The Brenda Photo Challenge

I have a passion for barns. I don't know when this started but I do remember that even as a child I enjoyed playing in the neighbors barn. To us it was a place to day dream, play hide and seek, a hang out, a climbing wall, a treasure hunt and we even had a swing in the loft. It didn't matter if it was raining or the sun was shinning, the barn was always calling to us. It was surrounded by corn so it made us feel like we were in our own little world. As a grown up I always noticed how well they were made and the usefulness of them. As a prim girl I always wonder what treasures they hold hidden in the walls or nooks of the ceiling. And as a photo bug I started noticing so many more than before and the angle potential of each and every one I saw. So now I take pictures of everyone I can and as we all know a picture can speak a thousand words. I will let you decide what this old beauty is saying to you.

Veteran's Day

I just wanted to take time to say thank you to all the service men and women out there who have served or is still serving. It is because of you that we still have the privilege of living in a free country. God bless you and your families. My father, brother, uncle, cousins and many friends have served during peace time and in war. And today my thoughts are about them and my prayers are with the many others I don't know that is away from their families today serving our country. And for the countless numbers that have lost their lives protecting us, God bless you! So remember them today as I do. And if you see someone in the service take time to shake their hand or even a hug and say thank you. And if the someone you want to thank now walks with the Lord remember they are only a kneel away.

Autumn Beauty

Justin

I went on my first photo shoot over the weekend. It was scheduled for the sole purpose of taking pictures and nothing else. Nothing extravagant or anything just some random fall shots. I went to the home of my former pastor to find some fall inspiration. He lives in the hills and it is so peaceful. You can see neighbors but there is hustle and bustle of town life. Even in the country close to town there is a constant sound of a distant highway. Not here it is just us and the sound of nature. And even though it was an overcast day I did catch myself standing in the middle of a pasture with my eyes closed soaking up the sun as it peeked through the clouds and thanking God for allowing me to enjoy the beauty he created. I took my youngest son with me because he is all about the outdoors. We walked through woods, hiked up hills, and walked through pastures. He is so at home in this kind of setting. He took only one picture while we were out but he chased frogs all the way around the pond. Thankfully for the frogs he did not catch them. And after he shared his lunch with the dogs one of them even helped in that quest.  Justin got his first ride on a tractor while we were there and he got a close up view of some cows coming to feed. He is such a blessing to have with me on outings like this. And even though he was scared to ride with me on the 4-wheeler we did have a great day. I wasn't expecting for anyone to be home so it was a great surprise to get to see Bro. Ron when he came home early. It has been years since I had seen him and was glad to see him looking so happy and refreshed by life. I learned allot from him and consider him to be my church father. I grew so  much spiritually and as a person in general while having him as a pastor. He was also the principle at our christian school and it was a joy to have him as an influence on our children. And I for one have to say he may have influenced my oldest more than others since he is the one who spent the most time at the principles office. It was to bad that I was the secretary he got to see when he got there. So I secretly hoped that he just wanted to see his mommy. 

Bro Ron wasn't the kind of pastor who lectured you on Sunday and then was not heard from till the next service. He was an actual part of the congregation. He played with the kids, and visited with the members and he and his wonderful wife even hosted hay rides in the fall at his home. He and his wife was a blessing to have as our leaders. And I am so very thankful that he is blessed with such a wonderful family to support him. And I do want to add that if you like to read that his daughter wrote an awesome book called Beyond Tomorrow! It is a christian based book set in the Civil War. Try it you will love it!!!

 So here are a few pics of our outing. And remember to take time to enjoy the outdoors with all of the beautiful fall colors! And if you have an opportunity to take a friend or family member it will make it that much better.

Beautiful fall colors

Bro Ron taking the kids fishing



Old Home Church



Justin and Pepper looking for frogs

  





Technology

Well the last few days I have been having a love/hate relationship with technology. Since it is now officially hunting season we were in the woods doing some last minute prep to the stands. We were not getting done in time to pick up the boys from school so I needed to make arrangements for them to go to grandpa's. While on the phone with the school my phone went dead. And of coarse I was not anywhere near a charger. My husband had his in the truck but it doesn't get a signal where we were. And even if it did, I didn't know the number because they are all programed in my phone and all I see are names when dialing. Just what happened to the old days when we were a walking phone book and could memorize dozens of numbers. You know back when there were only phones at home and kids spent a whole lot more time around their parents. Now, second graders have their own cell phones and my thirteen year old calls me from his room. Well the kids were taken care of thanks to the great secretaries at school that got just enough of my phone call to get them where they needed to be. But now my youngest is coming home from cub scout camp and I can't call and check on him because the leader he is with is old school and does not have a cell phone. We are very good friends and I trust him very much and I am sure they stopped for lunch or even went to a sporting goods store and will be home soon but I so want to talk to him right now. So as for technology I am glad and sad all at the same time that you have spoiled us by making things so darn easy!

