happiness:)

Thanks to In a Yellow House . . . another award:)

She's a sweet blogger lady who has amazing food pictures, and she sews, (holy cow) and she likes Starbucks. Which is coffee. Well, and tea. Which is . . . nevermind. Y'all know where I'm going.
So. Thanks to Yellow House! :)
Now for some things that...make me happy. Hmm. Just so ya know, this isn't going to be in any specific order, 'kay? Thanks. ;)

1. Clean kitchens. I was just working in ours, washing dishes (yeppers, we have human dish washers...) and making it decent looking. Well, trying to. But I love kitchens. Today's just not the best day in the world for me. It's...It's...Just wonderfee, being a woman. (bleh) But, back on kitchen, I want one of my own someday....kind of like this one:

2. Traditional Home magazine. It's like a mixed breed of Architectural Digest and House Beautiful . . . it's wonderfee. :)

3. Reading. Although lately my reading has been of the more non-fiction style --my Bible and blogs, heh heh-- Lisa Samson, Bonnie Grove, Karen Hancock, and Ted Dekker are a few of my favorite authors. I hate horror or too much suspense. (um, most of those books in the pic are not mine...they're Anna's and Skylar's from a library trip last summer..haha)

4. Writing. Sure, I blog quite a bit, but for journalling, etcetera? Composition notebooks and a pen are my best friends. Ever since a couple Christmases ago, I've been using one of Ben's pens, and nothing less. :) Here are two I made in December with him:

5. Painting. Not sure if any of you lovelies out there picked up on it . . . harhar.

6. Rain. And the smell in the breeze before it starts...and how the grass looks after it...and the rainbows that you see sometimes during it. :)

 7. Purple. Like chairs. Like paintings. Like these pumps:

8. This mug from Etsy, by MrPS. Except I don't think it's big enough . . . only holds 11oz.

9. The sky. Mostly when it's blue. And there are tons of jets/planes/what have you flying through it...

10. Robbie Seay Band . . .their latest album, Miracle. Amazing lyrics in those songs. Wow.

And the beautiful ladies I'm awarding?

The Mrs. @ Trying Our Best
She mentioned such a yummy recipe the other day...(guacamole over chicken tacos) And she's just too cute:) I loved reading about her and her hubby's different cleaning styles. ;)

Mrs. Bement @ The Newlywed’s Diaries
I just found her the other day and I love her way with words. :) Plus, she's adorable, and I started reading her with this post about strange old men. haha! It's just so random, and I loved it.

Christina @ Consider the Coffee
I love her title, of course. And I love all her collages of dresses/etcetera. Makes you want to have a closet full of vintage dresses... :)

Donna @ The Bear Hug Waltz 

She's going to have a Soapbox post soon, so I'm excited for that, and her family post is so sweet:) You meet everyone, and you want to read her blog all the more. :)

Jessica Jane @ Jessica Jane Handmade

She's got pictures...she's got crafts. She's pretty adorable, too:) I found her a while ago, but have been reading more of her lately... She's honest and sweet and she even does the Flashback Friday. ;)

So...copy the picture, post it in your Happy award post, and link to me and award 5 --or however many you want to-- bloggers, and link to them... :)

Have a lovely evening!!

photography contest.

This picture...is random. 'Kay? And it's...kind of minimalist, right?

Alright then.

So I found out about this photography contest by In a Yellow House, because she was doing it. I checked out the link, and decided what the hey, why not. :)

So this is the link for Simplicity's blog, and that there's my picture for the heck of it because I think it's kinda minimalist. And it's coffee. So it's me, and minimalist. 

And green tea is a wonderful thing.

Just wanted to say that. :)

artistic endeavors: random moment, anyone?

9:17pm
Ah.... Yes.

I just finished another one:)

By the way, Anna has been urging my to make it public . . . 

I take requests. We're still ironing out how exactly everything will be done, and I might try selling one on our family Etsy shop, but there it is. Out in the open. $25-$35, depending. Any questions, email me. Or leave a comment. (smile)

Why on earth does it change from red cup, to orange cup, to green cup?

What the hey was going on?

