I Promised

I think I promised a few posts back that I would photograph my collection of Easter eggs "up close".

These eggs are very special to me because they were painted by a dear, dear 80-something year old lady at our church and given to me as gifts for the past six years.

I didn't get one this year. She broke her ankle, had surgery on the ankle, and didn't paint as many eggs as she usually does every year. She said she starts painting Easter eggs right after Christmas and starts painting Christmas ornaments right after Easter so I guess she paints all year!

She did paint one for Paige this year and has every year since she's been born. I was very happy about that. I didn't photograph it before I gave it to her but maybe I can "borrow" it one day and photograph it. It had a bluebird on it and was very sweet.

This tradition goes way back when my girls, nieces and nephews were small children. I ordered eggs from her every year for my two girls, two nieces, and a nephew until they were twenty-one. Then I started ordering them for Paige and she just started painting one for me every year about 7 years ago. Plus I've been receiving Christmas ornaments for a few years from her, too. I will post pics of them when it's closer to Christmas. They are gorgeous, too.

She is married to her second husband but a little while after her first husband died, I asked her if I could come watch her paint. She told me that she painted every Wednesday. She said she would love for me to come visit. It was a very interesting visit to watch how she does it and she has two kilns (one as a backup). I had never seen a kiln until then. She used to enter her work in the fair and always won blue ribbons but doesn't do that anymore. She does beautiful work and I wanted to share it with you. Hope you enjoyed the close examination of each egg. The photos do not show it but my name and the year with the word Easter is on each egg, either at the top, bottom, or side. I treasure these beautiful eggs.

Coincidental Day

I've been searching my mind for something to post today. I felt as if I had nothing interesting to post because I just felt like I did nothing productive (or interesting) today. I had low energy. I kept telling myself, I'll eat, do my laundry and then go upstairs and sew. I made all my phone calls I needed to make, checked my email, checked my blogs, checked FB, more laundry, eat again, still no sewing.

Then I decided I would just not beat myself up for not doing any sewing, that I was just not in the mood for it today for some reason and I just wanted to lie down and read. I picked up this book (pictured above) that I've been reading a little now and then for a couple of weeks. This is a book about the shootings at Columbine. When I read today, I finally reached the section in the book when the shootings took place and realized that on the 20th of this month, in three days, it will be 10 years since this event happened! My goodness, where does the time go? It really does not seem like it's been 10 years since this happened.

The dictionary defines coincidental as happening by chance without being planned. Taking time today to go back to this book and reading about the date all this horror happened at about the same time 10 years ago IS completely coincidental. I don't know why but things like this just amaze me and confirm my belief in a higher power in this world. Maybe I was not meant to sew today. Maybe I needed to read about this incident that really happened in our world 10 years ago and reflect on it.

I've made my post for the day so back to my book!

NOTE: Last night while taking pics at Disney on Ice, my youngest daughter and I "shared" shooting photos with my camera because Paige would sit in my lap part of the time and in her lap part of the time. To me, photography is the most challenging under the conditions we were in last night. Emily got the best photos and she told me she was shooting in a flash off mode. It was so dark in there that I could not see very well to turn my dial on the top to the different modes. I thought I had it on just auto pics and I had accidentally put it on flash off mode. Those were the best pics in the group. So I learned something about my camera operation and I will investigate it further in my operation manual.

Disney On Ice

I was invited to go to Disney on Ice tonight with "you know who"! Paige-ee-poo and her mommy and I had a grand girls' night out.

First came Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, etc. in a cute little red car that was broken and then the Cars came out and fixed it. Very cute.

The Little Mermaid was next and we had colored bubbles and Sebastian and Flounder and all the cute little sea creatures. I love the Under the Sea music.

Then The Lion King was next with the African drum beat. It was the loudest of all.

They gave us a little break and last was Tinkerbell, which was Paige's favorite, she said. All the costumes and sets and lights, etc. were very magical and I imagine even more magical to a child.

We bought a Cinderella princess-type flashing light toy, snow cone, popcorn and had a great time. I think Paige is old enough that she will remember this as a magical night. I know I did when I was a child and saw it. I still remember how much I loved the costumes and lights and all the colors. Good night, sweet girl. Sleep tight. Sweet dreams.