Me out hunting!

I just wanted to add a few pics to show some of the things I have been working on.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

Well I have been very busy lately. I guess it's just that time of year for everyone. I have to start this story by telling you about my dog Lucky. He came to us seven years ago as a stray starving with heart worms. We took him to the vet and it was a long process to get him taken care of but we did get him fixed up. The vet said he will always have trouble breathing because of the damage and he estimated him to be about four years old. He has always followed me everywhere. He is right step behind me at all times. Even when I mow the lawn I can't go backwards because I will fall over him. He likes to spend time with me. So Lucky is around ten and his hips are getting bad and he can no longer get in the truck and won't use a ramp. And the last time I tried to help him into my durango I almost killed us both. Because needless to say he is like me and a little bit heavy! I got a new van about a month ago and thought that it would be great for him because he can get into it easily. But since I have been so busy I had not got a chance to take him for a ride yet. Well it should have tipped me off that I needed to slow down when I came out of my craft room and the boys had taped a gun target to my hutch and had a competition with spit wads. YUK! I knew I needed to slow down but I had so much to do. Well today Lucky let me know again that I need to SLOW DOWN! After I came home from the lumber yard I had forgot and left the back hatch open on the van. The garage was open because my husband was mowing the lawn. I went to the craft room and got to work. Well after three dolls I received a text from my husband along with this picture.

Lucky wanted to go for a ride! We don't know how long exactly he had been in there waiting since we were both doing other things. But none the less he was there waiting for his mommy. So tonight I took him for a ride and we visited our local gas station that hands out dog treats through the drive up window. And this is where he discovered what he had to give up to be able to get into the car, a window that rolls down. ha ha ha So I say thank you to my children and their spit wads and to my black lab Lucky for letting me know when I am too busy.

Why Am I Here?

This is not a deep question I am asking myself it is a normal, easy question. And the answer is I have no idea! I had decided not to go back to work and stay at home to take care of myself and work on my crafting business. But after several comments from people that I will not mention, I felt bad about not "working" and gave in to working only when I am scheduled and not as a call in. But now as I set here I am wondering if it is worth it. I have worked two days already and after each time I have had to take a very long nap because it has absolutely wore me out. And now I am scheduled two days this week and I am already feeling the tired kicking in. And as I sit here all I can think about is the show I have coming up in three weeks and everything I want to be doing for it. So again I ask myself WHY AM I HERE? I should be crafting! Don't get me wrong I love to be around other adults instead of that darn cat. And I enjoy seeing all the kids at school, well at least most of them, I just feel like I am setting myself up for destruction. So for now I am at the school, posting shh, and planning my fair and that is the closest I am going to get. Did I mention I am in a computer lab where most sites are blocked and there are hardly any kids in here unless they are with another teacher? So here I sit waiting for lunch so that I can at least see my oldest pass my by without speaking. He loves me, but mom is so not cool at school! Have a good day everyone and bring on 3 O'clock!

Cloud Watching

I hope everyone is having a great holiday weekend. Since it is Labor Day it normally marks the end of summer. And it just reminds me of how fast time is going by these days. I had to push my kids out the door to get them to go play outside this summer, and that includes swimming in the pool. It seems they have always got a video game they are playing anymore. I remember when I was little we would be out the door as soon as we got up and didn't come home until it was time to eat. We rode bikes everywhere, we played kick the can and hide and seek in the corn field. We would roller skate on the basketball court and since everyone didn't have a pool like they do now we ran through a sprinkler! Yes, I said sprinkler. My kids don't even know what that is. And some times we would just lay around and watch the clouds go by to see what shapes they would turn into. Oh how I wish things could slow down like that again. The lazy days of summer, when even when it rained there was puddle splashing. And it didn't matter if you where wet, dirty or even bare foot back in those days it was perfectly fine. Now maybe I am just a country bumpkin and they did things different in town but that is how I remember summer. Swinging on a swing set and leaning back with my eyes closed so that I could let the sun warm my face. How sweet it was. And you can still catch me stopping on a nice day, with the puffy white clouds against the blue sky, leaning my head back with my arms stretched out letting the sun warm my face. And being ever so thankful that God made such a beautiful world.