As if any of you noticed that . . . (Heather or Kade would notice. ;P)

The orange cup was one I saved on the side when I finished off the red cup of black coffee. I prefer it with milk in it... But then, something tragically funny happened. I'll just quote you the status I put up on FB, because I'm just that pathetic:

". . . I knew it would happen someday. My yogurt cover with puddles of paint was too near my coffee cup. And I swished my paintbrush in that beautiful orange, still halfway full, coffee cup:P Lovely!"

Let it be known that I had ignorantly placed my coffee cup on the left side where my palette was, and went from palette, to painting a streak, to swishing it in . . . the mug. :P

Ew.

As the brush dove beneath the lovely shade of milked coffee, I realized what was happening and shrieked "holy schnitzel!" 

Anna burst out laughing because she knew something bad and amusing just happened.

I took it directly to the sink and dumped it. Even though the paint is non-toxic... (psh, i would never drink it after that--haha. :P)

 So you know what I did?
I made myself a cup of Oregon vanilla chai. From Wally-world. It's sooo good.
And it says to use the little packet for 8oz of hot water or milk, but that would be drinking strong, sugary stuff. I do the whole 16oz of this mug with hot water. Mmmm. :)

So. The inspiration, you're wondering?
This: was on the wall of a coffee shop/quilting place run by two cute old ladies. :)

Obviously it's only an inspiration. I think that'd be cool to replicate it, but that just doesn't work:) Plus, then they're both unique unto themselves.

And here it is finished:
:)

Ah. Love late dinners...
By the way, check out this cute/random/amusing lady, Flower Patch Farmgirl:)

wordless wednesday: my boredom on the softball field.

clifbars, mmm:)

note: Tuesday night softball practice.

Can you tell how much I hate the game? I mean really... :) It's not that bad, but I'm not that good...and sports? Nah... on a random fashion note though, I love the blue $4 Kohls shirts I layered with a gray $1.82 long-sleeved one;)

By the way, once I was 5 inches away from getting hit by the ball. I was in outfield, and Caleb yelled at me when my head was down. Look up, step to the side. Nicely averted.

Sure.

My distraction? My camera.

I was looking at my camera, turning it on, while manning an outfield position. Not very well, obviously, but oh well.

I'm not meant to play softball.

I'm meant to take pictures.

Please, please, please don't make me play again...

Pray they have better turnouts from now on, because last week when I didn't go, they had enough people...this week, everyone decided to skip out on us except for the loyal two. Plus Dad, Ben, Caleb, Lyd and I.

Woo-hoo.

continued happy lists... :)

1. Dad brought home a big thing of honey the other day! Praise be to God. :) I need my honey....

 2. It was foggy on the way to a luncheon the other day. Kinda cool...it wasn't too dangerous, so that's why I'm listing it here...we don't get foggy days every day like some places. Ben was driving:)

3. Paintbrushes. And conversations about coming over from Germany in 1958 with the lady at whose store I buy more paint in yummy shades called Chocolate Bar and Turquoise. :) Normal little paintbrushes like Reeves brand is what I use... (upper right corner: that's a muslin sheet used as a curtain, photographed on a rainy day...if you can't tell. :)

4. Dark chocolate from Trader Joe's . . . Dad randomly opened a small parcel of the lovely stuff before he left for the farm just now. :) I saved him coffee earlier, so I reminded him of that when I asked please can I have some chocolate? :) 

5. These shelves. They would inspire one to keep them organized, wouldn't they now?

6. Honeybear pears I had the other day, the day my honey bear ran out... and ya know what? They actually taste like honey. Weird. But Cool.

7. The focaccia bread I made the other day that turned out gorgeous. Light and not dense at all, even though we use 100% whole wheat (I grind hard white wheat berries with our Whisper Mill that doesn't really whisper but it does a good job) ... 

 [That's Danny, he was cheerful that day... Mmmm. Bread finished baking, and our beloved Whisper Mill. :)]

Had to torture you with one last picture. Oh.My.Goodness. It was good. 
God created carbs for a reason, yes? Ohhhhh yes! ;)

Alrighty. I'm posting before I add even more . . . this list will, of course, continue. :)

But I have to go vacuum before most of my fam comes home from errands. Rach and I are home, cleaning, etc., (and blogging....hehe) and Ben's doing stuff outside. Man work.

