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Sunday, May 31, 2009

Back from the great north woods

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I am finally back from my Mom's and so happy to be home. I had a very nice, but very busy visit. We played lots of Yahtzee and cribbage and watched lots of Tiger games - most of which they won, I am happy to say. We didn't watch any hockey, but I am so pleased how the Red Wings are doing!

I didn't get any drawing done, but did lots of cooking including pea soup, zucchini bread and several snacks of homemade guacamole. Many of my sisters don't like guacamole, so Mom always anticipates it whenever I am there.

My mother doesn't need constant care, but cannot bend over to put her shoes and socks on; needs help taking a shower, cannot stand long enough to cook a meal, and needs help getting dressed and undressed. She had two shoulders rebuilt (they still hurt and her range of motion is not what it should be) and a hip replaced. However, she will be 85 in the Fall and can still answer more of the questions on Jeopardy than I can. She loves to work really hard crossword puzzles, too. She is VERY GOOD company!

While I was gone, my daughter and her little ones completed their move into their new house. That is not to say there is not still a lot of their stuff here, but I hope to make more progress tomorrow when they come over to help decide into which pile each of the room full of things goes. I am hoping to have a giveaway pile, a garage sale pile, and a "they are taking it with them" pile.

I spent 5 hours this morning cleaning out the closet in the little girls' room, the linen closet, the medicine cabinet in the main bathroom, the hall coat closet, my walk in closet and the laundry room. Now the only really messy rooms are the one that DD and the 6 year old shared (full to the brim with "stuff" to sort) and my art room.

I am planning to do more tomorrow.

I did take time to catch up on the crossword puzzles that I missed while I was away. The hubster saved the Thursday, Friday and Saturday puzzles as they are my favorites.

I am glad to be back and hope to get some art time tomorrow.

Bye!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Choosing a New Winner for the Book Giveaway

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It has been too long since I drew the winner for the book "Quick Leather Bindings" by Keith A Smith. Vickylw has not responded to my request for an address to send it to her.

Therefore, I am drawing a new winner and hope that person will respond with a mailing address.

The new winner of this wonderful book is Vicki Robison.

Congratulations!

I will be posting later today with the backgrounds of the 5 x 5 book pages I am making for a quote swap.

Until then, Bye!

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Home Again, Home Again Jiggity Jig

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I'm back and hoping to get to work on the 5 x 5 quote swap that is due at the end of the month.

I had a wonderful time at my Mom's - she really kept me busy. When I arrived I found she had an itinerary for me. My sister who lives next door doesn't like to shop (nor do I, but I love to take my Mom), so my Mom anxiously awaits my visit so that I can take her places. We went to the library, Hope House resale shop, the produce stand for birdseed, and then drove around the Boulevard, Point LaBarbe Road and Gros Cap Road. These three drives are along lake Michigan and are really beautiful.



This is the view as we drive along the Boulevard. Gotta love it!


When we got home, we played some Yahtzee and then my sister and her husband came over. He made chicken on the grill and boiled some red potatoes and we had peas with it. A great dinner, and he wouldn't let me do the dishes because he said I was on vacation. We watched the Tigers and they won. Go, Tigers!!

On Saturday, we began with breakfast at Bentley's Cafe and then drove to Hessel to my sister Molly's house. She joined us and we drove to Pickford to a resale/consignment shop. We spent about an hour there and then went to the resale shop in Cedarville. After that, we went to the lovely grocery store in Cedarville and then took Molly home. On our way back to Mom's, we stopped in at my sister Margaret's house for a visit. Margaret has MS and is totally incapacitated. She maintains a sunny disposition and gives great hugs. She weighs less than 100 and is unable to get herself out of her regular chair into her wheelchair and is alone much of the day. She is an inspiration to us all with her great attitude. Her husband, the wonderful Jeff, works long hours and has redone much of the house to make it sunnier and more updated. He also has gotten some chickens (for fresh eggs) and a couple of piglets.

Spent Saturday evening watching the Tigers again, and they won again! Go, Tigers!!!

Mom and I stayed up late both nights working crossword puzzles. I swear most of the girls in my family (there are 9 of us - and we have 5 brothers (John passed due to cancer last summer, but I still count him) are addicted to hard crossword puzzles.

On Sunday, my sister and her husband came over for their weekly brunch with Mom. They do all the cooking, but I talked them into letting me do the dishes. He does the cooking - we had pancakes, eggs, fried potatoes and bacon. Yummy! and special because I generally have Shredded Wheat and Bran with fruit for breakfast.

