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Thank you all for the birthday wishes! I had an amazing day. Enjoyed the day with my little man and I was given the keys to my new castle today! Can't wait for our next chapter.
__________________ Being creative isn't a hobby, it's a way of life.
Happy birthday Annette. Glad you had a fab day. Your “castle” is beautiful and what a birthday pressie. Have fun setting it up. Good luck with the settlement on your current home.
We are now in Dongara for a few days and then going free camping which will be a new experience. We still have a long drive yet to get up the State and to Broome.
Happy weekend everyone. Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations and long weekend here but every day feels like a weekend at present lol. I wish I were in the UK to join in the celebrations.
__________________ The Difference Between Try and Triumph Is Just A Little Ump Wednesday: Alpha Challenge
Thursday: Ways To Use It Challenge
Monthly: MMJ Challenge….get inky and have fun
__________________ The Difference Between Try and Triumph Is Just A Little Ump Wednesday: Alpha Challenge
Thursday: Ways To Use It Challenge
Monthly: MMJ Challenge….get inky and have fun
Annette, so happy you will be moving into the new house soon!! Keeping my fingers crossed for the sale of your current home!! Still no birthday card from me? Mailed the same day as Melody's! Wonder where it went?
Jayne, so happy to hear from you! Glad you are having a great time!
Happy Birthday Annette! How exciting to be in moving in the the Castle! Yay!
Now, that we're back in Wis., the madness begins! LOL A birthday party, a wedding reception, a visit to my mom's, a visit to DH's brother...all happening today! Better run...
I hope everyone has a great weekend. Now
__________________ Judy aka Gracie "Be a rainbow in someone else's cloud." Maya Angelou
The following 4 users liked this post by JRHolbrook:
Hello everyone! I had the house to myself for a wonderful couple of hours last night and created six cards for my DTGD challenge. I'm so happy with how they turned out and it was lovely to have the house to myself. That happens far too rarely.
Today we had a memorial service for a friend who passed unexpectedly. She was only 58. I hadn't seen her in person in quite a while. It is her car that DD1 purchased.
Wow, congrats, Annette, on getting the keys to your new castle! How very exciting! I look forward to pictures!
Jayne, what is free camping?
Gracie, it sounds like this summer will be as crazy busy for you as last summer was!
Catherine they are camping spots with no power, water….nothing. Sometimes there may be a loo. You don’t pay to stay. Usually they are just off the highway or next to rivers. You pull up, find a spot and camp. Sometimes they are only for 24 hour stays. Others you can stay longer. Most people stay a maximum of 4 days as that’s when our water usually runs out. You have to be self sufficient.
There are also station stays which we hope to do on the way home. These are huge properties…cattle or sheep stations and they have a portion of their property designated for camping. Again there’s not always all of the facilities but sometimes some stations have a cafe and music. Some have outdoor showers which are the type where a tub of water falls onto you. These are usually in the outback where water is very precious. We will try all different types.
So far I love Lucky bay in Esperance and also Osprey Bay near Exmouth. They are off the grid. You need your own water and power. Some have long drop loos. I like them as they are usually in National Parks and the sites are big and secluded. Also lots of walks you can do.
Happy Sunday everyone. Keep well. Keep healing your foot Ann and enjoy WI Gracie. Fun times.
__________________ The Difference Between Try and Triumph Is Just A Little Ump Wednesday: Alpha Challenge
Thursday: Ways To Use It Challenge
Monthly: MMJ Challenge….get inky and have fun
I'm glad to be participating in this round of the alphabet challenge, and looking forward to sharing a card with a new technique I learned for my circle punches next week.
I'm still trying to wrap my head around all this gun violence, everywhere. There was another Texas shooting more recently, an escaped convict shot four boys 11, 11, 16 and 18 and their grandfather. I was discussing with my stepson the day after the Uvalde shooting how numb it just makes you feel. I was telling him that Colombine in 1999 made me feel extremely numb, but now I just wonder where's it going to be next. Terrible, huh? Cardmaking is a nice way to get my mind off these troubles because both shootings were too far away for me to do anything nicer.
