TLOFA angel swap....part II...

I received my box from my secret swap partner yesterday and couldn't get the darn box open fast enough! To my delight it was this wonderful little handpainted box by Chris of theantiquepallet. I always got outbid whenever I bid on her stuff and now I finally have one of her pieces!! Merry Christmas to me!! LOL!
It is painted on all four sides......two angels, a prim star and a hangtag. Her detailing is so amazing! You really have to see it in person to appreciate its beauty. It is something I will treasure always and except for when I took the pics, it has its forever home on the shelf in my sitting room..... :0) I just love it!! Thank you Chris!

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As I was taking the pics of my new treasure Sage is looking out the window at the neighbor's lilac bush and asks me what the funny round thing is that's stuck in the bushes.....I look out and can't believe it! It's the biggest wasp nest I've ever seen.

This is the view from the picture window. I added the black arrow in case it was hard to see.... I got my coat on and went outside to look a little closer (but not too close, even though I know they're not out and about) and to make sure it really was what I thought it was....yep....a stinkin' wasp nest the size of a basketball. Triple YUCK!! I hate wasps. No wonder they seemed so thick this year! We never noticed it this summer because all the foliage kept it hidden, and I can't think of a better time to get rid of it than this winter. EEeeew! Did I mention I hate wasps??

TLOFA angel swap.....

This was the little angel dolly I made for our angel swap in my ebay group TLOFA. I drew Tanya (grungegoddesprimitives) and wanted to wait until she got her before I spilled the beans! I was really pleased how well she turned out. I used a pattern from Tonya (backporchpickins) to make her. She was a smaller size than my usual ones, but I still put the same amount of details and things into her. Her dress is stained creme wool felt and her eyes are painted on with separate stitched eyelids and stitched mouth. Her hair is wool felted on all around her head. I quilted her wings on both sides and grubbied them up a bit, then sprinkled them with glass glitter to finish them off. I made a stained hangtag that reads "May the Lord bless and keep you".

I took a bit of a breather during the past few days to spend with family, then tomorrow I'll start some Christmas projects for family and such so that they will for sure be done before Christmas. We drove to my dad and stepmom's house- only 3 hours away in Riverton, WY- and spent Thanksgiving with them. Anyone who knows me well knows my dad and I are very close and I always feel like our visits to his house are always too short, not matter how long we are there. I did do the Black Friday shopping thing and woke up early to take part in some of the deals. We have quite a few nieces, nephews and cousins and I was able to get most of the toys and presents at discounted prices, which was awesome! I also scored at Staples- I got a bluetooth wireless headset for $9, and two 8 GB flashdrives for $12 each! I always try and do chores and things while I yak on the phone and usually pay for it later with a nice kink in my neck- this headset will be such a lifesaver! Speaking of yakking, I should probably go get something done. Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving holiday!

Mmmmmm! Gingerbread cookies.....

It was hard trying not to take a bite out of these guys when I was making them- fabric is sure tough to sink your teeth into. But hey, they're lowfat! :0) My kinda cookies! I made them using a pattern from Katies Homespun Stitches. I'm not even sure if the pattern is in print anymore.
I just love these guys- I made some for myself last year and keep a bowlful in my kitchen all year long. I made a dozen of the smaller 6 inch ones and thirteen of the larger 8 inch ones. They are all going to Twelve Days, hopefully I will make some for ebay after Thanksgiving sometime, I have had a few requests for some ornies to list. These have kept me busy since my last post and at the same time I was working on my angel for a swap we are doing in TLOFA and 4 ornies for our ornie swap in PFATT. I will wait until after Thanksgiving to post the pics of the angel because I don't want to spoil the surprise for my recipient. I sure hope she likes her! Well, I gotta get back to working on more dolls. Hope everyone has a wonderful and THANKFUL Thanksgiving! :0)

Ornies, ornies....and more ornies!

So sorry! I haven't been a very good blogger lately, have I? Well, this is only a portion of what I've been busy doing along with my stay at home mom duties. I am working on some handmades for a Christmas shoppe and they are opening next weekend so I have been busy, busy, busy! I always share pics of my dolls, so I thought I'd share a few of some ornies I made. I made two dozen of the stitchery stars with various sayings stitched onto them and two dozen of the fabric candy canes. Both have been stained well and sprinkled with fine glitter. I have some gingerbreads and some snowmen and santas I'll be working on and I'll post those when I get a few finished. . . . . .

Not too awful much has happened since my last post, though I did have a few setbacks. Last week we had to have one of our dogs, Walker, put to sleep. It was a really hard decision because he was part of our family for so many years. We got him about 10 or 11 years ago when I was getting my degree in college. He came from the pound and he already about 4 years old when we got him. He was really a wonderful, smart dog when it was just me and Craig, but after we had kids, he became a different dog. He wanted nothing to do with the kids and would snap at them constantly it seemed. One day we were sitting right there and Chad was walking by and he snapped at him and nearly got him in the face. It has been a rough week, but at least we still have our other dog, Chloe that helps to fill in the empty space.

This is her. She is our 6 year old English Mastiff and she is the BEST dog with our kids! She loves to lay around and let the kids climb on her and love on her. Truly a gentle giant.

And here is a pic of her and Sage. She loves to follow the kids around and give them slobbery (and slimy!LOL) kisses. She sure is a good dog and we all sure love her!

My other setback was that all my late nights finally caught up with me over the weekend and I woke up with a bad cold. It was mostly sinus head cold and for a few days it took the energy right out of me. I am feeling better now, but trying not to push myself too hard yet cuz I still have lots more to do. I still have to finish my stuff for an exchange we are doing in a few of my ebay groups......Well, I gotta get back to work while the night's still young and get supper started. I'll post more hopefully soon! :0)