My 100th Post on Tax Day!

I have missed a couple of days and posted activities of vacation days in one post but today is my 100th post and it just happens to fall on tax day.

I posted this photo because today I was just thinking that life sometimes resembles a maze. The dictionary defines a maze as 1. a complicated and confusing arrangement of streets, roads, etc. 2. a large number of rules, instructions, etc. which are complicated and difficult to understand and 3. a specially designed system of paths which are difficult to find your way through.

Life does have it twists and turns. Some days seem to be just horrible and some delightful and everything in-between. But most of us just keep on trying to find our way through this maze of life.

The above photo is not mine but I liked it. It's a stock photo.

Special Little Moments

Today I took my mother to the doctor for a check-up, lunch and visit with her. I decided to take Paige along for the trip and let Paw Paw just have the day to do what he wanted. Basically, everything went pretty smoothly. We just had one period of time in K Mart when Paige was very fussy and whiny but she was just tired and needed a nap. We were in there to pick up a prescription for my mother. Paige kept asking for popcorn or cheese curls, just this and that, and she had just eaten a pretty big meal and I kept telling her no, etc. Probably everyone in the store could hear us.

Finally, after we had looked around some and gotten one thing that I needed (security envelopes to mail bills), we went over to pick up the prescription and as soon as we walked up, the saleslady that worked there leaned over and handed Paige the origami bird pictured above.

This is the second time this has happened so I knew the story behind the bird. She told me that a man makes these and brings them in from time to time just for them to hand out to customers, especially children. He just loves to make origami art and give them to the pharmacy in K Mart.

As soon as the lady handed Paige the bird, she hushed. Then she started smiling while examining this little paper creature and I could see the wonderment in her eyes. Then the saleslady handed her a sucker and she was really smiling at the kindness this lady was showing her. We both thanked her and both of our moods changed with this one act of kindness, silently given:)

We left the store happily and went to the car, got all buckled in and Paige was still looking at this creation and asked me what it was. I told her it was a bird and a man made it and it was called origami which was art made from paper. I asked her if she wanted to name the bird. She said yes. Then I asked her what she wanted to name the bird. She said Bird of God:) What a special moment. Calm, serene, thankful, peaceful, joyful and silent. You see, right before all the crying and whining and begging from being just tired and needing a nap started, she was singing:

Oh, the B I B L E. Yes, that's the book for me. I stand alone on the Word of God. The B I B L E. And everyone in the store(s), including me, was listening.

A Trip to the Lake

Took a little early trip to the lake today to check on hail damage. Here's a little expanse of water. . .

A little trip down the slide. . .

A . . .

little . . .

swinging . . .


A little driving. . .

and. . . a little ART!! Fun Day!

Easter Day

Here are our two little egg hunters taking a break to sit in the swing. They really play well together and had such a good time together. They are 3rd cousins. And Easter Bunny came to see both of them!

The Easter Bunny cake made by my youngest daughter. It was very good - coconut!

A thank you gift for my youngest daughter for caring for our pets and keeping a watch on everything at our house while we were at the beach. I bought the pot at the beach, was given the fern by my friend at the beach and bought the daisy and planted it. It turned out cute. She's going to put it in her sun room. It will look gorgeous there!

Just a cute little bunny kitchen towel I found. No, I did not make it but I liked it enough to buy it because it looked handmade.

This little Easter tree is one I've had many years and the ornaments have been collected over the years. Paige decorated it. Some of the ornaments her mommy painted when she was a little girl.

Had to include a photo of these jelly bellies because I asked my husband to get some jelly beans. He went into the grocery store and got some at one of those machines and couldn't stop the flow of jelly beans! He ended up with way too many but couldn't put them back! Guess we'll have jelly beans for a while.

And our table. Paige helped me do this, too. I think it looks pretty and just very simple.

We had a wonderful Easter with about twenty people here. Hope you enjoyed my Easter "tour". I really do enjoy holidays. I just wish my oldest daughter and her husband could have been here:( We missed you.