The following 5 users liked this post by EllenofTexas:
Good morning! It is a beautiful, rainy and wet morning here - in June! So lovely, our triple digit heat will be here soon enough. DH is off doing a church ministry thing, DD1 is just home from an early shift at work, and DD2 is at a graduation service for a high school friend.
I am thankful that I don't need to remind them to be careful on the roads the first time it rains after it hasn't for a while. Back when they were both in high school, it was raining when I was driving them home and it was the first rain after a while. I tended to share driving tidbits with them and I had just finished telling them that the first rain was dangerous because of oil build up on the roads and the rain making it slicker and a pick up got on the freeway going too fast for road conditions, went out of control, hydroplaned across the freeway, hit the center divide, and flipped over. DD1 started. calling 911 while I safely negotiated my way to the shoulder. Once help was there, we went on home. So that particular driving tidbit is seared into their brains. It was also when I learned that DD1 would react calmly and make the 911 call efficiently.
I stayed up way too late last night making cards. Too much fun to go to bed, right?
Jayne, thanks for telling me about free camping. I knew about the station camping. I read a book set in Australia on a big station and how they were adapting their business model to survive as a station. It was lovely but I don't remember the name of it.
I'm glad you are enjoying your trip in Winnie. It takes a while to get the hang of life in the RV but once you've got it down, you're there! My parents didn't like having to take the motorhome in when they wanted to go out to eat or whatever, so they towed a car behind it. At that point, they had a huge motorhome and then the car on a tow dolly behind. But, when they got somewhere they wanted to stay for a while, they were set. Didn't have to move the motorhome, and would just hop in the car to do their running around.
Ellen, I look forward to seeing your new technique.
Jan, I'm sure a circle die is fine, use what you have!
Bought a new air conditioner, put it in the bedroom window, and it doesn't work! The fan doesn't even come on. I tried everything. So DH just took it back. Tomorrow he'll go look for another one. I never heard of this brand before so we'll stick to one we've heard of before.
Beautiful weekend weather wise. Ray baseball game was cancelled Sat night, so we took a loveseat in the basement apart and took it to Katie's in the city (Chicago). Her dog has destroyed her couch, which was cloth, so we'll see how the leather holds up : )
Hubby had a game today, and I stayed here and worked on a Sympathy card for my niece and started a card for Featured Stamper, Faye. I just ordered Copic refills and used my Mother's Day gift (from 2021) a gift card to Blick! I am re-doing a watercolor class at the art league with a friend, and the teacher wants 300# watercolor paper.... it does not warp- so so thick! SO, I ordered that and added refills to the order. Then, ran out to Target : )
Spoke with both of my sisters today. My older sis has Covid but is at the tail end. My younger sis has a sinus thing going on : ) Allergies most likely. We have 3 years between us, 3 yrs older and 3 yrs younger. (I also have 2 older brothers and 2 younger brothers).
I got my 2nd booster jab on Friday afternoon- arm a touch sore but no other issues! Yeah!
-Gracie- Welcome back home! Hope you will have more studio time in Wisc!
-Kathy- that is an adorable kittie! Sammy. Did the guys finish the sewer line project?
-Linda- prayers and hopes for a new caregiver soon!
-Ann- hope your foot continues to heal and will be back to normal soon!
-Rebekah- such a busy time w/kids finishing school- and then summer!
-Jayne- loving your travel pictures and hearing of your adventures! Not alot of art time though.....!
-Catherine- so sorry for your loss- 58-so young! Wonderful they sold you the car- sounds wonderful for both of you. I have not been in the gallery, will have to go peek at your samples!
- Hello to Ellen of Texas! My DIL's best friend from childhood and roommate at the time was in the Aurora Colorado Batman theatre shooting. She was shot and in the hospital for 6 months. DIL's friend and DIL too- does have a touch of PSTD... but, we have to know there is HOPE and we cannot live in fear! DIL finally went into a movie theatre last year for the first time- took her son to Lion King.
So Ellen, how many kids do you have? How old are they???
Teri J, I saw your album on the Twisted Sisters- I will take some time at the end of the week to give it a go!!!
Good morning! I have my card class today at the Senior Living facility: independent living. I have my kits , and samples made , and everything packed and ready!
