The Rest of My Merry Decor...

I just love snowmen! They used to be the only Christmas decor I put out, but as time goes by I add more Santa's, candy canes, gingerbread and greenery...it seems like this year I am totally nuts about trees of all sizes! I dare not count how may little trees I have tucked here and there! This is my favorite "end table" of course because it is one of my Red Wing crocks. Craig made the wood top for me and it serves double duty as storage for extra throw blankets and stuff...I made the lamp using a giant reproduction mason jar and a lamp adapter kit.
I have my Singer sewing table all decked out, too. Sorry about the tree branches in front of it- the pics of our tree further down will explain it all...LOL. The peg shelf above it I made by myself. I needed a large peg shelf big enough to fill the space on that wall (the shelf is 6 ft long) and it was going to cost me at least $70 to have someone make it for me. I designed it, cut it, painted and distressed it, then waxed it. Considering all the materials, I bet it only cost me $25 to make!
Here's an idea I got from a featured home in Country Sampler last year and it is sooo simple, too. Just take a mini tree, plop it into an old coffee tin (or colander, flour sifter or whatever..), add rusty bells to most of the tips and a rusty star to the top and you have yourself a cute lil tree! I made a fabric candy cane and dusted it with glass glitter and tucked it in, too.
This is my mini kitchen ornie tree...
I've had all these tiny utensil ornies for a few years and thanks to my tree obsession I have a place for them now! I plopped it in a little stoneware bowl and it hangs out on the corner of our table nook. Amazingly (so far...LOL), Chad hasn't stripped all the ornies off and toted them all over the house....This old step-back hutch is still my favorite and very first antique piece of furniture. It was a Christmas/B-Day gift (my b-day is two days after Christmas) from Craig two years ago. I just love it! It even smells old! I think it used to have double doors on the top part where all the china is, but they were long gone when I got it. I tucked a snowman ornie in the gravy boat in the center- my friend Barb made it for an ornie swap we both did last year. This is just a wood dough bowl I filled with wood apples and a twiggy wreath that sits on our table.....
Ok, and finally our tree.... No, it did not look this BIG (or this sparse!) out in the boonies!! LOL. We had to use a ladder and stand on the stairs to decorate it and then we realized we did not have enough ornies! Our fake tree we used for years was only 7 ft and the lack of ornies to put on made our poor tree look even more naked. Well, we didn't have the $$ right before Christmas to run out and buy more ornies and I sure didn't have time to make more, so we "made-did" with what we had. I know he's not the most beautiful, but he is our "little" tree and we love him no matter how he looks! It doesn't help that our little turd of a kitten climbs the tree and knocks ornaments off and rearranges the garland. So thanks to him our tree looks different (and disheveled..) on a daily basis....notice there are no ornies at the very top?? LOL. But I'm sure mine isn't the only cat that climbs the family Christmas tree. Oh well, at least I have a year to make more ornies and garland!

A Birthday Gift Raggedy....

This was the doll I made for my mother in law, Debbie for her birthday. She is from a Sweet Meadows Farm pattern. Deb's birthday is actually tomorrow, but we all threw her a surprise birthday party this last Saturday when she least expected it. She really liked her dolly and that made me so happy!

I had made this one for myself a while ago and she sits in an old child's rocker in my front room. She had commented on it once and said she really liked it, so I knew what she would be getting for her birthday back then. LOL. Both our dolls are wearing antique baby dresses (I think they are actually christening gowns) and old leather baby shoes. The gowns I had bought at an antique store and the shoes I always just happen upon at the thrift shop or yard sales. I think I should make a baby doll to for both dolls to hold, but that will have to wait until after Christmas so I can spend time with my family. :0) I am also making a Cars quilt for Chad. I had intended to get it done for Christmas, but I'm not sure that is going to happen. I have never made a quilt before and I have hit a few snags. LOL. There is definitely a difference between sewing dolls and quilting, I'll tell ya that! LOL. With primitives, any boo-boos can easily be fixed or sometimes add to the look, but it's a different story with a quilt- not much room for error. But heck, even if it takes me forever, I think it will turn out nice and it was a labor of love for my little guy. :0) I'm getting ready to take some more pics and will post more later tonight.

Lots and lots to share!

