Happy Birthday America!

I wanted to wish all my fellow Americans a Happy Independence Day!! Enjoy fun, food, fireworks, family, friends, fellowship, and faith, all under the banner of freedom!! And may God continue to bless America!!

Busy Hands

Hello July!!

And hello friends!! I just wanted to take a moment, as I generally do on the first of every month, to mark the turn of the calendar and share any news of note. There is still a lot of work going on on two different fronts in our household. 1) The studio finish-out is marching ahead at a steady pace...I'll be showing you a bit of the work sweet hubby has done to add windows in a second. And 2) My work to create my first digital scrapbooking kit is getting very close to completion and I HOPE to be able to launch it at Aimee Asher by Friday or Saturday. I'll just give you a hint for now - the kit is based in part on my July calendar design (above) - it has a County Fair theme and is going to be so colorful and fun!! I can't wait to premiere it here for you...please stay tuned!!

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Meanwhile, back at the studio, my husband has worked tirelessly to make this place as functional as possible. One of the things he noted right away was the lack of windows - we only had one window put in when we originally had the storage building built, not knowing then that it was going to eventually become my studio. So late last week, hubby started on the task of adding 4 more windows to the space for a total of 5! Here are a few photos of some of the process...

He had to first frame in the space of the new window...

...then he had to cut out the opening with a circular saw from the outside of the building...

...and that leaves the opening for the window...

...he then pre-drilled holes on the "fins" of the window in preparation for screwing it in place...

...then he set it in place and attached it with screws....

...pretty neat...
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Here is a shot of the original single window in the building....(this is on the opposite side of the building from the one in the previous photos)...

...and here is the next cutout he did...right beside the first to make a double window...

...I didn't get a photo of the new window set in place, but you get the gist. This is where my desk will sit...this is an Eastern view...I love it already!

This is gonna be great...thanks Baby for all your hard work...you da man!!!

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"Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty."
Proverbs 21:5

A Good Work

My sweet Hubby is hard at work on finishing out the storeroom-turned-studio, but the 100+ degree heat is slowing the work down considerably. He can only work a few hours early in the morning and maybe one in the evening before dark....miserable, wretched heat. The things he is working on now when he can work are vital, but they are not very "exciting"...things like wiring junction boxes and re-decking the floor with more plywood....all necessary....but not nearly as fun as, say, decorating ! :o)

I tend to be a bit impatient with this phase of remodeling...the boring stuff. But of course, it's all necessary for the studio to be solid, lighted, cooled, and properly functioning.

I also tend to be a bit impatient (or a lot impatient) with the work the Lord is doing in my life. It's the boring foundational stuff like patience, faithfulness, and self-control that He refuses to rush through or skim over. He simply will not do shoddy work...He wants me to be a well-rounded, properly grounded, solid person. If it were left to me, I would probably focus on making me look good, but I would likely be utterly falling apart...knocked down by the slightest puff of wind or drop of rain. But He loves me too much to let that happen on His watch...

Today I just needed a reminder that God is not finished with me yet...and that the work He is doing in me is a GOOD, solid work. Though I may not be able to see any exciting, visible progress at this point, I can be confident by faith that He is hard at work in me....and He will not quit...

Why is He so diligent and thorough with us...?? Because He has good works pre-planned for us to do in Him...

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Speaking of diligence and hard work, please allow me just a bit of bragging on my little brother Dave - after working tirelessly for 5 years as the assistant track coach at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX , he was just today named the head track coach at Sam - I am so very proud of him!!

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Have a great weekend y'all - and be confident in the good work the Lord is completing in you! The payoff will be beyond our wildest dreams!!

Two Years Ago Today!

(click image to enlarge)

Yep...today is our 2nd Anniversary!! Hard to believe...it seems like yesterday... And Johnny and I have never been happier!!

I thought it would be fun to look back just a bit on that WONDERFUL day. This was an unapologetic country-style wedding. We wanted it to be casual and relaxed and a reflection of our values and sense of whimsy. We did absolutely everything ourselves on a shoestring budget.

This is the signpost that greeted our guests as they arrived. I painted it using boards from an old fence our neighbors were tearing down...It's pretty redneck I must admit...but it was all part of the fun!

I had a LOT of fun making all the floral arrangements - my bridal bouquet was my favorite...

These were all silk flowers, which just made sense for the casual style and our limited budget. This was the Maid of Honor's bouquet...