I have been going through stash getting ready for VSN & DTGD. By stash, I mean precut dies, pre- stamped images and such, I could make hundreds of card just from that! LOL. I am leaving it all out so I will try to use it, even though it makes my craft room a mess! When it is put up, guess what? I don’t use it!
well, I have to get ready to leave.
Teri, youtube video made it look easy but it isn't. We picked what we thought was male, but I'm sure we'll figure it out soon.
Shelly, yes, praise God, sewer line is clear and we can use all facilities now!
My sister brought Sammy's sister over for a playdate this morning. She was the kitten I would have picked. She sleeps in DH's lap. I'm now at 5he eye center. Dad had an appt. We are so fortunate to have the non emergency ambulance available. We had to bring him or the doctor wouldn't have prescribed his glaucoma eye drops. Otherwise we would have cancelled.
Good morning, everyone! We had such a lovely day yesterday, pouring rain for the morning and early afternoon, then it warmed up. DH, DD1, and I went to go kayaking with Peter and his family at a lovely reservoir that I didn't know about. Peaceful and quiet. Actually, DH, Peter's dad, and Peter's younger brother were the only ones to kayak. I sat and visited with Peter's dad's wife and Peter and DD1 were talking. I wouldn't have thought it was feasible to do after the rain we had that morning, but it was pretty and nice. Peter is supposed to head back to home in TN this week. Just as we arrived home, DD1 said, "You'll never guess who just texted?!" Being silly, I said, "Freedom!" But what I thought was a silly guess, was correct! The life and times of DD!!
I stayed up way to late when we got home doing the laundry and making more cards for my DTGD challenge. I've now made 19 cards. Shelly, you won't find any of them uploaded yet.
Kathy, thankful your sewer issue is all fixed and things are back to normal there. I hope DH has been successful finding a good AC unit for you. And glad you could get your dad's eye appointment done.
Shelly, my friend's sister was one of the forensic agents that worked the CO theater shooting.
Ann, so true that it is always something! It seems impossible to keep up!
Sharon, yay for card class and Jean, yay for meeting your other penpals!
I'm back from my time with the 4th graders and it was just as delightful as my time at the other school. Much nicer spread of treats at this school...veggies and dip, fruit, cheese and crackers, cookies, coffee. The kids made these cute fans out of a half paper plate and popsicle stick. One was decorated like a half watermelon. One of the kids, Gilbert, shares my birthday and Ella shares a birthday with my oldest granddaughter, Clare. I wonder how many people in world share a birthday on any given day.
Happy belated, Annette. I did send a card, not sure how long it takes to get to Canada these days. Glad to hear it was good and that you have the keys to the castle. Pictures please.
I'm sorry, Catherine, about your friend.
Ellen, I hear you about the gun violence. I wish there was a solution, well, there is but no one wants to be brave and do it.
There is a lot of pollen out these day, strangely, I'm not having much reaction to it. I know others who have never been tested but are having a bad time with allergies. My nose drips a bit but it always does.
Gracie, welcome back!!!! WI missed you!
My new favorite tv series is The Good Karma Hospital on Acorn. So good. I can't watch any more Candice Renoir, season 4 is the end on Acorn for now. There are 10 seasons total, not sure when they'll appear or if they'll appear.
Sharon, bless you for teaching the card classes. Hope it is fun for you too.
Kathy, how does a new ac unit not work? I don't get it and you don't either, I know.
It's definitely brightening up outside, rainy early, humid, going to get more humid, I would say.
Hi to everyone else...Shelly, Teri, Melody, etc.
__________________ Jean Bean the Dancing Queen "You can play a shoestring if you're sincere." -John Coltrane
Hello, to all. So many busy women here.
Sharon-how nice to offer your skills. Those kits can help use some of your stash, too.
Kathy-You are right, in a couple of months all will be crystal clear when it's time for the neutering!
Jean-what fun to enjoy the 4th grader pen pal events. Hopefully, you can do it again with a new bunch of kids each year.
Shelly- you are one busy lady, hope you get time to do some crafting
Jayne-your travels are bringing you to such beautiful and interesting places, thanks for sharing along the way.