A Hunter or A Gatherer?

Well the answer to this question for me is yes, on both counts. I love to go hunting with my family.We get to do this as a family and that is important. My oldest doesn't care much for anything outdoors but he tags along. The little one however eats, drinks and sleeps hunting. The TV channel is always on some kind of hunting. So this weekend we took him out with us to show him the preparation side of hunting. He needs to know its not all about just going out and sitting in a stand and shooting. There is scouting and knowing where the deer are. And the stands have to be checked and secure with clear shooting lanes. Our main task yesterday was to put up two stand right next to each other so that he and his dad could hunt together without crowding each other. So it took a while and he got real tired but we got the job done. And he and his dad were very happy. There was real good deer sign in the area and we have seen several deer while watching through binoculars. So I think he has a good chance of not only harvesting a deer but watching how they act and react to other deer and the sign of people in their area. One of the parts of hunting I enjoy is just sitting back and taking in all of nature. The soft sounds of the woods is very peaceful and to see animals in there own habitat acting the way nature intended can be very amusing. I once watched a spotted deer jumping around and splashing in a puddle over and over again. And just this weekend I saw a buck rear up on his hind legs and kick at a little one for just playing around him. He obviously didn't want to be bothered while eating his dinner. And it funny to see how squirrels chase each other while jumping from tree to tree, flipping around and even falling only to catch themselves on another branch. I love all aspects of nature. And yes we also eat the animals, that is how God intended.

But since Justin is his mother's child he also was in the fields with me picking up corn cobs, husks, whole cobs with corn and acorns. The cobs I will be dipping in scented wax to use in bowl fillers and the acorns are going to be used in a Halloween decorating projec,t I will share that with you later. But he still had hunting on the brain so all the full ears of left over corn from the combine were put in a pile in front of his trail camera. lol Gotta love that boy!

This was hard work but it was a good time spent with the family!

Bread Anyone?

Well today I was up early and since it's the kids last day before they start school I let them sleep in! So after getting hubby off to work I started on some crafts. I have several orders from two of my best customers so today I was making for them. I made foe homemade bread. The pattern is from Hill Country Creations and it was my first time making them. I think they turned out really good. They look like I let them rise a little too long but that is because my boys wanted to help me stuff them. And who couldn't use a little help? They had no idea what I was talking about when I tried to show them how to shape them, and it was very funny watching the oldest try to stuff with the craft stick. The little one kept asking if his was full enough and it looking lumpy so I had to help a little. But all in all we had a good time stuffing. We did decide that we need a stuffing machine like Build a Bear has, so if you want to get us an early Christmas present it's OK by us. It turned out nice today so we took them outside to grunge them up and let them air dry. I tried a new stain mix today with molasses and I liked how it looked but the bread came out sticky. So I had to add a little more spice to it keep it from being so tacky. I think I will use this method again though, maybe on Hams! I finished them off with some grungy cheese cloth and twine and stuck two in pans. It was a very fun pattern and I got to spend time with my boys. Life is good! Well school tomorrow so I will be missing them for sure, but I just may get a few more crafts made.

The Brenda Photo Challenge

One of the blogs I follow has a fun picture challenge.
Each challenge has a new theme and this
month was my first one to participate in. And the challenge was Dirt. Dirt what can you do with dirt. I searched high and low to try to find an interesting picture of dirt. I guess I couldn't see the potential in this one. So while on a outing with my photo club I snapped a few pics of possibilities. When I get home I always rush to my computer to see what I had captured. They never are the same when viewing them on the camera. The computer lets you see so much more in the picture. And while browsing through them I found this first picture. I had taken it because of the natural whole in the rock was so interesting and I could just imagine it filling with water during a rain, showing off all of the color rings in the stone. But while looking at it I noticed, in the bottom of this natural bowl, on top of this beautiful stone hill was Dirt! I was over thinking the challenge. So my advice to you would be to relax, shoot everything it all has hidden beauty and go with the flow. I also added the pic of dirt that I was trying to make look interesting. Who knows beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You can check out the other entries at The Brenda Photo Challenge Blog. Have a great weekend everyone and happy crafting.