The wedding ceremony was in the same facility as the reception, so instead of having to set up and later remove rows of chairs, we just had our guests sit at the tables that were already set for the reception - it was comfortable and casual...just what we wanted. I love this candid photo of my parents holding hands as they watched the ceremony. You can see behind them one of the many quilts we used to cover the plain white walls...

We used hay bales to mark off the corners of the dance floor. They also held wash buckets that we used to ice down bottled water and sodas for our guests...

My Dad has a great collection of vintage license plates that we sprinkled throughout the decor...but it was this one that really summed it all up...we put this right at the front door...

Yes, He sure did...not just the wedding details, but He put US together and we will both be forever grateful!!
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"So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
Matthew 19:6

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Happy Anniversary Baby!! I LOVE you!!

Click here if you'd like to see all the wedding photos and my detailed description of the day...

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By the way, we had a BLAST at my 30th High School Reunion this past weekend...here we are just before leaving for the party...

I'll have a few more details on that as well as on our progress on the studio coming up very soon. And one more thing - we are planning a lingerie shower for my nephew's fiance' in July. We are doing a whimsical girly-girl pink and black Parisian "Ooh La La" theme - oh, this is going to be one cute shower!! I'll share more as the plans unfold. Meanwhile, here's a sneak peek at the invitations I created for the event...

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Have a great week y'all!! And Happy Belated Father's Day to all the great Dads out there...especially my sweet Daddy and my sweet Hubby!! Love you!!

Way Back When-sday: 1979 - My Senior Year

1979 - My Senior Year

Today is the perfect day to reminisce about 1979, my Senior year of High School, because this coming Saturday night we will be attending my 30 year High School Reunion!!

Wow, has it really been 30 years...?? I'm afraid so. I've had some mixed emotions about attending this reunion (mostly because I have not been connected with most of these folks since school), but now that it's almost here, I am very excited! Johnny and I will be attending with our dear friends Connie and Buddy - Connie was in my class and my best friend senior year (and now again since I moved back to Houston). Should be fun! I've been digging around in my hope chest and found lots of senior year memorabilia that I will be bringing along to share...issues of our school paper, my senior year scrapbook, prom photos, prom program, etc. I've scanned a number of these things to share with you guys as well - please indulge me as I look back for a bit - I imagine some of this will trigger memories for you as well...

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Connie and I really got to know one another well our senior year when we were both in H.E.C.E. (Home Economics Cooperative Education). This was a program/class that worked with local home economic-oriented businesses to employ students. While in H.E.C.E. my senior year I got out of school at noon to be able to work half a day. I worked at Cloth World and spent a fair amount of my time there as a special order clerk in the bridal department. (loved that job - but overall was never a big fan of working retail)


Here is a photo of our H.E.C.E. officers (I'm 5th from the left - Connie is 3rd from the left) - somehow or another I managed to get elected as president of the club...we had SO much fun that year!!


In this photo, Connie and Buddy were attending Buddy's senior prom - he went to our big rival High School in town.

I'm happy that we will be spending the weekend with this sweet, wonderful couple starting Friday afternoon. We will ride down with them to the reunion on Saturday evening, then spend one more night with them Saturday night and head back home Sunday. We always have a blast with these two - never a dull moment...

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The prom at our school was such fun for me. I had a boyfriend my senior year so I had a built in date and didn't have to go through the angst of hoping for an invitation...

Here I am, getting ready (my brother's girlfriend was playing makeup artist) - and, what a shock...I was on the phone...I lived on the phone back then. (I guess today I'd be texting in this photo :o)

For a long time I had been dreaming of wearing a peach prom dress (my favorite color at the time) and my date would wear a chocolate brown tux with a ruffled peach shirt. So that's exactly what we did... My mom made my dress out of peach "Quiana" (do you remember that fabric??). I had it picked out at Cloth World for months before the prom. She also sewed onto the empire waist a little peach millinery flower accent that I had found while working in the bridal department. I guess it would be a vintage piece now...

I was on the Program Committee for the prom and was able to do several of the illustrations inside. Here's the cover (I didn't draw that one)...


I did this little pen and ink illustration on the menu page. Goodness I wish I could draw that over now! :o)....

I had fun doing this illustration on the Entertainment page...

I showed a set of student's legs wearing their everyday school clothes, then the same kids dressed for prom... hey, I think some of these looks are back again :o)

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Class Motto:

Yesterday is already a dream
and tomorrow is only a vision.
But today, well lived,
makes every yesterday
a dream of happiness,
and every tomorrow
a vision of hope
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Class Song:

"Poems, Prayers, and Promises" by John Denver

I lobbied hard for having this song as our senior song - I nominated it and printed up the words to the song and passed them out all over school. I was a BIG John Denver fan and I thought the words (most of them) were great for this time in our lives. Here is a YouTube video of John Denver singing the song... (please ignore the little "Save the Tiger" blurb at the end)

Here are the words to the 2nd Chorus of the song...

