My hopes...

These are my recent "hopes". The first is to finish one of the downstairs bathroom, the main one, or as Maddie had named it, "the broken bathroom". It has always been in some sort of disarray for a couple years. I keep changing my mind on wall color, wallpaper, etc. But I think I have finally made up my mind. I have purchased many years ago 2 very large vintage french dictionarys. Larousse Supplement I believe they are dated the late 1800's. It's beautifully illustrated (black & white and a few color plates) and yes, I am, using the pages as wallpaper. I struggled with this for awhile because I love these books but I love seeing it on the walls. It is perfect. Now I can shower, primp and learn french!

Now the second "hope", Laurie Meseroll is doing more paintings & I love the one posted here. Not sure yet how big & how much, if I can afford it, but it sure would work wonderfully on my very chic french dictionary walls! So I am working on attaining this picture. Check out her blog http://www.folkart.typepad.com There is a painting of some farm girls, this might look good on one of Joe & Jermonne's (of Barnhouse fame) walls. Hint hint. Ha. And of course you can find Laurie & others at http://earthangelstoys.com and tell Jen that Kathy in Tacoma sent you! Why aren't they hyperlinking??!!! Oh well, copy & paste away.

Tip Toe

A favorite picture I found of Maddie taken in 2001. I did a bit of enhancing and I think I like it better...maybe.

Oops...one more then good night

Good Night Brits

Did I ever mention I love photo booth pictures?

These are very European looking to me. The first one looks like she has a very thick cockney accent and her name is Sibelle. The men look like they are German with names of Horst and Manfred. The last woman, not sure. Very 1930's mid-western dustbowl sturdiness. Her name is Vida.

More tweeked pictures

The bottom picture is my maternal great grandmother and father and the woman in the middle is my great great grandmother. From the old country, Germany.

Middle gnome picture is my Aunty Priscilla. She is my favorite aunt on my father's side. She has alzheimer's and my cousin tells me that she had applied her eyebrows with a sharpie. My poor dear Aunty. It took many a scrubbing to get those Grouchos off.

The top Queen picture, have no clue who it is, just a picture I got off of Ebay a couple years ago.

Back to my favorite thing...old pictures

A quiet day here so I thought I would post some old pictures of mine between doing the laundry and making room in my art room for another project.

I am sad that the snow has left us but I can't forget what a gift it was when we did have it.

Merry Christmas

Snow days

Nature's Snowcone

Yes, it's been snowing here in the Great Northwest like CRAZY. My family and I are absolutely loving it and can't get enough. I would love another 8 inches & be snowed in for the rest of the winter would just suit me fine. I can always find tons of things to do, projects to finish or fine tune, cookies to bake, recipes to test, etc etc. Now I love my husband to death but I think I would like him to go to work at least every other day. He's been home since Friday as I have and I am thinking yea, maybe every minute of every day together can't be that great on a long term relationship. We have been together for 23 years and known each other almost 30 but if we were snowed in for an entire winter I don't know who would be the one to walk out of here alive. Ha. Who am I kidding. It would be me. Ha again.

So we have been walking every chance we get and riding our sled with Maddie. My oldest son Justin joined us last night. The sled we have is one that I have had since I was about 10 years old and got it when we lived in Germany. There is no steering mechanism, you just have to learn to use your body to steer. Maddie had become quite good at it and I just use my feet to steer or to halt before careening (sp?)into a ditch.

The picture above reminds me of the snowcones I use to have everyday after school in Hawaii. The snowcone truck would be parked outside after school and I would always get a strawberry lilikoi flavored snowcone for 25 cents. The ones the sell here just aren't the same.

A very muddy game

Last weekend my daughter Maddie's soccer team had their first real muddy game. The field was so thick with mud that the ball would stop dead in it's track after a powerful kick. They were thoroughly drenched but they were enjoying it.

I never played any organized sports in school. As an adult I played a few years on a volleyball team. Women's and mixed. It was such a blast and I think had I done sports is school, I would of been pretty good. So that is a thing that I now regret I didn't do.

Collage

A while ago I was sifting through some items I saved from my son Dylan's 10th grade English class. I came across a poem assignment he did so I used it in a collage. The picture on the collage is of my maternal grandmother holding my mother in Germany around 1930. I forgot who the others were. The other child may be my Aunty Hanne.