Ann & Ellen-I have very strong opinions about gun violence. Not sure if this happy place is the spot to share. Jean alluded to a solution which I am going to guess could have been more than just "controls". There are many well developed countries (some democratic, others with different systems) in this world where citizens get along quite well without owning guns at all. Correlating gun violence to mental health issues is a fluffy hand-off. The majority of these "mass shootings" are done by angry males who have stupid ideas about their entitlement to take the lives of others. That's not mental illness, that is socially sanctioned male privilege.
Here is an interesting quote/summary by forensic psychologist Dr. Knoll, he writes: In 2013, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on public mass shootings. The CRS used as its working definition incidents “occurring in relatively public places, involving four or more deaths.” The CRS identified 78 public mass shootings in the U.S. since 1983 that had resulted in 547 deaths and 1,023 casualties.He also notes that most perpetrators are young males who act alone after carefully planning the event. They often have a longstanding fascination with weapons and have collected large stores of them. The shootings usually occur in a public place and during the daytime.
Individual case studies involving psychological autopsy and a careful analysis of the often copious communications left behind suggest common psychological themes. The mass murderer is an injustice collector who spends a great deal of time feeling resentful about real or imagined rejections and ruminating on past humiliations. He has a paranoid worldview with chronic feelings of social persecution, envy, and grudge-holding. He is tormented by beliefs that privileged others are enjoying life’s all-you-can-eat buffet, while he must peer through the window, an outside loner always looking in.
Aggrieved and entitled, he longs for power and revenge to obliterate what he cannot have. Since satisfaction is unobtainable lawfully and realistically, the mass murderer is reduced to violent fantasy and pseudo-power. He creates and enacts an odious screenplay of grandiose and public retribution. Like the child who upends the checkerboard when he does not like the way the game is going, he seeks to destroy others for apparent failures to recognize and meet his needs. Fury, deep despair, and callous selfishness eventually crystalize into fantasies of violent revenge on a scale that will draw attention. The mass murderer typically expects to die and frequently does in what amounts to a mass homicide-personal suicide. He may kill himself or script matters so that he will be killed by the police.
I think that sums it up pretty well. So, I look at that and say "It's not mental illness. It's time to get off your parent's couch and get a job like the rest of us. Who gave you the idea that life was fair, let alone that YOU are somehow so special that all should be handed to you?" I think USA could take a lesson from Israel and require mandatory military service at age 18 for all youth. Get out of your parent's house and stand on your own two feet. You can shoot an automatic weapon at the range, not in the community. Learn a skill. Contribute. Get off the pity pot. Grow up. Learn some respect. Follow rules. Become someone worthwhile instead of a drain on society.
OK, that's my rant.
Oh, we are going to have a couple of sky lights removed from the roof. One cracked and the other is probably on it's way. Better to do it in summer than wait until it rains again.
Jean, I know, right? How does a brand new air conditioner not work? DH picked up a new GE and it's more BTUs and it worked the minute I plugged it in. my only request was that it had a remote and an energy saving option. This has both.
I was reading the thread and it dawned on me that Sammy should be here somewhere. I looked around the room and didn't see him and almost panicked and then I looked behind my head. He's napping on the back of the couch right near my head! He is so cute. He likes to be held a lot and he plays quite a bit and then naps. Today he crawled into DHS hat and I took a picture because that's what Dean used to do!
Had a rainy day here- stopped mid afternoon and has begun again here for night rainfall. It was a good day to have an art class. My friend wants to try water coloring. The teacher is a bit gruff, but my friend will not be bothered by that. The teacher does a really good job with the beginner W/C student teaching techniques and going over the brushes too. I took this class before 6 years ago! She (teacher) had just had hip surgery before my last class- so I verified the date! She only requires you to have yellow, red and blue paints and you can mix those to get all of the colors you need. She also covered 4 color combos to get darks/black appearing colors and I will work on practicing that.
Then we painted onions..... LOL
Came home and read, then made dinner.
We watched West Side Story after dinner- such great music and such a sad story! Males fighting for turf and gun violence.....
Looking forward to some crafting tomorrow, then a ball game tomorrow night for hubby, I will bring the camera and take a few pictures. I have learned the guys like pictures of their swings and batting cage stances..... The other team tomorrow are some guys that left that care too much about winning....great players and I hope they do not slaughter Ray's team!
