Close to Her Heart

I enjoyed one of my sister blogs so much today that I decided I would borrow her idea and put my spin on it.
My niece and her daughter (my great-niece) are leaving for a two week vacation to Germany soon. I see my great niece most everyday and while she is away...I will miss her very much. :(
I wanted to give her something to take with her... that would remind her of me...if she began to miss me.

So, when I saw the new post by maya*made and what she had put together for her daughter, I decided that it would be the perfect gift, so I borrowed the idea and made a heart necklace for my niece. I hand stitched it...as you can see the imperfections. I'm not to savvy with a needle. lol I have to say that maya*made's heart is so much nicer. Although, I don't think my niece will mind a bit. She will love her one of a kind gift. I let her pick out the cloth and felt (with sparkles of course). You know she wanted to know what I was making, but I told her it was a surprise! She is very excited and she guessed right away that it was for her. :)
I made each side different... just in case she needs to coordinate with an outfit. lol I even sprayed it with my perfume. I stuffed it with a peace of plastic grocery bag, so it makes a crinkle noise when you squeeze it. I call it a Snuggle heart...sounds silly...but as you know the smallest thing can bring joy to the heart of a child. When she wears it...I will be close to her heart.

I just want to say thank you to maya*made. Keep inspiring us. If you haven't been to her blog...go check it out she is on blogspot. I also have her listed as a blog that I follow. :)

Enjoy The Newness

I am so excited! The week after next...my daughter and I are going to repaint my living room and hall! I can't wait. I bought the paint to do this project...forever ago. You see...our house is under construction and has been for a long time now. We have so much work to do in the house and it has been a very slow moving project. I have a two week period coming up where I will be kid-free. So, the walls are getting a little tlc. A fresh coat of paint will not only do my walls some good...but, it will do me some good as well. :) Don't you just love it when you change the color of a room. It's like a refreshing breeze blowing through your house...makes you enjoy that space in your home again. Honestly, I'm not even dreading the prep work. I will just be glad to get it done! Yippee. Then...I'm going to sit back and enjoy the newness of it all. ;)


I know this does not look like a living room. Well, when I took this pic it was our dining room. We were getting ready for a Christmas dinner. This is one of the best pics I have of the color of the wall in the room without a mess. lol The next time you see it...the room will be spiced up a bit...and of course it will look more like a living room. ;) The mural is the one at the top of my blog...that my husband managed to get and bring to our house when the coffee shop closed. My hero. :) I plan on repainting it too. (At a later date.) I'm going to turn it into a wine vineyard. I will post pics when I touch it up.

Cheerful Purse Parade

Today I decided to upload a few of the purses that I have painted. I grabbed my camera and with my purses in hand, I ran outside while the sun was shining and wouldn't you know... the sun decided to hide behind a cloud. I did not let that deter me and I still managed to get some alright shots. So... here they are... this is a denim purse with country flair.

If you like chickens and roosters you will love the next country bag! I have to confess...I love those little farm critters...in fact I have a collection of roosters and chickens in my kitchen. I guess, a little bit of growing up in the country, has stuck with me after all. It's a good thing. :)



The next purse will put a smile on your face. These little frosty bites are perfect for the holidays!


It makes me think of Christmas and Valentines Day! Can you believe those cheerful holidays are just around the corner?


Well I hope you have enjoyed my purse parade! Let me know which one is your favorite.

Note: (These are not my complete original designs, but the original has been tweaked to fit my purpose and personality, with my own art work added.)

Oh' How Sweet It Is

My husband and I just celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary a month early. Why? You might ask...

Because our wonderful friends also share their anniversary close to ours...and we celebrate together. We went to a nice restaurant and enjoyed good food and great company. Life is so much sweeter with friends.


We started this anniversary tradition last year and I am sure that we will celebrate many more together. We are so blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives. The kind of friends that stick closer than a brother. If you have friends like that...then you are blessed too.

This is not the man I married...

This is my husband...but he is not the man I married. Next month we will be celebrating seven-teen years together. We have had our ups, downs, twist, turns and bumps in the road. lol Like most couples out there, but we have both changed so much since our walk down the isle.
We recently took a little vacay to Florida and these pics are from that trip. We had a great time, just the two of us. It was a much needed get-a-way. Things are about to change drastically for us and we do not know when we will be able take a little retreat again. I enjoyed the trip so much and I wasn't ready to come home. You know how it is...when your on vacation...if your enjoying yourself...you think you could just move there and be happy forever. :)
Today is my husbands birthday and I just wanted to let the world know that even though...this is not the man that I married...he has became so much more. A few things have changed since our wedding day. First of all, his hair was not this long... he was a military man back then... I wasn't sure it would last... and neither one of us knew the love of our Saviour.
Now, I can honestly say...he is the love of my life! Our marriage gets better every year. Jesus is the glue that binds us together. I look forward to many years with this man by my side. I am so proud of him and all that he is and all that he will become. One more thing...even though he is not the man that I married, he looks a little more like him with his new hair cut. ;)

Love What You Do

Today my niece came over and she discovered the art station that I had created for her. She was so excited...in fact...she is glued to the spot.