First off, I owe a long overdue thank you to Pea for this lovely award. I have only just recently 'met' Pea and she is truly one of the nicest and friendliest people one can meet! Be sure to check out her blog! She awarded me last week and I had intended to post earlier in the week and, well, as you can see life happened and here I am on Friday already! LOL. Boy, it has been one busy week for us. We left over the weekend and got our (enormous) Christmas tree, then Sage came down sick again on Tuesday and missed some preschool this week. She was pretty wiped out and I was ready to take her to the ped's today, but she is acting a whole lot better, so now we are on the mend and hopefully Chad doesn't catch any of it....boy, when she coughed, she sounded like a barking seal which made me think of croup. (Been there, done that with Chad as an infant) When Craig's sister was little she would get sick and have the same cough. They kept diagnosing it as croup, but later found out she actually had asthma, so that is always in the back of our minds. Luckily (knock on wood) Sage has never had any breathing problems, thus far....
We had an ornie exchange in PLOA and lookie what I got!! They were from Colleen of Colleenscraftshed. The angel ornie on top was for me and she was such a dear to think of my kids and also sent the two snowman "pops" for Sage and Chad! They were so excited to see that they also got something in the box- she also send some little chocolates and that was a big hit, too. Thanks Colleen!

And lookie at my loot from our PFATT ornie swap! We each made four ornies to exchange and that meant we each got four ornies back! Woohoo! Going clockwise from the top: the gingerbread is from Robin of Outside the Box Primitives, the prim hangtag, mini chenille canes and raggedy head ornie are from Arlene- Sweet Things by Arlene, the frog-cicle is from P.K. Gracia of Soft in the Head, and the wool bird and the beautiful cone ornie are from Jo Ellen of Lacey Jane Primitives. The beautiful Santa card in the center reads "PFATT Ornie swap 2008" and was made by Lori of Vintage Palette as a thank you for all of us that participated. We are actually the ones that should be thanking her- she offered to host the swap this year and if it weren't for her, it wouldn't have been possible- thank you Nana for all that you do for us!!

I was also going to share some more Christmas decor pics, but I feel like I have been long winded enough for one post, so maybe I can save those for later. Anyhow, with all that has been going on, we only just decorated our tree the other day and we still have a few things to do to it still.

A little Holiday decorating to share...

Well, I finally got to start putting some of my Christmas decor out the other day! Yipee! I usually do it the weekend after Thanksgiving, but we were getting ready to replace our carpet with laminate in the front room and we had to take everything out of the room to get the job done, so it was easier just to wait. Plus, we had to wait until Craig had a regularly scheduled weekend off to do it. I also wanted to share the pics of the new flooring. This is the view from the top of the stairs looking down...

You'll have to excuse the hole in the drywall above the fireplace (the dark area in front of the coffee table in case it's hard to make out in the pic)- when we moved in a few years ago, there was a fake roof with wood shingles built into the wall above a fireplace insert- last year we replaced the fireplace with our coal stove and next week that bare spot will have a nice new piece of drywall over it. I was worried about the flooring at first because it looked pretty light in the package, but now that its in, I love it! I think it's perfect! I still have a few more Christmas things to put out and since we are cutting our own tree, we are waiting until this weekend to get one so it doesn't dry out too much before Christmas.

That's also the reason why we put the flooring in now because I've vacuumed pine needles out of my carpet before and it sucks! LOL. Especially when they get stuck between the carpet and the baseboard trim. Speaking of baseboard trim, as you can see we are waiting on that until after Christmas. The reason being that I am going to do a faux finish on the upper half of the walls (yes, I'm crazy because we have vaulted ceilings and it will probably be a major pain in the #@!, but I think I will really like it when it's done) and wainscoting on the bottom, so it will be a lot easier to do the trim after all that is done.

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Well, thats pretty much what I've been up to lately. I have a few dolls I'm working on for 12 Days this week and will try to share pics of them if I get a chance before we leave this weekend. I'll hopefully also have more pics to share after our tree is up. Until next time.... :0)

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)

A Fabulous Fall Decor Award.....Thank You!!