We Have A Winner!

To start off I would like to thank everyone who signed up for my giveaway. It looks like we are all ready for some fall decorating. And I am right there with you all. I think this heat has alot to do with it, it needs to break soon! Anyway, you gave me lots of ideas to work with and I hope to be able to get them all on here real soon. So the winner will get the Scarecrow bobbin pick and I promised a surprise so in December she will also receive a copy of my Barns & Bridges calender! This will have pictures that I have taken myself from around our area of some beautiful places. Or at least I think they are beautiful. It's all in the eye of the beholder I guess. It will include the barn on my page and the one in this post, the rest you will have to wait to see. So Mandy Rash congratulations!!! I will have your prize out to you soon. Well I am up early and I better get busy there are orders to fill, shows to get ready for and patterns to buy. I just got a pattern yesterday for caramel apples!!!!! I love crafting! Have a good day everyone.

Woo Hoo!

Between the blog and the blog facebook page I am now over 100 followers! So you know what that means, it is time for a giveaway again. This is the item that will be given away. It is a scarecrow bobbin pick just in time for fall. So in order to be put in the drawing you need to leave a comment on my blog or facebook page. I will draw a name from everyone who does this on Thursday. The only thing is I want you to tell me in your comments what kind of primitives you would like to see on my blog. I will keep a note of all of them and see what I can do for you. Thank you all so much for following and liking my posts. I have really enjoyed the blog world so far and I am learning more and more every day from my fellow bloggers and followers. Happy crafting everyone!

It's All About Me

Well I am here, I haven't been on in a while. I have been trying to make some very important decisions. And in the process I have lost sleep and have kept myself confused and wore out so there has been no crafting getting done. I finally talked to my husband about it yesterday. He is great and supports me no matter what but he always wants me to make my own decisions, even when I want him to tell me what to do! So after our talk I have decided I will not be going back to work when school starts. My heart is doing OK but just the thought of having to keep up with those kids was stressing my out. And the doc said I need less stress because I have started having problems with anxiety. It is not so much of a problem for me but Joey said all the stores around here have probably got my picture posted like a bad check list and they are not going to let me in. Isn't he sweet? So I am trying real hard to be nice and keep my picture off the walls. So spending the nights sleepless wondering if I will get called in and the days dealing with kids will probably not help in my fight to stay calm. And in order for me to handle my pacemaker adjustments calm is what I need. I also decided I will not take the anxiety meds, they make me like a zombie, and no thyroid meds. As long as my heart is ok my thyroid seems to be staying stable and I have even lost six pounds! Woo Hoo! I will continue to take my potassium when I start noticing signs of it getting low and I will take my daily aspirin, just in case. So I feel like I am not hiding that from my family now since I have done it this way for three months already. I know, I am bad. So with a clear head and the help of some Tylenol pm I slept eleven hours last night. I feel much better now. And since the doc also wants me to keep active I am going to give my craft business a real shot and stop playing around. I will be doing orders and craft shows this fall. If all goes well by the end of the year I will set up an Etsy account to sell online and we will convert part of the garage into a craft room. I know this all sounds like stress but since I can do this at home, at my own pace I can keep the focus on my health and my family. I am super excited about making these changes and can't wait to get the ball rolling. I will also continue to blog and stay in my photo club because I enjoy doing both of them very much.

And like this picture I took, there are only two things for sure in life. There is life and death, all the things in the middle are just random decisions you make to decide if you live it to the fullest or waste your time waiting for the end to come. I love the Lord and know I will not have to worry about any of this when I am gone. So for now I will live life to the fullest, stay right with God and enjoy it while I am here. And I have wonderful family and friends to help me with that. I love them all.

Watermelons Anyone?