Having all the colorful shapes and glue (yes, I am monitoring her creativeness) at her fingertips is so exciting for her! She has not wanted to do anything else. Although, I did insist that she stop for lunch, but as you can see...she is back at the drawing board.

Letting her creative spirit soar. I'm not sure we will have any paper left when her imaginative energy runs out...but after a hard day in her creative zone...I'm sure she will take a good nap.
Then maybe I can get back to my easel and let my creativity take flight or as my niece would say, "I have to go and do my work". It's a good thing when you love what you do!

Getting Into The Creative Zone

This morning I have been having fun with my little niece. You may have a little one around just like her...a four year old bundle of energy...always asking what can we do next. Never a dull moment in our home. We have been sing-spelling her name today and she is catching on quick. She is such a creative soul, always wanting to paint, draw, color and write. Sometimes it's hard for me to put the brakes on long enough to get the paints out and let her imagination take flight. I have been thinking about turning my kitchen window desk into a creative station for her and today is the day! She has no idea what is about to unfold...a place just for her creative little hands. I can't wait to see the look of excitement when she realizes all the colorful pencils, crayons, markers, paper, scissors and glue are just for her to use whenever her heart desires! You did notice I didn't say... paint...I'm not crazy...a four year old with access to bottles of paint. I'm sure you get the picture. Maybe, I'll give her a tray of water colors. Oh' the works of art she will create. Well, I'm off to put together this "Imagination Station". I can't wait to see her get into her creative zone.

Seize The Day

Well, the sun is shining and it is going to be a beautiful day! I started my painting yesterday and I hope to get in the flow again today.
This morning my heart is toward my Lord and this fleeting life that we have all been given a chance to experience. I found out last night that a dear friend of ours passed away yesterday. He spent the last months of his life in a nursing home and we and some friends, just last week, talked about setting up a time to go see him and pray for him. Now that moment has passed. Hearing of his untimely death, has just enforced in me, that I should not put things off until another day. Which I have had a habit of doing. This life has been given to live second by second, moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day. This life is a precious gift of God. As I walk through the journey of my life I hope my ear will be tuned to the small tuggings, whisperings and urgings speaking to my heart. I will listen closely for the gentle voice of my Lord encouraging me...to seize the day.

The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow

I have a some free time today...my little niece is gone to see her grandparents. It is another dreary day here and as I mentioned before...I really like to paint on sunny days. But I am not going to let the gloom in the sky hold me back. I figure if God can paint a rainbow in gloomy weather then I should be able to paint anytime too. I have a hundred things calling me that have nothing to do with painting. I'm sure you know what I mean. That never ending cycle of laundry, the little dust bunnies hiding every where, even my dog and cat wanting their share of my attention. This is one of those times I have to catch the moment. Well, I'm off to the canvas that is calling my name, (which is a good thing) with visions of art stirring in my heart. I'm pushing aside the gloom...with very bright lights and hoping the sun will come out tomorrow. :)

Letting the Son Shine

I have just finished a painting that was stirring in my heart. This is the painting I was talking about in the last post. It's titled "Heart Dreams." I have been holding things in my heart and wanting so desperately to let them out...but couldn't find the time to free my self enough to let my dreams pour through me and let what may come...come. I guess the painting is an expression of letting your heart dreams out. You know what I mean...anything you think on, dream about, imagine your self doing. We all have them. Collecting dust on the shelf's of our heart. Well, one of the reasons I started this blog is to give myself permission to do the things that God has placed within my heart to do and to share them with wonderful people like you.
It has been raining for a few days here where I live and I have enjoyed the solitude. I was thankful to get little glimpses of sunshine encouraging me to go on and finish my painting. Once I got started it was hard to stop...I feel so much peace when I'm painting or creating something. You may know just what I mean. If there is something stored up in your heart to do...take it off your heart shelf...dust it off... and give your self permission...go and do it! Even though I prefer to paint on sunny days, I'm not going to be deterred. No matter what the weather is where I live...I'm going to give honor to my creator and I'm going to do the things that are in my heart and let the Son shine.

Figuring things out.

I am very excited about having this blog and I can' t wait to get better acquainted with how it all works. I'm a little clueless right now and am diffidently open to any suggestions from seasoned blog enthusiasts. I'm still muddling through all the functions. Luckily, I do have a friend who lives down the street, who has offered to help me out. I'm looking forward to learning more about the world of blogging. Soon, I will have this sight filled with my passions. So, since I am not taking care of my great niece today. Whom I missing right now. (Which is a little strange because I see her all the time.) I am off to paint something creative. Come back and visit and I will try to have my new work of art posted. I'm not going to get discouraged about the technical side of blogging, I'm determined to figure out! :)

Taking A Swim

I have been thinking about blogging for some time now and I finally decided to take the next step and set up this blog account. I hope to get in touch with my creative side and share my endeavors with like minded people. I have so many ideas rolling around in my mind that I have not been sure where to start. I'm hoping this blog will give me the platform I need to just dive in, take the plunge, get my feet wet, etc... I guess you get the picture. I dabble with my art a little, but I am really hoping to take it to a more serious level. I hope you will come along for the ride as I let my heart dream and express this stream of creativity that is flowing through me. Honestly, I have no idea where this swim will take me, but I plan on enjoying every minute of it.