Here is the poem my son wrote which is on the bottom left of the collage in transparency:

A Personal Poem

this daylight cannot compare
to the moon's silver stare
but i'll still be here
when the twilight comes

the trees will continue to sway
because the wind is at play
and it will continue to cheer
when the twilight comes

i can still hear the voices
as the sky rejoices
and sheds a peaceful tear
when the twilight comes

as we lay here tonight
it will be your turn to recite
and make it incere
when the twilight comes

Barn House Season Finale

Saturday was the season finale for Barn House. It was to say the least incredible. Of course. Nothing these guys do is any less. Cindy of "Queen of Tarte" was their special guest/vendor. You can see her touches throughout the barn. Natalie of "Vintage Sparrow" (ok, I have to learn how to make these a link to their blogs!!) was there as were others. I was in my absolute glory buying like crazy.

The barn had been tranformed into a forest filled to the brim with had to have beauties. Everywhere I looked I saw something I just simply couldn't do without. Alas the winning lotto ticket was not mine so I had to refrain.

Halloween is around the corner!

I love Halloween.

Last year I had a Halloween party for my daughter & her soccer team. I wasn't going to have another as it takes a bit of time pulling together all the decorations & to do something different this year than last years. A few projects going on but I think I am getting the itch as it approaches. I think I will make some plaster like ghosts out of sheets to float from the trees and have some eery (sp?)uplighting. We already put all the purple lights through the wisteria on the front porch with some figures hanging from them as well. The boxwoods are draped with orange lights & in the dark they look like pumpkins. A few ghouls in the yard. I still have the interior to do and the party favors and the music and food and...oh all the screaming crazy girls! It will be fun.

First picture is a part of a painting I have by Laurie Meseroll. One of many Halloween paintings by her I have. She is my fave.

Barn House in August 2008

Here are some much delayed pictures of the Barnhouse event in August. I think it was on the 22nd.

Yesterday on Barn House's blog, Jermonne talks about getting caught on his deck in limited attire. It made me laugh and reminded me of a similar incident in our home.

About 3 weeks ago, Josh, my son's friend who has been staying with us for the summer, woke up to get ready for work. Much to his & my husband Ron's surprise Josh caught him eating his breakfast,a piece of chicken, over the sink in his tighty whiteys. Poor Josh, that no doubt will be etched in his mind forever. And a lesson for my husband to put some pants on.

Blush

I love the color pink yet I hardly have any of it in my home. I am working on changing that as soon as I get done with the other gazillion projects I have going on right now.

I want to paint our living room in the Spring from "Coco" to "Roman Ruins". It's a frenchy gray. At Barnhouse last weekend I purchased 2 pink dupioni pillows made by "Worthy Goods" and some ironstone from "Sparrow". So pink, gray, creamy white and some gilded things is what I am aiming for. The furniture I currently have is Ikea's white slipcovered "Ektorp". I LOVE it. It's so inexpensive that I have 3 sets of white slipcovers just in case. I recently discovered that they now offer the slipcovers in PINK!

Last days of Summer

Where has the summer gone? These pictures taken last month of Madeleine and the other of her, her cousin Carlie and Maddie's friend since kindergarten.

Madeleine and Carlie are more like sisters than cousins. They are 6 months apart and since birth have always been together. They laugh so much and it's hilarious when they are arguing. Their arguments only last minutes and they are back to giggling again.

My friend Gretchen mentioned how much Madeleine looks like Charlotte Gainsbourg (sp?). I have to agree. I have been looking at pictures of her and there is a strong resemblance. My poor darling, she couldn't sleep tonight because she said she kept thinking of sad things. I asked her what kind of sad things and she replied about people dying. She once cried that she was sad that she was the youngest as that meant she would be alive longer and didn't want all of us to die. Breaks my heart. She is our youngest. Our very much wanted surprise baby. My children are 27, 24, 19 and Maddie 10. She is all of our pride and joy and each one of my children spoil her and treat as the princess she is. She has such a good heart. All my children do. Who could ask for more.

More Barn House

Barn House Fleamarket

Saturday was another Barn House event. It was, as always, spectacular!

When Ludmil and Linda of "Willow Nest" fleamarket fame moved to Texas, I thought who could possibly come close to filling that void. Well, I do believe Joe and Jermonne have. They create that same magic atmosphere that was at Willow Nest. They also imppecably choose just the right vendors to compliment their flair.

Saturday's guest vendors were Sparrow, Worthy Goods, Little Byrd and Second Childhood Girlfriends. I wanted everything of course. At these events you can't think about your options or wonder if what you want will fit anywhere. You have to grab before it's gone. When the gate's open the rush of like minded women (and a man here & there) are like sharks in a feeding frenzy. I quickly forgot about my sisters and friend that came along with me. To each his own and I was in a state of bliss.

I came away with a nice cache of goods. I am a very happy gal in need of a bigger home.