Tina over at Old Glory Soldiers has presented me with this Fabulous Fall Decor award- thank you so very much! You should go check out her blog and her awesome handmades on her website, etsy and ebay! I am so honored to accept any kind of award and she is just such a sweetie pie to have thought of me! :0) I think I'm supposed to pass it on, and I usually always do, but I see most of my other blogger friends have already got it. When I get more time hopefully I can go through and see if there's a few that haven't yet.... :0)

Still working on my snowgirl and she's just about done. She is really pretty- and sparkly! :0) I'm gonna have to be a tease and not have a sneakie peek this time cuz I didn't have the time today to take pics and edit them, etc, etc. I am waiting on some glass glitter I ordered to do her shoes and then she's finally finished. Like Santa, I have to list her on ebay this time also to be fair to my ebay groups. Don't worry, I'll post a pic and her link when she's ready.Well, I need to crack the whip on myself and get back to work as domestic engineer.......then I'll put in some overtime on graveyards working on craft show dollies after that...LOL. :0)

A Little Fall Decor & Kris Kringle Doll....

Wanted to share a pic of my front porch in the fall.....can you tell which ones are the real pumpkins? LOL. :0) They're actually all fake. I put my fake ones out early and wait till later to buy the real ones we carve so we can enjoy them longer. I leave my old red wagon out in the spring and summer to hold potted flowers and of course you can see what I like to do with it in the fall. It goes in the garage during Christmas and wintertime and I replace it with an antique wood sled. Of course those pics will come later. :0) The scarecrow dude on the door was made and given to me by my mother in law before my kids were born. My door is metal, so I have to use those clamp magnets to hold him on there and occasionally if the wind blows hard enough, he falls down.
And as you can see, I never did get my pumpkinhead guy done......he would have been in the chair behind the wagon where the biggest pumpkin is. I just got so darn busy, he'll have to wait until after Christmas, so he'll be one of my winter projects.
Speaking of projects.....I did get my Kris Kringle doll all done. He's not quite ready to list on ebay, I'm still trying to think of something for him to hold or tuck under one arm......I'm gonna make him a toy bag for sure and was thinking of doing a little stick horse or something...I dunno...you can almost bet I'll tuck a little flag in there somewhere, too :0)....he could be an Americana Santa...but anyway, thought he turned out really neat- he's my first Santa doll. I bought the wool for his beard and hair from a local gal and it is just awesome to work with, except for the waste from pulling and sorting, but you just about have to deal with that no matter who you buy from. Although I've heard tons of good things about Ann's wool from Crowing About Primitives- she sorts and lays it out ready to use for you. I would like to try some from her, but I have lots of wool I need to use up in my stash first. I needle felted all his beard and mustache, and he has hair all over his head, not just on the sides. Plus his hat is removable. I bet I did more handstitching than machine stitching on his clothing! I did all the faux fur trim on the jacket, pants, hat and boots by hand, plus all the rusty jingle bells. He's scheduled to start on ebay Friday night. Click here to see his auction and more pics of him finished..... Well, gotta go finish up my snowgirl so she can go up for auction, too. :0)

Just let me sleep!

I have been working on some dolls for an upcoming craft show for the last month and at some point my burning the candle at both ends is going to catch up with me! I remember those days of sleep deprivation when my kids were each newborn and kept me up at odd hours of the night. I'm having those same groggy days again, but nobody to blame but me! LOL. I take care of the kids during the day, then stay up late to work on dolls after they go to bed. I still try to squeeze some doll time in during naps, but then there's always housework to do, too. LOL. I haven't had anything listed for any of my groups on ebay for over a month now and hope to have this snowgirl and Santa done in the next few days. I promised them I wouldn't post their naked lil bodies on the internet, so they at least let me get a work in progress pic from the neck up. LOL. They're from Tonya's patterns and both coming along well. This is my third snowgirl so far this season and you'll probably notice she isn't wearing her wire smile yet- it will get handstitched on after she's all dressed. After doing my last 5 dolls as painted muslin pieces, it was nice to go back to just plain stained muslin- and lots less work and drying time, I might add! LOL. I sure love his face so far even though he'll get his wool beard felted on later. Well, enough taking a break- I gotta get back to work while the night's still young! :0)

And we have......SNOW!

