad news online early this morning.  Another death in my spiritual family. :-( I shed a few tears, and my mind went in another direction from all of the silliness...'word-wise'...I was gonna add to this post...I think you understand though, right?!...In fact, in reading your blogs I found that death isn't just visiting my family. :-( ...I'm sorry for your losses too.

     Tomorrow I'll be back to share the rest of the cute items I found. Hopefully I'll be in a more tear-less mood then...I'm sure I will. :-]

      Have a good day, Y'all! :-] And do something great with it...Time goes by so fast!

 Time Goes By So Fast!

Time goes by so fast!
It seems to fly just like the wind.
Before you eat your breakfast,
seems it's yesterday again!

You visit with some friends,
go to work and cut the lawn.
Then you look up from your book
and face another fleeting dawn!

You're planning what's for dinner,
jotting down the grocery list.
You wake up from a nap,
and now you're looking at a mist!

Time goes by so fast!
It seems to fly just like the wind.
Make the most out of it,
cause it may not come again!

Morning Conversation...Things We Learned From Our Parents

(Cuff Bracelet by AlwaysAMemory)

      Yes there is!......always a memory, I mean. :-] And somehow hubby and I seem to have tucked every single thing that's ever happened to us away, in the far dusty corners of our mind! ^_^ And they pop out on mornings when we're just chatting about nothing in particular.

       Sometimes 'new' things pop out of those corners that you didn't even remember that you tucked away in there!...things that shape the way you behave. Things that you had forgotten that you remembered your parents doing...not just saying! O_O

     Yes, some lessons you learned from your parents were verbal....like, don't run out into the street!...or don't pick your nose in public....or don't point at Miss Mamie and say: "You're fat!" (That lesson was followed by a non-verbal lesson. A good whack across my mouth!...It only took one whack to learn that one!...OUCH!!! ^_^...I'm sorry, you people who don't believe in spanking, but in this case, a good whack was warranted! And the lesson has stuck with me for more than 50 years!!)

     But sometimes the lessons your parents taught you weren't verbal at all! No words were exchanged...or needed!...For instance...

Pay Close Attention When Somebody Is Trying To Sell You Something!

        Hubby learned this lesson from his father. Not because his father 'said' it to him, but because of a traveling salesman that came to the house selling smoke alarms (or smoke detectors). The salesman was friendly and smiling. He even demonstrated how the smoke alarm worked!...His father bought the alarm, and the story of how it worked, hook, line, and sinker!..He hung it in the basement by his work station.....Ahhhhhh! Safe, right?! O_O

       WRONG!!!!...Years later, during some of hubby's investigative work...Don't ask! LOL...he found out that the smoke alarm wasn't a smoke alarm at all!!...It was a box with a screen across the front and a little light inside. It couldn't detect smoke! It didn't even have any buttons!!!...How terrible to find out after years of thinking that you were safe, that you really weren't! And even worse...you had been 'taken' years earlier by a smiling 'money grubber'!! O_O...Lesson Learned!! Pay close attention when somebody is trying to sell you something!! ^_^ ...That's the kind of lesson you need a memory box for, right?! :-)

(Wooden Memory Box by MyHouseOfDreams)

Always Put Other People First!

       This was a lesson I learned from watching my mother. I learned this lesson many times over the years, but one particular time was when she had just finished cooking a meal we hadn't been able to afford to have for quite some time...pork chops with gravy and onions! YUM!!...There was homemade biscuits and fried corn and mashed potatoes too!..*licking my lips even now! LOL*

      I remember seeing the gravy bubbling a little in the frying pan...when some friends of my mom's knocked on the door...O_O...HUNGRY friends! They smelled the pork chops!...I whispered to ma: "We don't have enough to feed them!!" (There were only enough pork chops for most of us to get one a piece. Two little ones had to share one!) She said: "You go eat. I'll take care of it."...And I flew to the kitchen to eat my pork chop before those ill-timed visitors got their 'grubby paws' on them!! LOL

      I heard my mother laughing and talking away...The two pork chops that were left were breaking all apart! They were soaked in gravy!...Then I saw my mother go to the kitchen and fix plates for her guests. She gave them every single bit of the leftover pork chops, gravy and onions, mashed potatoes, and corn!! O_O

       At the time I was angry with the visitors,...but years later I realized what a lesson my mother taught me...always put others first, be self-sacrificing, and the benefits to you will be long lasting...I learned that this was true because her friends never forgot my mother's kindness. Many times when we were in dire straits,...and I mean DIRE!...those friends came to our rescue...and MANY times!...I am the woman I am today partly because of this lesson learned. :-] ...That's the kind of lesson-learned memory you need a memory quilt for, right?! :-)

(Memory Quilt by SixmunchkinStitching)

      So, what lessons have you learned from your parents?...Verbal or non-verbal?!...It's Monday. Let's talk!! ^_^

History Told In A Story

A history of life
held in the mind and heart,
released for all to see
through storytelling's captured art.