Yesterday I made up some bowl fillers that I just had to show you, they are too cute. The pattern is from Tennessee Ridge Primitives and if you haven't checked them out you should the have some awesome patterns! The pattern I made was watermelon slices and chunks. They were very easy to make up so I would mark this as a beginner project. You trace out your pattern, stitch it up, turn it and fill it, sew up the back and you are ready to paint. You tea stain and paint them and stain them again. Throw in a primitive tag and you are ready to go. Don't worry all the instructions come with the pattern. Anyone can do it with a little but of sewing knowledge. The rest is a snap. Good luck with your projects and until next time happy crafting!

You Are Never Too Old Or Young

Well we are enjoying our summer. My oldest has been at Boomps, aka grandpa, for three nights. And even though I miss him very much I am enjoying spending time with my youngest. He is nine and most of the time he is bouncing off of the walls, but this week he has been very calm. He decided last night that he wanted homemade mac-n-cheese like Boomps. He thinks mine is OK but he would really like Boomps kind. So he was going to show me how to do it. After five minutes of watching to see if the water would boil he decided that I could call him when it was time to put in the cheese because I should know how to cook the macaroni. And even though he checked on me several times and thought they looked like the same size as Boomps halfway through he waited patiently. Finally it was time to add the cheese! He came to get it ready, all eleven pieces of it, and he told me how to drain the macaroni and put the cheese in one slice at a time. I stirred it all up and even added a little milk against his wishes and we were all set to eat. He said it wasn't exactly like Boomps but that it was pretty darn good. It must have been the milk. lol I sure do love him! So my point is you are never too young to teach and never too old to learn. Even if it is from a nine year old boy teaching me how to make his grandpa's mac-n-cheese.

In the yard

Hey everyone! I hope this post finds you well. I just wanted to share something about me today that you may or may not know. I love to take pictures! I am a member of Southern Exposure photo club, which you can find on face book. We meet once a month and are just starting to have outings once a month as well. It started earlier this year by a great guy who skates, loves the Lord and takes awesome pictures! I am very thankful for him and everyone in the group they are teaching me alot. I have always loved taking pictures but never even had my own camera. When I was younger I would try to draw things that I saw to remember them, the pictures were not so great. And when I got married we got a video camera and everything got recorded. But at the time you couldn't transfer them to picture and we ended up with loads of VHS tapes. For you younger people they were before DVD. Any way, as the rest of us know they can really pile up. Then my wonderful mother -in-law, and I mean that, got a new camera. So that meant I got a new camera because she couldn't work it. And that was fine with me! I loved her camera and I took lots and lots of pictures but I wasn't happy with the zoom. So finally, after I started going to Southern Exposure, I bought my very own camera!!!! It has 10x zoom and a digital zoom after that. I love it! I always have it with me. And as they say at the meetings you can't get the shot if you don't have your camera. Tee Hee I usually shoot in auto mode but a fellow member taught me how to shoot fireworks this year, thanks, and I am gradually trying other functions. Today I was trying out my foliage mode and I noticed something was following me around the yard. And since I had my camera, I got the shot! So if you love taking pictures take your camera with you, don't be afraid try new options on your camera, and take lots and lots of pictures. So what if they don't all turn out. I was told my first meeting that digital photography is cheep so shoot away! And they were right not all of them turn out but just look at what happens when they do.... I hope you like them. Keep on crafting and shooting. Till next time remember God is Good!!!

Candle Stix

Happy Monday everyone. I found these old style candle sticks at a yard sale for 75cents, for all three! So I snatched them up. I knew I didn't want to leave them the way they were and I couldn't think of how I would use them all together, so they are getting split up. One will be used for Halloween and another Christmas. The third will be put away for another project.

I started them off the same way.I cleaned them up and painted them a cinnamon brown. I didn't worry to much about the coverage since this is the first step but make sure to get all the little cracks and crevices. After covering the whole candle and letting set a minute I then wiped off some of the brown paint on the drips marks and the base. On the Halloween candle I repeated the painting process with black paint. I then sprayed it with craft adhesive and covered it with coffee grounds to give it an older heavy look. The Christmas candle was sprayed covered in cinnamon for a lighter look.

I then topped them both off with a homemade grubby silicone bulbs a good friend and I made together. And that's all it took. I hope you like how they turned out, I will show you pictures later in the year when I use them in my holiday decorating.Just remember don't be afraid to try something new it can always be made over. And when you get deals like this you have nothing to lose?

The grubby lights were an experiment and I think they turned out GREAT!! Happy crafting everyone.

