I've always wanted to take painting lessons.  Now that I'm retired, I can!  A friend has been taking lessons, and after checking with her, I've now gone twice.  Enjoying it, and hopefully I'm not a hopeless case!    Our class is once a month, from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm and just a couple of us there, so we get a lot of help.  The first picture I didn't get done in that time frame, so finished it at home; but the class yesterday, I finished the picture.    I put the first one on as my header picture now for a few days, and here is the second one.  Our next picture will be a winter scene.  I'm learning the mixing of the oil colors and which brushes to use to get a desired effect.  Will have to try my hand here alone now as I get more comfortable. 

Do you have something that you've always wanted to try doing, and haven't been able too?  Our middle daughter is so talented artistically.  Wish she could do this with me.  She painted beautiful pictures in art in high school and won some contests then.  I think she'd really enjoy this if she had the time. 

Each one of us have hidden talents within - waiting to come out.  Take a risk and try new things.  It's great.

Have a great day! 

Fat Tuesday!

Wishing I was in Louisiana with daughter Jessica and Renee and Floyd to partake in the Mardi Gras parades!  Have had such good family time attending the small town celebrations in past years.  So missing them today and thinking of them going to their last parade today Fat Tuesday. 

Floyd is on his working shift this year, missing the parades, but Jessica and Renee attended one last week in New Iberia and in Lafayette.  They haven't had good weather this year, so some parades have been postponed.    Here is Renee's picture with feathers!  They call it her Mardi Gras picture!

 

Happy Birthday to my oldest Baby!  Leah I hope you have a wonderful day!  Dad and I are so proud of you!  Love you much!

Here she is about two years old.  Always have loved this series of pictures that I have.

The years sure do fly by, the girls, all three grown up, and now dad and I are the older generation.  Years ago, as young parents, we just didn't think much of being in our sixties, and now soon to be seventies!!!!!   

The three girls, Leah 12, Steph 8 and Jessica about 1 year.

Leah this Christmas with her "Princess" glasses on!

Happy Birthday Leah!

We got a few inches of snow - started Monday afternoon and throughout the night.  Still coming down really fine.  Now the ground is white again, but probably not for long.  A weird winter this year.  Not enough snow for good snowmobilers.  Daughter Leah got a different sled this year and hasn't been able to put a lot of hours on it.  As for me and winter - - I've enjoyed this very mild winter.  Easy getting around all winter on the roads, lower heating bills, not many days of slippery sidewalks so didn't have to worry about falling!  I could take lots of winters like this - but around here that isn't a very popular way of thinking, when "winter playing" is big business in this area with snowmobiling, etc. 

Hope you all have a great Tuesday! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hope you all have a great Valentine's Day! 

I was a winner of Poppyprint Creates giveaway and Saturday received my winning "Stitch" magazine from Krista Hennebury.  She was fortunate and has her appliqued Orchard Pillow featured in this magazine.  There are 36 projects in this issue, with directions on making them all!  I'm so excited to get started on the pillow project and several others.  Thank you Krista for drawing my name!

Also have been busy with other projects, just finishing a small table runner and a couple of hot pads made out of the scraps.  They will be given to a nephew and his finance for a wedding shower present. 

I like how it fits our table, so might have to make another one.  It was very simple to do and I did the meandering on my own.   Now to roll it up and get it ready for Brad and Jamie.

Also delivered a few hats that I got done.  Now have put the yarn away for awhile.  But I do enjoy crocheting while I'm sitting watching tv.  Hubby gets irritated with me, because I don't always have my eyes on the tv and miss some important parts, then asking "what's happened"!  Do you do that?  He sure gets irritated when I do!!!!

  I love these little hats!  So fun to do. 

Now on to a reupholstry project for a nephew.  He has 4 cushions that need to be redone.  They must have come out of a travel trailer, and he uses them now in his fish house.  I'll have to take pictures or this project.  Want to get that done, as it isn't something I want to keep thinking about.  He is overseas in Kwiat now until summer.  Want to get them done, so I can deliver to his wife when I drive to Minneapolis for this wedding shower in March.

Hope you're all keeping busy and have a wonderful day with your loved ones today. 
Happy Valentine's Day!!!!    love ya all,

Morning walk

 Took a morning walk and took a few pictures.  We've had frosty mornings and mild days here this past week.  So far a wonderful winter.  Not much snow, or cold.  I'm rather liking it.  Love that the heating bills are low. 

 

What we see out our kitchen window.  The dark clouds in the far background look like mountains! A couple of the cows are pictured.  The others must be off to the side.  Our youngest calf has been feeling frisky and getting out - exploring - daily.  Then when we go out, she runs back to the pen!  The little stinker!