But beware: I have more pictures! Catching up with my camera and all the ones I took with Caleb's . . . 

Wait. One more.

8. My paint bin: good old Apple Barrel paints, some from way back several (or more) years ago... lovely:)

haircuts and parts of happy lists...

1. Anna found my camera today. :) Very excited about that.

2. Gave Caleb that long overdue haircut, and when I was done, he ended up wanting it all as short as the stuff in the back...he's able to use gel now. :) I like it.

Yes. We went kinda drastic. More than we have in a looong while:)

Yep, new scissors Mom got the other day, a nice yellow random comb, and... of course. ;) I'm not going to name that thing with the handle, or what it held. 'Kay? (hahahahahaha!!)

Before I got a picture of the finished specimen, I saw the sky, I sprayed protective matte finish on the paintings of this past week, and then I got him. He's frowning because of course he won't muster a smile for me...he's figuring out his new phone because his old one broke, this new one came today, and he's figuring it out. It's complicated. Ay yi yi.

But it's cool. And he's liking the camera and sound recording different songs. 

The other night, Anna had the urge and made these:

Oh.My.Gosh. So good. 

Golly. Nothing better than a paintbrush in one hand, and a brownie in the other:)

That modified-and-made-better-than-the-prototype thing is for someone... ;)

Well. I'm off to have not-homemade pizza with the family.

I've got more pictures, etc., but I'll do those some other time, as well as a few more to that happy random list above... :)

Forgot to mention, though, that I randomly took a spur-of-the-moment sabbatical from the computer on Saturday and Sunday, that's why the no-show. :) I'm back though, and caught up on peoples blogs. Lovely!

tea and reflection.

Friday, April 23, 2010 3:52pm
A hot cup of Twinings China Oolong tea makes me feel serious and calm.
It’s also an overcast, cool day.
And Jars of Clay is playing, and there’s not too many dishes to catch up on.
I’m thinking of Jacob.
The first verse reminds me of him.
And the relative quiet of this afternoon, the reflection that Jars and hot tea puts me in . . .

Silence
Take
Take till there's nothing
Nothing to turn to
Nothing when you get through
Won't you break
Scattered pieces of all I've been
Bowing to all I've been
Running to
Where are you?
Where are you?
 

Did you leave me unbreakable?
You leave me frozen?
I've never felt so cold
I thought you were silent
And I thought you left me
For the wreckage and the waste
On an empty beach of faith
Was it true?

'Cause I...I got a question
I got a question
Where are you?

Scream
Deeper I wanna scream
I want you to hear me
I want you to find me
Cuz I...I want to believe
But all I pray is wrong
And all I claim is gone

And I...I got a question
I got a question
Where are you?
Yeah....yeah
And where...I...I got a question
I got a question
Where are you?
Where are you?
Where are you?
Where are you?

There’s a lot of things you could just stay and be and remember and focus on, but you need to move on.

I find this completely true:

If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair.
[C. S. Lewis]

Now, it sounds hopeful to me.
If you seek the Truth, there is hope.
If you choose to flounder and try to find your own blooming way through this earth and life and all the problems . . . well, we’re here for you if you ever need us.

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
[John 1]

artistic endeavors: guess what . . .

So.

Everything good starts with inspiration. :)

[The one on the left is obviously the original, the one on the right is my trying to do something like it, with pen and coloring in with crayons. :) Aren't I classy?]

But first I would like to say...that there are truly no words to say how much I love slop.

Stephanie made it with me while Anna and Heather scrapbooked at Grammy's house.

We watched Danny tote the little baby doll around, the one that I got when I was like, 6. He was adorable with it, finding a random jar and giving the doll sips of the imaginary drink in it. Then he got one of his diapers out of his bag, and Steph put it on the baby doll. Hilarious.

He talks quite a bit more nowadays, and he warmed up to Steph and I after a while... he usually likes Rachel the most, but I think I earned his affection and respect with the strawberries I made him say please for, and the rice-honey-cinnamon-milk that I fed him and he kept coming back for more. :)

So that's my swooning over slop and my little blurb about last night with Heath and Steph...oh yeah--here's to a public Happy Birthday to Heather dear! ;) 

(whenever she gets on here and reads this, she is so going to love me;)

Next up, I may or may not have mentioned that I love the book of John?