Awww, Kathy, your kitty stories- so very sweet!
Jean- so fun and awesome for the kids to reach out to an adult and learn 'writing letters' skills : )
Good morning! DH had a marathon meeting last night so the girls and I had some girl time. DD1 is busy going through all of her wardrobe and eliminating some of it, which then DD2 reviews to see if she wants any of it. It was fun to just relax and hang out together.
Jean, that sounds like a lovely time with your 4th grade pen pals. I like the watermelon fan!
Kathy, so cute that Sam crawled into the hat. Will you share the photo? I'm glad you have a working AC unit that meets your parameters.
Shelly, your watercolor class sounds fun. I sent you an email with some photos of what I've been working on for DTGD. Lots to edit etc.
One year I had 33 for the season. That was the highest and that was when they had small and large. I think last year they only had one size and I think I only had 13.
Hi to all!
I had a great day creating- Ann mentioned she was cleaning her desk, so I got into a pile of saved images and made a couple of cards for VSN.... nice and fast too! I am usually a pokey slow cardmaker!
Catherine- I love that your DD's are so close. Mine are like night and day, but work on seeing each other more as they get older : )
OMG- your cards and your technique are beautiful! I look forward to trying this out! DTGD ya'll
Kathy- that photo of the kittie in the hat is just too darn cute!
Hubby is really busy at work, but it is so interesting to him he does not mind. Glad he has baseball and running as an outlet! I went to his game tonight for a while, but went in shorts and when the sun went behind the clouds, I was COLD! The other team will clobber them!
Waving hello to all- need to get some piano time in today as I have a lesson tomorrow!
Wow so much chat. Cute photos of the kitten. Happy classes Sharon and Shelly. Yes I agree about gun control and we had reforms here and all good. Enough on that topic but it is good to have different opinions.
Our free camp experience was awesome. We are now here and what a terrific campsite and location. It is stinking hot here. Perth is shivering and now I know why people come north but it’s getting too hot for us lol.
On Friday we go here for 2 weeks, our final destination and as far north we are going before we head inland and home. Next time we come this way we will go to the top of WA and around Oz.
__________________ The Difference Between Try and Triumph Is Just A Little Ump Wednesday: Alpha Challenge
Thursday: Ways To Use It Challenge
Monthly: MMJ Challenge….get inky and have fun
The weather here is getting hot so we’re having another lazy day, we’re going down to the seafront for lunch and shopping as it’s a fiesta tomorrow, Murcia day! Always an excuse for a holiday!
I might get an hour in my craft room hopefully I need to get ahead with the challenges but my brain isn’t in the zone, although I have finished my Disney and universal studio scrapbook I started in lockdown haha, only been four years in the making!
Jean I’m pleased to hear you had a fun meeting with the 4th graders, how old are they? I never know about grades even though our two are whatever graders, I’ve lost track with not going over there for so long. We’ve always been involved in school activities when we used to go over and knew their teachers, it’s been too long!
I wish I could do water colouring, I looked at the challenge and the watercolours that have been posted are amazing, some really talented artists. I had a Dutch friend who tried to teach me but I’m hopeless haha
Good morning! Yesterday way eventful - DH texted me that he had a visitor and then sent me photos. A young buck had walked up the stairs to our back deck and was looking in the French door at DH. This is the first time that has happened that we know of!
Last night DD1 went to help a girlfriend scrapbook a birthday present for the girlfriend's boyfriend - who is someone DD1 has known her entire life. She had a fun time getting some girlfriend time in.
Today, DD2 is experiencing working at another Michaels. She is working at the bigger store closer to my work today and tomorrow assisting them with inventory. She was excited but also nervous. She really likes the team that she works with at her store.
DH just told me that he now officially works for Oracle.
Oh Kathy, that photo of Sam in the hat is adorable! So cute! Yay for the strawberry salads being back.
Shelly, my girls are very different in a lot of ways but similar in others and, thankfully, very close.
Thank you about my cards, I'm getting closer to being able to upload them.
Jayne, wonderful places you have been visiting.
Jan, yay for finished scrapbooks and boo for warmer weather.
Gracie, enjoy your granddaughters - as if that even needs to be said!
