Poopy Ducks

The other day as I was digging through tubs of yarn for an eminent crown project, I ran across a very well worn paper bag.
The little lunch sack size bag was full and wrinkled into softness.

Having not a clue, what I could have treasured enough to keep in such meager trappings, it was soon peeked into...

Peering into the cotton soft bag I was immediately transported to a different time and place.
It was to the mid 80's I sped with the blink of an eye.
The laugh started out slow, then started to grow.
Txting of the excavation find soon began.
Laughter shared is the best kind after all.

Poopy ducks!
A whole bag full of them!!



Only one remained as a finished model, others in near completion lay time forgotten while snuggled below...

Orange felt for the mouths, a couple plastic bags of various eyes that would need to be securely attached in the next step...

The opening string of each concealed in the little ducky tails...

The print type giving away the near antiqueness of the contents... 

I remember that M&M's melt, and make little duck's a mess, so it's to the store I am headed for jelly bean's today!

Maybe root beer flavored?

The Play Room

Remember a short time ago I was all proud of myself for figuring out how to keep the playroom all organized and cleaned up?

Yeah, Well, that worked really well...for about an hour.

So again, I was at the frustration level only a distraught Grammy can reach. I knew I couldn't burn it down and start over, I couldn't throw it all away and start over...I stewed, I fretted, I turned to pintrest for help!

Ok, I was on pintrest looking for lots of stuff and this little "Zoo" thing for toy's happened to pop up and make my old heart go pitty~pat.

Soon I had Honey looking at things, making lists and heading to the local hardware store, then to the man~cave (he likes all this don't let him fool you), and a few short hours later...

Viola!! A "Zoo" built and a clean play area!

The only thing is...

The back of the little book shelf turned toy shelf, was looking pretty plain and forlorn upon entering the room...

So off Honey went. This time to the paint department for some primer and chalkboard paint...

(He doesn't need much coaxing to go to the build it stores).

Three day's dry time, then lets bust out the sidewalk chalk!!



What A Puppy Needs

Little girl's and dogie blankets  are seeming to go together in odd ways...

Puppy's came with one blanket;

Tiny Dancer also adopted a puppy the same day and 'Foofer' sure likes the other dogs blanket.

Wanting a blanket to put in the car, because yes. I am one of those people who spoil dogs.
Way down in the depths of the box on the bottom of the stack, I found some left over flannel squares from years ago, when I made raggy blankets for a some grand children.I came up with just the right amount of finished squares, plus one.

While I was working on this little 'puppy', I thought about my Mom a lot.
The last time I made raggy blankets my Mom helped with all the snipping, we laughed and talked a lot while we did them.

So I guess in a way she helped me again with this one, because of all the memories that came to mind as I snipped...

Tiny Dancer boldly pointed out how sad Foofer looked, and be darned if she wasn't right about that!

She has her new red collar with paw prints on, her new matching leash. She is even sporting a new little dogie sweater, that is her next favorite color of purple, but she still looks so sad...

With the astute observation of a little Momma for her sad little dogie, the perfect thing to make Foofer, that she would really like to have? A blanket all her very own too.

To the fabric store I went, found some animal flannel and headed home to make a crib size blankie for Foofer.

Just in case Foofer thinks Tiny Dancer can snuggle under it a little bit too.

The Candy Apple Tree

What kind of tree did you say that is?

I get that question a lot when people see the 'tree' resting comfortably in the tall vase atop the old treadle.

Well, right now it is a 'candy apple, I love you, tree'.

In December Tiny Dancer and I had a need for a tree by the candy house my Momma made for me, so we asked Honey if he could help us out, because he is the know how and where guy, and we are the dream it up girls, he came in with a huge. Really big. Apple tree branch, from some place in his vast quantities of saved items.

To work we went, with Mod Podge and candy sprinkles!

It is so much fun that we have left it out for January, decorated with crochet snowflakes on fishing line.

And Now February, with crochet hearts... 

We are having so much fun with our 'little candy apple tree', but I"m a little stumped for March.

Changes...

I have been contemplating a few changes around here...

As in rearranging furniture, painting a wall or room, changes to our living space.

This always causes Honey a fair amount of fear along with some slight trembling.

He does not embrace change, he would be perfectly happy to have a routine and live in it comfortably until the end of time.

I on the other hand like change. But this year I thought I would start in a little gently to make it a little easier on Honey.

I love the 'Joy' my daughter gave us for Christmas a couple of years ago... 