Mom and I stayed in on Sunday, but around dinner time, I went to town and visited with a couple of girls that I graduated from high school with - it was a blast, and an hour was never enough time, but I promised to get in touch again when I am up in June so we could get together again. On the way back to Mom's, I stopped and visited Aunt Therese for a short time.

I left for home after a cereal and fruit breakfast with Mom on Monday morning. The drive was uneventful and I was home shortly after 1 PM.

I am about to go in and spend an hour on the treadmill - I've missed my exercise. I think the girls are going to their Dad's today, so I am going to get serious about doing some art and hope to post something with pictures tomorrow (or maybe later today).

The kindergartner has a T-ball game this evening and Poppa and I are planning to attend. Then I want to stop by the new house and see how it looks with all the painting done and the carpet in. We are getting close to being empty nesters again. YAY!!!!!!!!!

That's it for now. Sorry if this long post bored you.

Bye!

Friday, May 8, 2009

On the Road and A Mothers' Day Card

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Just a quick note. I haven't posted much this week - it has been a full one. So much to do , so little time.

I am just about ready to hop in the car and start the 4 hour drive north to visit my Mom for the weekend. I hate the drive, but always have a good time with her once I arrive. There is bound to be construction on the way and Mom tells me that they are working on the Bridge as well. That more than likely means I will have to drive on the grating - I hate driving on the grating. It's extremely noisy and I feel like my tires are being pulled sideways. Good thing it is only about 5 miles from one end to the other - and the grate part is probably less than a mile long.

I made a quick card for my Mom last night for Mothers' Day. I think she will like it. Here is the front:

On the inside is stamped:

You are the tweetest

Well there is no sense in procrastinating any longer. I just need to get in the car and get moving. First I will take the glass cleaner out and clean my windshield. I think I am going to take back roads through Mason and East Lansing to Lake Lansing Road before getting on 127. Hopefully I will miss a good part of the early morning construction wait.

I'll get some good pix and will be sure to post on my return.

Bye!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Goodies in the Mail 2

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I haven't had a minute to devote to my art these past few days. We are working fast and furious on getting the daughter's house ready, babysitting while said daughter works, and I have been tutoring for 2 hours each day.

I have had some lovely mail, however. First I received a lovely envelope full of ephemera from AnLiNa Designs with foreign language newspapers, lovely papers, labels, bingo card.....such fun!




And then the next day I received my hand drawn art supply ATCs from a trade I was participating in through ATCsForAll.




These two deliveries have been my eye candy for this week. Today and tomorrow are still babysitting days and I am tutoring each day. On Friday morning I am leaving to go north to my Mom's for the Mothers' Day weekend. I probably won't get any art done while I am there, but I will surely have fun cooking for her, taking her to second hand stores and grocery shopping, playing cribbage and Yahtzee, watching the Tigers and game shows.....it will be BIG fun. I am also hoping to catch up with a couple of friends from high school that I haven't seen to talk to in probably 20 years.

I will check in when I can. I think I will be far from internet access while at my Mom's but will be sure to take the camera and will share pix when I return.

I am still waiting to hear from vickylw so that I can send her the lovely book she won. If I haven't heard from her by the time I return from my Mom's on Monday, May 11, I will select a new winner.

Bye for now!

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Books I've Read in April 2009

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I found less time for reading in April than earlier in the year, but finished three books nevertheless.

They are:

The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell
A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch

This gives me a total of 17 so far for 2009, which is on track to succeed at my challenge of 50 books this year.

I've already finished one for May called City of Thieves by David Benioff, and need to get myself to the library to pick out a few more.

Later!

Friday, May 1, 2009

EDM #147 and WE HAVE A WINNER!

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Several days ago, I posted pix of the treasures I found at a nearby antique mall. One of them was a wood crate with animals on it. I was perusing my EDM challenge sketch book and came upon #147 - Something Made of Wood - and decided to attempt to draw it.




I think my perspective is a bit off, but I am not totally displeased with it. The kindergartner gave me her critique - wow! Little ones don't hold back on the criticism (or the praise). She gave me some of both.

It is May Day and time for me to draw a winner for the book giveaway. First I looked at the number of comments on that post and found there were 33 of them, so I generated a random number between 1 and 33, but when I went to identify the winner, I found that I had unthinkingly left 4 comments. Back to the random number generator where I asked for a number between 1 and 29. This is what I got:




Vickylw - you are the winner!



I have a busy day planned - get the kindergartner on the bus, workout, shower, drive into town and make an appointment with Discount Tire regarding a recall, and get my oil changed.

Gotta go!