Well, the snow started flying Friday morning and hasn't stopped until today. We only got about 5 or 6 inches here, but Casper only 20 miles away got between 6 and 12 inches depending on where you were....of course Casper Mountain got more than town did, but I never heard how much- my guess would be probably 15 to 18 inches or so. My eyeballs needed a break from the sewing machine, so I thought I'd share a pic on my blog. This is our view out of the bay window of our front room. Of course the kids wanted to ham it up! LOL. Cute little stinkers! Since Craig works at a coal mine, we use a coal burning stove for our heating and had it burning for the past couple days. The heat it gives off is so warm and toasty!! This weather makes me more in the mood to sew winter and Christmas dolls.

On another note, I received my room spray I won in Vintage Palette's giveaway- it is so rich and wonderful!! The scent is called HOMESTEAD and I sprayed it a few times in the house and Sage kept asking me what I was baking! It'll be perfect to scent my dolls and tissue paper when I send them. I'm gonna visit her ebay store and get more of a few different scents. Well, I suppose I should get back to work, enough playtime! LOL.

Happy Birthday Sage!

On Monday October 6th, Sage turned 5 years old! I'm sure not ready for her to be 5 yet, either! She is growing up so fast and getting smarter than her mom every day! LOL! We had a nice party for her in the town park and invited all the little girls in her preschool class. We ordered pizza for lunch, then ate the "cake" (if you look close, it is made up of cupcakes all arranged into a crown shape and covered with icing), then opened up presents and let the kids wear themselves out on the playground...and no, I did not make it- I cheated and ordered it from the bakery at Wal-Mart...tee hee! Sorry I only got a pic of the cake. It was very windy and the pizza boxes, tablecloth and napkins, etc kept trying to blow all over so I had to put the camera up.

Sorry I haven't posted for a little while- I'm literally up to my ears in doll bodies! LOL! It's not a bad thing, but I'm starting to feel a little overwhelmed. I have the Twelve Days of Christmas to do dolls for and have two plastic tubs full of about 20 naked doll bodies staring at me....their arms and legs are in another tub. I did manage to get them all stained, now just need to sew them to the bodies then move on to the clothing and hair, etc. Even though I'm only doing 3 or maybe 4 of the same style or pattern, I've found that it is easier to make big groups of dolls in stages rather than one at a time. I'm also trying to make the majority of the body parts now while I still have nice enough weather to use my clothesline for the staining and drying......but I better get a move on because tomorrow night sometime we are supposed to get that four letter word that starts with "S". I was talking about snow, what were you thinking? LOL. Ugghh....snow already?? I would like to enjoy fall a little more before the flakes start to fall...... Plus, I'm working on a santa to list on Ebay. My pumpkinman is on the back burner for now.....maybe I'll get him done in time for next fall...LOL. I have been trying to stay away from my computer, otherwise I wouldn't get much crafting done!

And also a brand new Menards just opened in Casper and we took advantage of their grand opening sale and bought new wood flooring (@ $.58/ sq. ft.) for our sitting room, hallway and both sets of stairs, so we've been working on getting everything ready for that, too. Sometimes I wish I could duplicate myself....I better be careful what I wish for! LOL!

Americana Wynter Dolly...

~SOLD~

I'm sure glad Tonya at Back Porch Pickins released this pattern- I have really enjoyed working on this snowgal- I couldn't help but do her in Americana- it's one of my favs. She is 21" tall from head to toe, and 24" if you count her crown, too.She has wired arms. Her whimsical smile is actually wire stitched in place. Her flag has wire in the top and bottom-I made it appear to be waving. Lots of handstitching and tinsel trim. Her slippers are sugar coated in ultra fine red glitter- I decided not to glitter her star woolen and the crown- I thought it might be too much. I stitched rusty bells around the hem, on her sleeves and pantalets, too. Even her flag has a few bells. Her garland is metal glittered snowflakes and jingle bells... I made her a hangtag that say "Americana Wynter" with tiny snowflakes stamped on. She did not make it to ebay as she has just been adopted and already on her way to her new home....... :0)

Here she is....

I won a blog giveaway!! Yipee!!

I can't believe it! I was one of the LUCKY winners in the blog giveaway that Lori had on her blog-Vintage Palette! I won the yummy room spray and just can't wait to get it- I'm such a sucker for the smelly goods! LOL. Hope she doesn't mind that I snagged the pic to show off! BTW, you should definitely check out her ebay store-Village Gift Shoppe- (CLICK HERE)- she has lots of vintage style tinsel garland, room spray, bottlebrush trees, and bottlebrush garland, etc. Lots of prim goodies! (Not to mention Joyce's fab dolls!)