 I like it so much I leave it out year round. I asked her if I could re-paint it and she was all for it.
I chose the colors and Honey promptly clutched his heart, swayed a little and asked, "What's wrong with it the way it is? I like it...".

As Busy MomMa and I got busy dusting off all my resting tole paint toys, we were soon pulling out the tubs of paint, box of paint brushes and our latest projects he retreated to the security of his garage.

When the paint was dry, he looked at things a little differently.
"You know...I think I like that a lot better! I sure makes the room seem brighter."

We have also been working on some Valentine's Day decorations...

Honey is getting into the spirit of change, I know because he is starting to bring me fun new projects every day...

I wonder if he is trying to keep me pleasantly happy with the small changes, so that I don't make too many big changes?

No such luck!

I have a lot of changes, large, small, and in between, that have been dancing around in my head during the long winter nights :)

I really have been productive the past two week's, it feels good to accomplish things.

I needed to make a few baby gift's so I got a start on that by whippin up this sweet little baby cocoon. I found it at my favorite place to go for free patterns, ravelry .

You have to register, and it is so worth it!

Anyway, I found this and a few other things I want to make for photo props and I am way excited about that!

I was able to use this cocoon in picture's of the baby it was made for, they will be edited soon and I shall show you...

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I should probably not be telling you how much I like food.

I do.

Very much.

We have some awesome chef's around here too.

That can either be a good or bad combination...

Last week's favorite's and new introduction's to me, were these Monte-cristo sandwiches, served with raspberry melba sauce .

Being the eclectics we are, we also found ourselves wanting these fabulous stuffed mushrooms!



All I had to do was eat, and wash the dishes :)

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A friend of mine was making a Mohawk hat, whell when Tiny Dancer and her friend's saw them... she really needed one so she could be a 'Rock-n-a-Roll girl!!!'. 
I try never to stand in the way of some one's dream's and imagination, so I went to work on one for her.

Next, she needed an instrument to play, so she came up with her own idea. She to put a rubber band stretched between two drawer handles to play them for her instrument. Busy MomMa was put on rice bottle and I, well I pulled out the spoon's and that is a story in and of it's self...

The idea man, Tbone, thought being mobile would be much more fun so out to the man-cave he did go, returning later with this awesome rubber band guitar!

If only you could have been at the opening concert of "Rock~n~a~Roll Girl" last night, she was awesome!

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Can I just tell you that the best Potato Soup  can be found by simply clicking on the words Potato Soup.
When the weather turns cold I like my homemade soup, easy, really good, and this recipe has topped our favorites' chart around here!

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We have been waiting for a big snow storm. We have had wind and rain...lots of rain. If it were snow we could very possibly be needing to shovel the roof's.

But alas and alack, we wait.
We play, we cook, we eat, we prepare the snow blower...

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Enjoy your week end :)

Clothes Racks

I grew up doing "sink dishes", I enjoy doing my dishes by hand, it gives me some time to reflect, similar to hanging clothes out on the line.

I have a dish washer.

I use it every now and again too.

But my preferred method is to do them by hand.

I have amassed quite a collection of flour sack dish towel's that are at my disposal, bearing everything from embroidery to paint to just plain.

This little beauty has been my towel rack for quite a long time now...

While it gets the job done, it is not the greatest place because... the towel slips or gets bumped off and lands in a heap on the floor, rendering it unacceptable to dry dishes.

Many long years ago I knew this was a problem and I kept my eye's open for a solution. Imagine my happiness when running across a marvelous idea a few years ago,it was soon placed on Honey's 'to-do list'.

Well not to long ago its number came up, that, and, he finally got tired of the dish towel living on the back of the stool.

So out to his garage he trudged with a picture firmly in hand. 
Upon his return he had a light covering of sawdust about himself, along with the smell of Thompson wood sealer, bearing a screw gun in hand along with a pocket full of screws. Laying them down on the counter he silently turned, retracing his steps to retrieve his master piece then to strategically hang it...

Standing back to admire his workmanship I was giddy with the pleasure of his gift.
While I was busy doing my happy dance I then hang the dish towel out of the way now to dry, Honey slipped silently from the house once again, disappearing into the abyss of his 'man-cave', only to return shortly with a second surprise...

A larger version for the laundry room...

We think it might be a good idea to hang one outside this Summer too.

If anyone is interested in buying one of these Handy-Dandy drying racks just let us know.
The towel racks are approx 25 inches down with the arms extended length 13 to 15 inches for $25.00 the large is approx 34 inches down with the arms extended length 21 inches for $ 35.00. shipping and handling may apply.

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