I love snowmen!

I've been squeezing in some crafting despite the craziness around here.  It really is so therapeutic and puts my mind in such a better place.

In a conversation one day last week,  my sister January happened to mention that Karen, her baby's grandmother, loves snowmen. Karen is one of those ladies that always does so much for others all the time.  She takes such wonderful care of my nephew Garrett,  and always includes my other nephew Joao as if he was her grandson too.  She is just very thoughtful and very generous and I can't begin to express my appreciation at all that she does for my sweet little nephews.

I wanted to send her a little something to say "Thank you" and maybe put a little smile on her face.  It's nice to receive unexpected happy mail, isn't it?  

I hope she likes him - he was hard to part with!  ;)

One of my "friends" on Facebook put out a message that one of her friends is sick with cancer.  She too loves snowmen and has a snowman tree.  I made this sweet little snowman ornament for her to place on her tree and a little card with a message of hope. 

Speaking of hope, I *hope* to finish my Christmas decorating this weekend!  I pulled out all of my decorations last week and I have unorganized stuff everywhere. I took a break from cleaning and decorating to get my snowmen finished... It looks like a Christmas tornado around here at the moment.  Wish me luck!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with so much to be thankful for. We started our day with "Christmas Vacation" as we were straightening up around the house and preparing our meal. Then we played "Planes, Trains, & Automobiles". Our meal was delicious and we ate so much we almost couldn't move! After dinner, Doug watched some football with his friend Pat who joined us for dinner. While they watched football, I made a quick run to Michaels. Yes, I couldn't help myself! Tonight we watched "The Bucket List" and just reminded ourselves to live this life while we are here and to enjoy it. :)
I *may* run out to do some shopping in the morning - we'll see... I'll probably put out some Christmas decorations this weekend too.

Sweet Christmas Banner & Weekend Happenings

Remember when I said I won the cutest banner from Elizabeth over at Bluebird Papercrafts! This picture doesn't even do it justice as to how cute it is in real life! Click on the picture if you want to make it larger and get a closer look.



If you haven't seen her blog, you really MUST check it out.


I didn't take a picture of the backs of the panels but trust me, they are equally as cute! I have the banner hanging in my office right now so I can look up at my bulletin board and enjoy it. Once Christmas is over, it is going up to my craft room where it will be proudly displayed all year long!


It was a busy weekend ~ Thursday night I met Kathy and her Mom Wanda at South Tulsa Baptist Church for their Christmas Dinner Theater.

The church members served us a delicious meal and then we watched the program. Although Tulsa is a city with around 850,000 people in the metro and surrounding areas, it really is a small town.
We sat at a table with some of Kathy's other friends and who should join us for dinner was the Emergency Room Vet that took care of Niles! Turns out she is good friends with Kathy's friend Linda. I thanked her over and over for the wonderful care she took of him while we were out of town. I guess you just never know where you will meet people again!
Speaking of Niles - he is doing much better. We took down the "critical care unit" - the special playpen where we were keeping him separated from the rest of the dogs and he has been released back into the "general population" ;) Doug has successfully managed to get not only Niles but Nestle, Phoebe and Teddy hooked on "Chicken Dinner". When Niles first came home he wouldn't eat or drink anything so to entice him we mixed canned chicken with rice and heated it in the microwave. We gradually moved him to dog food with chicken. Well, now *everybody* is getting "Chicken Dinner" - and expecting it too! So, twice a day now the assembly line is set up to mix up "Chicken Dinner". We'd better wean them off that pretty quick because at $2.00 a can, that little meal is going to cost us a fortune!
Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers for Niles. Looks like our little patient is going to make a full recovery.
Friday I got a much needed haircut and Doug and I went to Los Cabos for dinner. I wish someone would tell them to stop putting so much garlic in their salsa. It was almost inedible! I ordered the ribs which were pretty good.
Saturday was a day of craft fairs! The Tulsa Herb Society works all year crafting for this big event called Carols & Crumpets held at the beautiful Tulsa Garden Center. Not the biggest of shows but what wonderful crafts! A few vendors had herbal soaps, lotions and other natural products that are always nice to be able to sample.
From there I headed south to the Darnaby craft fair at Union School. This show was huge! It was bigger and actually better than I thought it would be. There was a mix of handmade crafts and vendors with "retail" product which made for a good mix.
Earlier in the week I saw a promotion on TV about an Antique Toy and Craft show being held in Claremore. I was so excited and Doug offered to drive me and attend that event with me. What a disappointment it turned out to be. There were probably a total of 7 tables there - two were jewelry vendors (and not handmade jewelry) and the only "Antique" Toys were a bunch of junk that it looked like the lady had dug out of her garage and thrown on a table. We laughed about it and walked around the gun museum (the venue probably should have given me a clue as to the show!) The museum itself was actually neat, the show was the disappointment.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have so much to be thankful for this year and believe me, I am counting my blessings.
Doug and I are going to have a quiet Thanksgiving at home ~ the turkey is in the oven and I'm thinking about starting my decorating for Christmas.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

In Remembrance and Celebration

Today we said our final goodbye's to Doug's mom Carol. The service was beautiful and she was laid to rest next Kenneth Arms - her husband of 37 years. I can't help but think of the both of them smiling and watching the OU game from above. Go Sooners!
During the service the pastor reflected on some of the stories that we will always remember about her and we laughed and we cried. Though our hearts are heavy right now, we will look back on those memories and smile.


Also on our hearts and in our minds today are the memories of 2001 on that fateful day that changed our nation forever. It was a scary and confusing time and we all remember where we were and what we were doing when those planes hit the towers. My family was in Connecticut and I had just moved to Oklahoma a few months prior. I had an overwhelming sense of needing to be with my family - especially my Mom. Those were difficult days and I pray that the families who suffered tragedies have found some sense of peace in their lives and I have such gratitude for the people who work so hard every day to keep us safe.

In a much lighter note, today is my sister's birthday! Happy Birthday Amanda!!!
I hope you had a wonderful birthday today. :)

Amanda and Lier are expecting a baby boy next month and I can hardly wait to be an auntie to my little nephew!

Trying to get my mojo...

I mentioned back a few posts that I need an attitude adjustment. I'm working on it, I promise. I think this rainy, cold weather is just really getting to me. I love sun and I NEED sun! And warmth...I'm tired of being cold all of the time.

So, when I'm feeling crabby to begin with, people just aggravate me. The smallest little things bug me. I can think of a million things to complain about. But really, I shouldn't complain because when I step out of my crabby mood and look at my life, it's a pretty nice life. Here are some of the things I'm thankful for at this moment:
I've got a man who loves me and who just put a beautiful ring on my finger to prove it...Not that I needed the ring to prove it, I already knew it in my heart :) But the ring is beautiful and I appreciate it. (I haven't been able to get a picture that does it justice, so you guys will have to wait a little longer to see it!)
We have four furry little dogs that we are crazy about. And yes, they are crazy about us too.
I've got a job and most days I really like my job.
I'm healthy.
I'm smart. Is it conceited to say that?
Anyway...The sun is supposed to come out in the next couple of days and Doug will be home tomorrow. The nicer weather is just around the corner I just need to be patient.