Happy New Year!

To all of you, I wish the happiest New Year! I pray all of you have a very prosperious, joyous 2009, and look forward to the next 365 days to spend with all my blog friends, a chance to share in your adventures, and the opportunity to learn something from you I didn't know before! God Bless All Of You! Gratefully, Laurie

When I Grow Up!

This mother works at Home Depot...she is selling a shovel! The teacher thought she was a pole dancer! What did YOU think!?

I'm Goin' In!!

O.K., I'm not afraid to admit it. There is a dark side to my house. It's called, "The Junk Room". Originally, this was to be my craft room, but it ended up being the "Land of No Return." Please tell me you have one of these. A place that anything and everything that doesn't have a permanent home, or anything that needs a temporarily permanent place to rest, ends up residing. Eventually, opening the door is like going into another dimension!

Well, I am officially declaring war! Pray for me, I'm goin' in! Junk, beware! Long lost items I don't have use for, out! Poor pathetic items that have been crying out "Help Me", I'm on the way! Bins and garbage bags in hand, I will purge all of you! Gone are the days of lining my bedroom with craft supplies while junk has a place of comfort and royalty! Soon my beloved necessities of the trade will reign supreme, and I will dwell in order and sanity! And yes, you, my dear blog friends, will be the first to see the results, and will be able to rejoice with me and my things, neat, tidy, organized, and ready for the new year! Yes, I'm goin' in. Let's pray I make it out!

Gift Certificate Heaven!

To my delight, Hobby Lobby gift cards were the #1 gift this year to which I took advantage! And with the sales I found some great bargains. These are a few. This chicken caught my eye some time ago and was so pleased to see it still there, at half off!
I couldn't resist the seasonal, and found this snowman with a gift card from my friend Nancy to Mary Maxim's,
and this adorable candle holder at Hobby Lobby.
This pink blown glass bird clip was perfect for my pink tree. Mom always said a tree had to have a bird on it for luck. She held to that , and it's now a tradition I keep. Even the stick tree has a bird! I have balances on my cards and will use them for projects that come up. It was hard not to spend all of them, but I know when I need them if I don't, I'll be kicking myself!

Christmas Craziness!

Kiley and my nephew Jacob enjoyed having cans stacked on their heads.

Ever the hams, but such beautiful ones!

Kiley's self portrait in front of the kitchen wreath. How sweet!

A Wonderful Christmas

Going in to this Christmas, I wasn't looking forward to it. My son is moving to Iowa on Monday, and with hindsight and regrets, it was just one huge depressing season. What happened, it turned out to be the most beautiful one I will ever remember. Have you ever felt you could have done things differently, wondered if you did things right? I have felt this way for some time, but found out Christmas day I did . My son Chad presented me with the most beautiful ring, two hearts intertwined in rubies, his birthstone. Through my tears he whispered to me that the hearts were him and I to symbolize that we would never be apart. My grand-daughters spent the night with me, and when we got back to the house they handed me a poem from my son, speaking of our relationship and our life as mother and son. These two things I will cherish for the rest of my life. The ring will never leave my finger, the poem will be read 1000 times.

http://www.youtube.com/v/Z_ypUnnqr8Y&autoplay=0
Beautiful. Peace to all of you.
Laurie