This is snow and ice frozen in place having started to slide off one of the barn roofs. The corrigated ripples of the steel roof makes quite the pattern!

The frosty tree against such a blue sky is beautiful!  The snow and ice crystals just sparkled - too bad pictures don't show that.

Too soon warmer weather will come and we won't have any more frosty mornings! 

Here's Jessica's t-shirt quilt I started at Christmas time.   Just finished sewing on the outside border, and it's now ready to take to the quilter to get finished.  It will have red polka dot backing and binding.  Will show you the completed project when it's done.  Also have still been busy crocheting.  That's almost every evening when I sit down.  Have to keep busy doing something!

Have a great weekend!

Check list~

 Another project done and marked off my list!  Made Amanda some curtains for her bedroom and a bigger curtain out of a single sheet, and trimmed with the extra material from the curtains made for the windows.  They will look cute.  The material she bought was really nice to work with.  I'd given her coupons for Mill End Textiles (one of my favorite stores), and it was for 60% off.  So she really got a good deal.  She was so excited.

 Here are 4 panels for 2 windows.  All ironed and ready to go.

I took the sheet and used the top of the sheet for the header of the curtain, sewing a 2 inch wide piece of material on top, and the rod will go through that.  Then I had to cut off some material from the bottom of the sheet, and hemmed it up; then sewed the bigger 11inch  piece of material even with the bottom.  It's funny how the sheet itself wasn't squared up!  Fixed that, and then left 5 inches between the bottom trim and added the last 5 inch material piece.  The dark brown and white material really goes nice with the tan or ecru sheet.  

Some pictures from Jessica with Renee and her tutu's!!!!!

Now to get busy with the next thing on my list.  I have 6 hats to crochet for an order, two crocheted scarves to do and then need  to sew some infinity scarves.  Think I also need to get a another purple tutu done.  

Here's Renee late in the day when she got her tutu's in the mail.  Nothing like jumping on the trampoline wearing a tutu!!!   She then mowed the yard with her toy lawn mower in her pink tutu, and later fell asleep on the floor in her green tutu!!!!   So fun for little ones.

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Here she is dancing with one of her daddy's cousins this past weekend.  It was their New Year celebration!

I was there a couple of years ago, and the food was out of this world - so good.  Great to be part of another culture.  Sandra and Ho put on a great feed.

Now off to the next project - more later.  Have a great week everyone.

Meet my new model!

Odda wearing Renee's tutu!!!!

The last couple of days, I've been busy making Renee some tutu's!  Once I started I couldn't stop, and I'm now sending 4 of them to her.   They all have rhinestones on them and a couple also have ribbons tied on too.  She can have all her little friends wearing them and dancing like little fairies!  Also made some cute barrets and fluffy hair bands to wear with.  Of course Odda wasn't so sure she wanted to wear one, but she doesn't like to be hollered at, so she finally layed down and was perfect! 
There is a pink one, purple, green and this blue one!  Now to pack them and get them in the mail.  I'm sure they'll get a little wrinkled, but will shake out just fine!  Renee had so much fun dancing in her princess dresses, that I'm sure she'll like these!
Now to get back to finishing Jessica's Tshirt quilt.  Also I'm sewing some scarves.  My next project to show pictures - another day.  Just have to keep busy doing something.  The most negative part of that keeping busy, is that my kitchen stays a mess.  Have to use the kitchen table to cut.  Steve does rather well at eating around my cutting board, the mess on the table and the ironing board when that's also up! 
Have a great evening everyone.

SNOW ANGELS!

Snow Angel made by Jessica

Renee making  her snow angel

She did it!  It is next to Mommy's angel!

As kids when we got our first snow, that was the first thing we did, was make snow angels!

So much fun.  It is hard to realize that many of my blogging friends that don't live in snow climate have never been able to make a snow angel.   

It gets to be a learned art to be able to get up to a standing position after you've made your wings and legs or skirt of the angel without ruining the look.  We got pretty good at it, and then would finish by making a foot mark and a head and halo. (which we didn't do here).

Some day if you're in snow country, you've got to try this.

Today we had 53 degrees here - so back to brown grass again.  Only a few small snow piles!  Can you believe this winter!!!!!!!!!    Sure is helping us out with heat bills ~ but I hope we do get some good permanent winter snow cover.  We need it.

Talked to Leah, and she and Amanda got sick and Jessica called yesterday, and she was sick.  So we sure had / have the bug!  I'm feeling better, but coughing and sinuses have plugged me up and my ear!

I've been looking at Pinterest and pinning a little.  Have you?  Just something else to keep up with, right?  Rather interesting looking at all the things people are doing, and giving me ideas of things I want to do.

Going to get a cup of Chai Tea and sit in the living room - relax a little.  Have a great evening.