New dolly....

Well, I don't know what my deal is, but I really had intentions to finish my pumpkin man before this snowgirl but she's been so fun to work on, I just can't put her down! LOL! I'll probably just keep the pumpkin guy for me to put on my front porch chair- I'll share pics when he's done. I bought her pattern from Tonya last week. She's not quite finished of course- I still have to make her crown and do the glitter on her shoes....I think I'll make a garland of some type for her to hold, too. Sorry the pic isn't very good. The light outside wasn't cooperating and she seems so "bright"- which she really isn't- I used plenty of stain on her and her clothing and the flag. I'll post another pic when she's all done- most likely tomorrow sometime. :0)

I've been tagged.....

I've been tagged my my friend Joleen at The Primitive Bucket to tell 6 things about myself and tag 6 others.....

1. I went to college right out of high school and earned a degree as a Veterinary Technician....I loved it, but the pay and benefits were horrible...something they don't tell you in college. Plus, my current "job" as a mom is so much better! LOL

2. I used to rodeo some in High School (goat tying). I did work two jobs at the time, so never got to do them all, plus I worked to pay my own entry fees unlike the other kids whose parents paid for everything.

3. I love to sketch and draw and have been that way since I can remember. My favorite media is pen & ink, I also really like charcoal and pencil. Back in high school I did a lot of artwork (I'll have to post some pics) and I was very close to my art teacher, he was a great mentor. My last year in college he died in a car accident and I took it pretty hard. After that I stopped drawing and such....I've worked on a piece or two in the last 10 years, but I really enjoy making my dolls now and found it is a wonderful creative outlet for me.

4. I hate to cook, but love to bake! Funny, huh? I'm not sure why, but to me the two are like night and day. My favorite thing to bake is pie with crust made from scratch (my grandma's recipe, and its awesome!) I don't make the filling from scratch, I just buy the canned stuff, but would love to learn how!

5. I collect Red Wing Stoneware. Of course Craig will tell you I tend to "collect" more stuff than that, but I do have a soft spot for them. So far I have various sized Red Wing crocks and jugs, one butter churn, and a chicken feeder, but no bowls yet. I mean I do have stoneware bowls and canisters, but they are not actual Red Wing pottery.

6. I am actually very shy, that is at least until you get to know me. I was terribly shy as a kid and have become a little more outgoing as I get older, but am still a wimp about meeting new people! Ok, I admit it! LOL!

So that's pretty much all I am going to blab about me...maybe more later if I happen to get tagged again...LOL. Now, let's see, I have to pick 6 others that have not already received it yet, so here goes....

1. Linda at Meadowbrook Cabin Primitives (Linda is such a great person- she makes some real nice dollies, too! I just love her pilgrim girl she has now, but my fav is probably the doll riding the goose on her blog banner)

2. Sandy at Sam I Am Creations (I just love her...truly one of the nicest people...she made my Halloween banner and Halloween auction template- take a peek at her on ebay or etsy!)

3. Mandie at Life In The Craft Lane With Mandie (She has lots of freebies for your blog and etsy....go check her out....that's where I got my background)

4.Raquel at Kitchen Mysteries (If you're looking for recipes, you need to take a peek at her blog! Her blog is really nice)

5. Linda at Behind My Red Door (She receives a ton of awards and is thinking of a tag free zone, but just want her to know her blog does ROCK and she is not obligated to participate of course)

6. Leslie at My Country Home (She has already received this award, but I just love reading her blog and she deserves it a second time! You should go take a peek if you get a chance.) Of course she doesn't have to take part again unless she really wants to... :0)

Busy, Busy, Busy...