Some things pulled from the past
will make you shake your head;
But revelations told
will bring new life from the dead.

Children Ooo and Awww!
Adults think hard and deep.
Oh! The knowledge now performed,
and the lessons we will keep!

Who Knew Things Would Change This Much?!!

(Vintage Bib Apron Sewing Pattern from sandritocat)

       "Did you sleep well?!"...That's the question hotel desk clerks ask you as you're wandering past their desk, on your way to get breakfast after your first night's stay in their hotel...And that's the same question hubby asks me every morning!...Usually as he's on his way to 'make' breakfast! ^_^

      Why am I talking about this today?!......Uhhhhh.....why not?! ^_^ It was what I was thinking about at 4 a.m. this morning, when I woke up...NOT in a hotel somewhere fabulous!...but waking up from a night of tossing and turning and not able to sleep! Grrrrr!

      I started thinking about all kinds of things, like past vacations and day trips hubby and I have had: a week in a bed and breakfast in Vermont...a week in the land of waterfalls and great lakes in the upper peninsula of Michigan...numerous trips to Disney World and Epcot...Cypress and Busch Gardens...a weekend in Boston...and numerous trips for weddings and just to visit family! :-) We've had some good times!

     My health has made things change a lot, but I still have every morsel of a memory right at my 'beck and call' 'at the drop of a hat'!...Is that too many euphemisms in one sentence? LOL...Anyway! ^_^ In my thinking, and then roaming around Etsy search, I got to realizing that not only has my health changed a lot, but the world has too!! The sewing pattern in my header photo is proof!

     When I was a little girl, for instance, women hardly ever got caught without an apron on...unless they were on their way to some fancy event!...Aprons were the norm. I remember seeing my grandmother and mother whipping their aprons off of the back of the door as soon as they got dressed in the morning! :-] ...

(Modern Scallop Pattern Reversible Apron by oktak)

       Their aprons didn't look like this though! (above) Theirs were all ruffly along the bottom, but otherwise basic. Plain colors. Nothing flashy like I like! ^_^ Some of them....yeah, I say 'some' because they had lots of them in a drawer! ^_^...some of them had arm holes with ruffles along the edge too. But they were obviously hand sewn!

       My sister hand-sewed me two aprons a while ago. One was a full one, with arm holes. She made them colorful...because she knew what I liked! :-) But I haven't seen 'hide nor hair' of those aprons in a long time!! I'm sure they're in the house here somewhere. I know they're here because they were a gift. If you remember the chairs...the broken chairs! ^_^ ...then you know I don't get rid of 'gifts' easily! LOL That 'hasn't' changed a lot! ^_^

        Here's a couple other things that have changed a lot...

(Telephone Watercolor Painting Art Print by jojolarue)

      Yes, folks, it's a telephone! Remember those?! ^_^ They didn't have a flip top or a camera attachment in sight! And you certainly couldn't take them with you to the mall, to the theater, to the grocery store or anywhere else that was more than so many feet from the base of it!! LOL...There's something wrong about a generation of people who have no idea about having to un-twirl a telephone cord!! LOL

        Remember when earrings and necklaces were tiny hearts and alphabet letters, or strings of pearls, or just plain 'simple' everything?!...They didn't look like this for sure!...

 (Silver Plated Drop Cabochon Necklace by ArtHarmony)

      It's so pretty! But yeah...necklaces...Well, jewelry in general...has changed a lot!...Oh, the looks you would've gotten 'back in the day' if you were wearing a necklace like this!!!! LOL

       And how about something as simple as carrying your lunch to school when you were young?...It was a brown paper bag that you could smell the banana through for me! ^_^ Yes, there always was a banana! Sometimes there was an apple too...but always a banana. I think grandmas knew something we didn't know, because I recently saw a food program about Celiac's disease where they said that bananas were the 'perfectly contained food' that you could eat by itself for a long time and still be nutritionally okay!...The wisdom of grandmas hasn't changed much at all! ^_^

      But kids today have colorful and fabulous lunch bags like this!...