Hope & Love

Well last week the weather was great and I had a hard time staying in the house. So it was a little hard to post from the pool and flower beds. Tee Hee! This week the heat is back and we also had a good rain yesterday and through the nite. So what better way to keep busy in the house than do some crafting! I have been searching the web for new patterns and I am ready to get busy on my fall items. But today I finished up a pair of raggedies and a pillow. I always thought the heads look small on the dolls and then you add the hair! And boy do they really take on some character. I love it!! And these little guys really have some hair going on. Even though the hair gives them character when you stain and grunge up your projects that's when they really shine. They take on a whole new life, and it is always fun to see how they are going to turn out. This is my favorite part of crafting. So I am going to get back to it and you all have a good weekend.

Happy 4th of July!

I just wanted to wish everyone a safe and happy 4th. And to remind you that while watching those ever so beautiful fireworks to remember those who have made are freedom possible. Weather it be long ago or those still fighting for it today, they are forever in our hearts and prayers. And I am forever thankful to live in the land of the free and the home of the brave! God bless all of you and keep you safe.

Woo Hoo!

Well the weather got a little cooler today with a hint of wind so I headed outside. I did a little weeding in the flower beads, in the shade, and that went OK. So I got a little ambitious and mowed the lawn. That's right I said mowed the lawn! Woo Hoo! I know most of you are thinking I am nuts. If you know me at all you also know I am! But really this was a big accomplishment for me. Since I had gotten down so much I hadn't worked since Easter and had to give up scouts and church duties. A month ago I got an adjustment on my pacemaker to keep my rate up and I have been feeling better so I gave it a try. And I don't mean to pat my own back or anything, but PAT, PAT! Seriously I am very thankful to be able to do anything at all and to be able to mow the lawn is a very big thing. I did have to take a few breaks and I looked pretty rough when I got done, but my heart rate was 108! And this is a good thing considering it keeps wanting to stay down at 60. So thank you dear Lord for all the blessings!!!! Today my oldest son turned thirteen today and I am also thankful that I have him in my life. He and his brother both are true blessings and most of the time a joy to have around. So until later hug your children, thank the Lord for them, and get out and get going. You never know when you may not be able to.

Pattern Makeover

I had a makeover all planned on some cute yard sale finds but I am holding off on them till later in the week. Today I am working on a computer makeover! I have been downloading new patterns on my desktop and my laptop and it was high time to consolidate them. I am putting them all on a disc in folders according to what they are. I am not finished yet but I have already found some that I forgot I had and have never made!! Since I am new at all of this it will constantly be a work in progress. But I am supper excited about getting things going for fall shows. If any of you know of any craft shows in or around southern Illinois I would be glad to hear from you. And I would also like to thank everyone who makes these patterns, without you I would have a headache for life. Here is one item I made last week from a purchased pattern and I think he turned out really well. I am going to go for now the kids are getting along today and I think the pool may be calling our names.

Butterfly Bush

Well it has been a very busy week here. We have had Vacation Bible School this week and I am teaching the youth. It the first time I have taught this age group by myself and I have been nervous. So I took a little time today today relax and take some pictures, from the deck. The butterfly bush has been blooming and I finally get to enjoy it. There were bees, bugs, moths and butterflies all around it. I did manage to get a few shots in between the wind blowing and cars going by so I just wanted to share a few with you. There will be more posted on my Facebook page. I hope to get back into the swing of things next week and there is a small project a friend told me how to do that I want to share. So until then keep on crafting and take time to enjoy the little things.

Relax, It Will Be Alright

Well yesterday I kinda freaked out. The power company replacing the power pole was in a hurry and ran through one of my flower beds. It was in a retaining wall, and it had just rained, so it was about a foot deep where they went through. I got really upset, I tried really had to keep my cool even when they were not so nice about it. I let it ruin my whole day! Today I have slept and calmed down. I realize that just because it looks bad now it is fixable. It will take time and some money, but I can do it. And just because it will take me a good while to do it I should be thankful that with my problems I am still able to do it. Even if I can not get it done in one day. And I am very thankful for what I have, friends, family, and a ever so changing beating heart. So I took my camera out to shoot some of the flowers that are looking beautiful today. And it reminded me, as it should us all, God is in control and he is good! Don't sweat the small stuff it is just not that important. And the rest is already being taken care of.