It seems like I haven't had much computer time lately, sorry I haven't posted in so long! My dad and I took a guided fishing trip through Crazy Rainbow on the Platte day before yesterday and had fun! I had never been on a guided trip before because my husband and I have our own driftboat we can take out, but it was nice to get to fish the whole time and let someone else row! LOL. We caught a lot of rainbows and cutbows, and dad caught a brown. We didn't catch huge fish, but it was still a real fun time. The river tends to be really mossy this time of the year and we would have landed more if they hadn't dove into the thick cover and broke our line, but the fight is what is the funnest part anyhow!
We also had a bit of weird weather- about 2/3 of the way through the float a storm came through and and the wind kicked up and we got wet and chilly! It was a fun experience and I did learn a lot more than I thought I already knew. I couldn't have thought of a better time to spend with my dad than fishing, something we both love. It was such a special day! Thank you dad! Love you!Then yesterday, my husband and I took the four wheelers and went to his antelope (for those that aren't familiar, their proper name is Pronghorn) area. We have tons of antelope in Wyoming- you can hardly go a day without seeing one somewhere. I bet we saw about 200 of those buggers, but they were very spooky! This area has been open for hunting for a week now and if they spotted us at all, they were gone! And they are FAST and can run like the wind for miles and miles without stopping. ( I got this pic from the internet, I wasn't fast enough and nowhere near close enough to get a pic of the ones from yesterday..LOL)Yesterday was more of a scouting trip just to see what was there, and today he was joining two other friends to do more serious hunting. They are going to have to be pretty sneaky, though. Those antelope rely on their eyesight and speed.

So..... today I get to relax and work on my dolls- I've hardly got to work on anything for a week and am going through withdrawals...LOL. I'm still working on my pumpkinhead and need to get him done, I'm running out of time! I'll be sure to post a pic when I'm done!

Patriot's Day....Remembering 9/11.....We will never forget....

I still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing that day in '01....such a sad day and so many innocent people lost their lives in such a horrible way. Not to mention all those firemen and police officers that risked their lives (and some that lost theirs..) to help.....we should never forget the sacrifices some made unselfishly....we stood together as a nation and mourned the loss of so many people-even those we did not know....and the good Lord above helped us through...we do live in an amazing country and I am so very proud to call myself an American...

I wanted to share this email I got from a friend today (thanks Lisa!)...

'MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL'

You say you will never forget where you were when you heard the news On September 11, 2001. Neither will I.

I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say 'Good-Bye.' I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, 'Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK..I am ready to go.'

I was with his wife when he called as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he wasn't coming home that night.

I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help. 'I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!' I said. 'Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now.'

I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered.

I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them.

I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan . I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me?

I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew every name - though not all know Me. Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor.

Some sought Me with their last breath. Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; 'Come to Me... this way... take my hand.' Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me. But, I was there.

I did not place you in the Tower that day. You may not know why, but I do. However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me?

Sept. 11, 2001, was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end. And I will be there for you as well. Seek Me now while I may be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are 'ready to go.'

I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.

~God~

...God Bless the USA...

100th post giveaway...

My friend Lori Davis is having a 100th post giveaway on her blog- Vintage Palette Art..... CLICK HERE to go visit! She has wonderful first and second prize handmade hangtags and a third prize yummy room spray! I shouldn't be sending anyone over cuz I want to win! Tee Hee! ;0)

Custom order dolls...

I got a call from a local customer last week for a few dollies, so I thought I'd share a pic of them after I was finished. They are still one of my fav styles of dolly to make even though I tend to make more whimsical ones now with eyelids and such, but it's still nice to make a raggedy type once in a while. I just love Maureen's (Sweet Meadows Farm) patterns!

All Finished....

Well, I got her all finished up (finally!) Just when I thought summer is almost over and I'd have more crafting time- what was I thinking?? LOL. So here she is anyway....I got her listed, so here's the link to her auction if you want to see more of her. (I'm not real thrilled with some of my pics, but I have to make do until I can get a better camera). She turned out just the way I wanted her to- which doesn't always happen. But don't get me wrong, she wasn't exactly a piece of cake-I did have a few issues with her! Her first set of eyelids I cut weren't the right size for the eyes and I had a few retries on some of the body parts but nothing major. So now I'm on to making a pumpkinhead....but this time I'll give my brain a rest and make one from a pattern I bought.

Yesterday was my husbands birthday and we make a last minute decision as a birthday gift to drive to UW in Laramie and watch the Wyoming Cowboys football game. We played Air Force and got our butts kicked, but it was still fun to go. Especially for the kids- Sage was all decked out in her cheerleader oufit and Chad had a Cowboys jersey- they were so cute and I forgot to take a pic, of course. It was a long day and we were sure pooped when we got home.