It's amazing. My favorite of the gospels.

1:50pm

At the coffee shop in town with Skylar... We had $5.50 together, but it was .50 short of paying for her chocolate-raspberry iced cappuccino and my small English toffee cappuccino. This random guy at the end of the counter footed the 50 cents. He doesn't seem too creeper, which is good...it's nice to live in a small town.

For some reason, I don't think people in a New York coffee shop/bistro would be so generous if we were short a certain amount of change?
Something funny.
A man walked in, went to the counter, and told one of those nice, friendly ladies, "One pound, please."
I looked at Skylar.
"Did you hear that?"
We snickered.
"It's like a drug! It's...like a drug!" She whispered.
"Um, honey. It is."
Har. Har. Caffeine is a drug, isn't it?
Well, then. Let's keep it moderate. It's not my fault I post pictures on here and you worry about me. ;)
(Sincerely, I hope you don't...worry, I mean.)

Anyhow...

John.

We were talking about the book of John.

Inbetween telling Lyd silence! I need silence!!!  while she sang the theme song of Robin Hood BBC and Rachel doing the sweet typing accuracy program on our computer (which is a quiet occupation, haha), I read John 17 and sipped some leftover cold coffee from last night (after two huge glasses of water) and ate some warmed up slop and downloaded some music by City and Colour, who is the author of that beautiful first song on my blog playlist: Hello, I'm in Delaware. What can I say? I love the acoustic sound. Heather and Steph were shocked but pleased that I'm on a softer musical kick. ;)

John. Back to John.

In my ESV (English Standard Version) Bible, the chapter is called "The High Priestly Prayer." It's Jesus, talking to God.

As I read, --I had to read it aloud to the girls because them and Gram were the ones I was home with as Anna was babysitting and Mom took the boys somewhere, and if I didn't read it aloud, Lyd was singing and that was . . . haha, distracting-- this verse stood out to me:

³And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

.....wow.  
I don't want to go funky and give a long spiel about those who have their eyes opened and hearts turned away from all this crap in the world, but I can at least mention it as I just did. Right?
So, random fact, when I had the first part of Rachel's canvas done, I nearly cried at the beauty and the fact that in the pamphlet for the little boy Jacob's funeral, his Mom had named the song we sang (Psalm 23) Jacob's Song. I thought of him when I had that first part done. And I've never almost started crying while looking at a painting.

Hmmm.
We're going to move on now.
To the next crafty thing I did.
And all the ideas Mom and us have had the past few days for my paintings? Lots. :) Ah yes, and Jen dear! 
Just keep in mind that those cards (yes, those were cards up there, and I did take a picture of them) were an inspiration for me. I thought of them, and you know what I wanted to do. :)

No, that's not coffee right there. That, my dears, is dirty paint water. :)

Alright. Now that's coffee there. I have to confess, I wasn't sure what to think of the colors I was fudging about with; but I recently looked at a color wheel in a design book and I'm comforted by that and how the painting turned out... pretty darn cute:)

If no one else likes it, I have it for myself . . . which of course I'm going to keep this prototype, but it turns out that I'm not the only one who really, really likes it.
Heather loved it.
Anna likes it.
I'm not alone... ;)

I love how the purple and yellow turned out. :)

Painting during the day is a beautiful thing.
It reminds me of Grammy. She used to paint. Quite a bit, not so random, and better than this. Harhar.

That's one of the ways I sign it--on the bottom...with the brand that I made up a few years ago when I would make cards and bookmarks with coffee stamps and color them in and shade with yummy colors.

So there's the finished coffee canvas.
And we are . . . going to head home, if I have to drag Sky by the silver grommets of her Gothic-looking black borrowed coat. :)  
(we revamped her blog and gave it a new background, yummy dark chocolate-looking. :) since she's starting over...deleted posts and going brand new...) 
There are things to do, and this is the longest I've ever been here. About an hour. Wow.
Hope y'all have a lovely day.