 (Periodic Table Lunch Bag by YellowBugBoutique)

      It's almost pretty enough to 'be' a banana!! ^_^

       Last, but not least for today, something else that hasn't changed completely...even though it 'has' been a while! :-) ...I'm hosting a Giveaway! :-) This is the gift...

     It's one of the rings from my Wuglyees Etsy shop. It expired and I didn't wanna renew it again! Sooooo....it's yours if you want it! ^_^ ...If you're  a follower of this blog I mean!...If so, just check out the rules by clicking the photo of the ring on the right hand side bar, over there --->

      The drawing will be December 1, 2012! :-)

     Okay, some things haven't changed. Another week is over and we made it! :-)) ... Happy Sunday EVERYBODY!! :-) 

Sunday Mornings

Sunday mornings are for quiet,
and for music in your ears.
Not for fretting over business,
or for struggle, or for tears.

Sunday mornings are for worship,
or for time to just relax.
Not for schedules that need keeping,
or for dealing with the 'Quacks'!

Sunday mornings are for slowness,
sipping on a cup of 'Joe';
Getting ready for the new week,
when you have to 'Go! Go! Go!'      

Explosion...and People In My Life That Matter!

(Lone Tree In Fog Photo by ndtphoto)

    No, we don't have fog in the backyard this morning. This is just one of the other photos I didn't get to share with you yesterday. I love it so much I just had to lead with it today. :-) ...No, we don't have fog this morning. We have wind!...Wind, and a promise of substantial snowfall coming for next week!

      And as unhappy as the prospect of snow coming next week makes me, I'm happy, for the sake of the police officers and fire department, that we didn't have all that snow on the ground in our area  yesterday...or fog for that matter...because there was a massive gas explosion in downtown Springfield Massachusetts yesterday evening (the town where my family live!), and snow and fog would've really complicated an already complicated issue!

     Apparently there were high levels of gas in the area about an hour and a half before the explosion. Just as the gas company thought they had it under control....fifteen minutes later, BOOM!!...Terrible!!...One building was leveled to the ground! And I think they said that one of the 'first responders' got hurt trying to do something in the hole the blast made!...Thankfully, while about 8 to 10 people were taken to the hospital, there appears to be no deaths from the blast.

      I know the explosion was heard and felt far and wide, in towns far away from the blast. Hubby and I didn't hear or feel it, but my father, who lives about 20 blocks away, did! He says their house alarm went off when the explosion happened! O_O I know a lot of people's windows blew out! There was broken glass everywhere!...What worries me this morning is that I just heard on the news that the levels of gas in the air are strong again this morning. They're telling people to stay out of the area. O_O

      A lot of the people in my life that matter live in that town! I don't wanna be thinking about whether they're gonna blow up because of a gas leak!!...Uhhhhh...I may be over-thinking the situation a bit...I've been known to do that on occasion :-] ... Stop Laughing!!

    

      Anyway!...Ha! Ha!...To distract myself from watching the local news reports, I decided to share my poem about 'the people in my life that matter' on my blog today...in my way! :-) So here goes:

The People In My Life That Matter

The people in my life who matter,
those surrounding me with symmetry, 

 (The Beauty of Symmetry 5x7 Print by kellydbrown)

I need to write a poem about you,
and let you know what you mean to me.

You are the leaded shoes,
that cause an inability to float.
You are the waves on a quiet morning,
allowing life to gently rock me in it's boat.

(Gently Rocking 6x8 Original Oil Painting by dianamarshall)

You are the soaring eagle,
high above my submissive head;

(Sunset Soaring Eagle Scrapbooking Paper by DesignUrMemories)

You are the fluffed up pillow,
caressed so softly on my bed.

(Fluffy Heart Shaped Pillow by SendASmooch)

You are the foundation I-beam
 on the first floor of my home;

(Custom Original LARGE Hand Drawn Watercolor Painting by SchulmanArts)

You are the ground beneath me,
 and the field and dale I roam.

(Original Watercolour by artistnina)

You are the middle C,
where every song I sing will start;

(Middle C 8x10 Fine Art Photography Print by KimDeslandesPhotoArt)

You are the pulsing fluid

that surrounds my grateful heart.

(5 Thank You Cards and Envelopes by reneeanne)

You are the people in my life that matter.
You give my life such symmetry.
I wrote this poem so that you would know
that you mean the world to me.

(A Different World Wall Sticker by sunnysideupuk)

             :-) Okay...post done!....Poem done!.....sufficiently distracted! ^_^ Now it's time for some breakfast and bird watching...Why not?! The cardinal has been sitting here in the tree watching me!! :-] ... Have a good day, Everybody!