Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Peter Cottontail!

Yes, he visits all of the time. Does not matter what time of day it is but he loves poking through our fence in the backyard. He loves the green clover in our grass. I keep telling my husband that we cannot get rid of it yet as the little guy loves the clover and we can wait a bit longer. I never have my camera ready but I did grab it to try and capture the little guy. Of course, settings were all wrong but my time was limited as I was fearing he would dash away.
He really has a thing for being under our Dogwood Tree.

Do you see his little white tail?

Thursday, April 22, 2010

40 Years of EARTH DAY!


It was not well received in 1970...but 40 years later...the WHOLE WORLD is involved to make the Earth a happier and healthier place for all mankind. Are you contributing?

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

You Can't Go Back Now....

Take the time and listen to these words. I am reminded of Simon and Garfunkel with a twist here...simply...lovely.

Makes me "WEEPY"



Be what you wanna be!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

The Ugly Flower?

This Spring the Dandelions are everywhere! They are popping up in the most manicured lawns across our neighborhood. Gardeners are out even in the darkness sprinkling their lawns with weed and feed and trying to get rid of the "unsightly" little yellow dandelion that opens when the sun rises and closes when the sun sets. I think God loves this flower. It follows his brightest planet searching for the light and the warmth. But "we" have taken the liberty to get rid of this plant. God had a purpose for the yellow flower. It is across fields, on the sides of main highways, and even pops up between cement that man has put on the earth so we can park our cars on a paved pad. There are commercials to STAMP OUT the weeds. Are they weeds really? Are they ugly, really? Not to me. They may not be what "the public as a whole" sees as beautiful but God created them and they are in fact beautiful. But we get out our pesticides and feed our lawns with "anti-weed" killers in hopes of only seeing green and not the "yellow" popping up. I just wonder...who decided that Dandelions were ugly? Who made the ultimate decision that they are pests? But in any case, we strive to stamp them out of our lawns and will spend a great deal of money doing just that...

Thursday, April 15, 2010

The Girlfriend Party!

We had such a good time Tuesday evening! I hosted a "Girlfriend Party" at Dillard's where I work to highlight a clothing line by Daniel Nygard. We had all the trimmings of goodies to eat with little cheesecakes and Godiva Chocolates. Clinique gave us special gifts for our games and Estee Lauder chipped in with some samples for our "go home" gift bags along with several other companies that have scents to sample that we sell at Dillard's in our perfume department. It was a SMASHING success of fun! So, here are a few photos from our "Girlfriend Party!"
Here is a glimpse of our little room where we could chat it up, eat, and giggle!Robin going through her purse like a MAD WOMAN as she was determined to win the prize.
Jane, Kathy, and Charla enjoying our little game. I think Kelleen was intense on seeing who could seek out the "finds" in their purses.
Jane was the big winner!
Robin came back later with gangbusters and won the word game.
So, she did get her prize after all.


This is my new friend at work, Kelleen. She was my co-host for the party. She is a Nygard Specialist and we really enjoyed being personal shoppers for our "Girlfriends!"Conservative Jane "stepping out of the box" and choosing some whimsical tops to try on!

The "gathering of the clothes for the massive Z-Bar we filled up to take to the dressing room!"
Jennifer could not decide on what she wanted....so, she loaded up plenty to try on in the dressing room and she was so excited at all of the fun clothes!
Jane and Kathy

Have you ever wondered what happens in a dressing room full of "girlfriends" and clothes? Well, there is loads of clothing, giggles, and gawking in the mirror. Pure adrenaline and fun!

Here is a small peek at the fun!Charla's new dress! She was absolutely GIDDY about it!Group shot where Jennifer (middle) could not decide on PINK or BLUE....
Blue is it GIRLFRIEND!This calls for NEW SHOES and Make-up! Yes, we had a great time and next time have a GIRLFRIEND Party and SHOP, Giggle, Eat Chocolate, and have fun!
We sure did...

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Danville, Kentucky...

Yesterday, my beloved and my darling daughter went to visit and watch or son, Stephen play baseball in Danville, Kentucky. I had to work and they headed out early in the AM to catch some "BOYS of Summer" play our favorite past-time sport. Baseball has been so much of our lives since the boys were younger.
Now, Stephen is a Senior and will graduate from Oglethorpe University on May 8th and it is a bitter sweet feeling for him I am sure. His love for baseball is more than a passion, it has been his life along with studies for many years. I was not there but the camera was...here are some photos my beloved Brian took. He said he needed to learn my camera. But I feel he did alright.

The BEST NEWS! Oglethorpe Played a Double Header with Centre College and won both games. They will now head to the playoffs for their college division.

The GREATEST NEWS! My beloved got to watch his son hit a HOME RUN and he said he was overwhelmed with great pride at that moment.

I know ... I can imagine the glimpses of time that must of run through his mind. T-ball, Little League, Dixie League, and The World Series for Dixie when we were in thunderstorms and high humidity in Memphis several years back. The countless Bing Cherries I used to buy when we spent the weekends on the bleachers and soaked in the rays on our knees and arms. Usually one side got burnt and the other just pink. I am reminded of washing uniforms at 11 PM at night so that it was cleaned for the next game the following day as I hurried from work to watch a game that excited my soul.
I remember taking the boys and their friend to the Home Opener for the Braves and freezing our fanny off to only be warmed up by mid-afternoon and soaking in all Turner Field Fun.
Memories...they come at the craziest times and they are triggered by new memories as well. But this was a special day. Although I was not there my soul and heart sure were! Here is a boy who has become a man and grew up playing baseball. Here is a man that is literally on the cusp of starting his career in life working with math, numbers, checks , and balances. Here is the man who would as a child be depressed if a game was lost to another team. But this day, he WON! His Team WON! He was greeted at Home Plate and his father was witness to a day of elation, pride, love, and memories that will stand out in time for years to come.
How very precious this day was/is...

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Tie-dye!

Yes, it is back! Tie Dye is everywhere these days. I guess Rhupert from Survivor is once again back in fashion. Tie Dying is very fun and this year for Easter this is what we did with our eggs.
The dying of the tie! In either case,
it was hard to just use 3 colors and then some quickly turned
to mud.
No matter though, we had a great time.
Our regular traditions were augmented a bit this year, but still...we had fun creating and watching The Ten Commandments together. There is something that is special about a classic movie that tells a great story in history and sharing the love of art all in one sitting.
I was exhausted after working and when we were creating our bits of fun for Easter morning,
I realized I was not tired after all.
My love for my family gives me great energy to keep mustering onward.
Love is so powerful!!

Friday, April 9, 2010

April is all the buzz...

...at Art Freckles! We are getting familiar with new people on the forums and the announcement of a new design team is just a few days away! We are also buzzing about April Kit, "Road Trip!"
I managed to squeeze some time earlier in the week to work with this kit and have plans to scrap more layouts and maybe a few cards.
Here is what I have completed so far with these fun fun papers!So, I was asked..."Your style is getting more simple, why?" Well, I really feel that journaling is just as important as the photo. I like sharing my thoughts and with this...I must leave some room for the story. After all, scrapbooking to me is more than the design of all the goodies. It is a living journal of my perception of the moment or story behind the photo that was taken in a split second. I do enjoy scrapping those REAL photos and not posed photos.
Those are the real moments to me. They are what warms my heart.

Friday, April 2, 2010

No Matchy Matchy Here!

Here is a layout that was inspired by a sketch. Scrapping outside the box and not being so "matchy matchy" is what I really dig right now! So, are you a "matchy matchy" artist?