I have to say it now - it's been a good life all in all,
it's really fine to have the chance to hang around,
and lie there by the fire and watch the evening tire,
while all my friends and my old lady
sit and watch the sun go down,
and talk of poems, prayers, and promises,
things that we believe in,
how sweet it is to love someone,
how right it is to care,
how long it's been since yesterday,
what about tomorrow,
and what about our dreams and all the memories we share...

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I also nominated and lobbied hard for the Class Colors - Pastel Rainbow, and the Class Flower too - Spring Bouquet...

And even way back then I was setting up and photographing still lifes...here is a vignette of my prom dress and associated memorabilia...

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My boyfriend went to a different high school in a close by town, so I was able to attend two senior proms that year. The dress I wore to his prom was a white gauzy tiered Gunnie Sax dress - remember those?? I loved anything Gunnie Sax! Here I am pinning on my date's boutonniere...

...and here we are in my front driveway in front of his beloved Camaro...
(recognize the "Tennille" haircut from the Captain and Tennille...?? :o)

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The year culminated in our graduation of course...it's mostly all a blur really because we had a class of 566, so it took forever. However, this day had extra significance for me because my Dad was in attendance - just two short weeks before graduation he had undergone 14 hours of brain surgery to remove a damaged section of his brain from the Cerebral Hemorrhage he had suffered several months prior. It was a real blessing for him to be there...for all of us!

Here I am getting my diploma...

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Now I really am looking forward to seeing folks again at the Reunion this weekend...I went to our 10th, but missed the 20th, but I know from looking at photos and reading bios on Classmates, Facebook, and our Reunion website that folks have certainly changed and matured a lot these past 30 years...I don't mean so much in looks, (although all of our looks certainly have changed)...but more the type of change that comes from a wide variety of life experiences that we have all had. It's that kind of change that I hope to explore as we spend time talking and getting reacquainted.

I'll have camera in hand, so I should have photos and stories to share for sure!! Please stay tuned!!

HUGS!!

No-Sew Front Door Window Cover

Well friends, the progress on Extreme Makeover - Mobile Home Edition continues. We have focused the last two or three weeks primarily on the two storage buildings - one of which will serve as my studio. I'm happy to report that the contents of the original storage building are now safely in their new climate-controlled, semi-organized storage building...that feat took us all of this past weekend. Next step - to completely climate control and paint the studio, then move back all the stuff that belongs in the studio...it'll definitely take another two or three weekends (or more) to get it all done. But it's gonna be SO worth it!!

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Meanwhile I did manage to finish the other no-sew project I mentioned a couple of weeks ago - this time I made a roll-up shade for the cottage window on my new front door.

I used the same king-sized quilt that I had used for the no-sew window coverings in the living room...

This is the old door to the mobile home - yikes!!

BEFORE:

...and here is the much-improved new white cottage door...

AFTER:

The only problem with this door was privacy at night - so I decided to use some of the leftover quilt to make a little roll-up shade for the door's window. I measured the window in the door and cut a piece with about an inch or two extra all around for the "seams". The scalloped edge of the quilt makes a great finish for the bottom of the shade...

All I used for the assembly was self adhesive Velcro, fusible hem tape, and 1/2 inch coordinating grosgrain ribbon...

I used the hem tape to "hem" the edges...

...then I stuck the loop side of the Velcro to the top of the shade and the hook side of the Velcro to the door, right above the window...

I folded 2 lengths of ribbon in half and fused together about an inch at the fold...

...then I fused each of them to the back top of the shade...these would act as the ties for the shade...

Here is the finished shade lowered...it's pretty plain but very functional...

...and here's how the shade looks rolled up and tied...

This project was a lot of fun - I still have a ton of quilt left, so who knows what else I may try to fashion from it...?

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I hope you will stop back by tomorrow for a new installment of Way Back When-sday - I'll be heading all the way back to 1979 - the year I graduated from High School! You see, I have a 30 Year Reunion coming up this weekend so I thought it would be a good time to get nostalgic about my dear old school days... Feel free to play along and post your own Way Back When-sday feature from YOUR High School days, then leave a comment here and I will point to your article! We'd love to walk down memory lane with you..!!

See you tomorrow!!

HUGS!!