61 Random Things I Love at 61

As part of my Birthday Week Celebration, I’d like to share with you my list of “61 Random Things I Love At 61.”

I try to do this every year as an update of my current loves, in random order…enjoy! It’s fun to look back on over the years, just to see how much my world changes from year to year.

1. Red shoes

2. Maui Sunsets

3. Gardening, flowers, bushes, moss (one of my stranger loves…)

4. My Faith

5. Gypsy jewelry

6. Country Music (red, red, red, red, red, red ,red, red, redneck…)

7. Cowgirl boots

8. Line dancing (sensing a country theme here, huh?)

9. Flouncy skirts

10. Kale chips

11. Hearts – man made and found in nature!

12. Chickens/roosters

13. Country Christmas ornaments

14. Grandchildren

15. Skinny jeans

16. Desserts – Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake, Jamoca Almond Fudge Ice Cream,

17. Bobby’s margaritas, coffee

18. Ernesto’s enchilada suissas

19. the UK, especially Scotland

20. Facebook

21. My fly tribe

22. Making jewelry

23. Photography

24. My authors – Robert K. Tannenbaum, John Sanford, Greg Isles, Ridley Pearson, Patricia Cromwell, Nora Roberts, Sidney Sheldon

25.  Traveling

26. Rusty stuff (almost anything!)

27. Picture frames

28. All things Apple – McIntosh Air lap top, iphone

29. Scrapbooking/scrapbooking supplies, tools, embellishments

30. Millenium Restaurant in San Francisco

31. Humpback whales

32. If I HAVE to exercise, a versa climber

33. Table place settings – dishes, flatware, placemats, napkins, napkin rings

34. Living in Folsom

35. Mani/pedis w/ parafin dipped feet

36. Stampington Magazines

37. My shows – Downton Abbey, Law and Order, Nashville, The Good Wife, White Collar, Suits, Castle, Smash, Days, General Hospital, Major Crimes, Criminal Minds, Mr. Selfridge

38. Memories of My Favorite Things

39. My blog/blog books

40. Cheesecake Factory Avocado egg rolls

41. Toe rings

42. Vanilla Chai Tea Lotion

43. Anthropology

44. Betsey Johnson clothes/jewelry

45. “F” monograms

46. Kitchen serving pieces

47. iphoto

48. garden decorations

49. Plantation shutters

50. Talking Points Memo

51. Rubber stamps

52. Antique bottles

53. Angels

54. Yellowstone

55. Animals (all!)

56. Shabby country decorating

57. My “pillow!”

58. President Obama

59. My kitchen aid mixer

60. Being a “kept” woman

61. Mixed Media Art

Paper Challenge Day #18 – Birthday Week/Gaga’s Art Classes!

Well, in just a few days, I will be turning 61 (you don’t know how bad I wanted to be typing 31!) I don’t know why I’m still counting, because there is a total disconnect going on in my brain. Intellectually I KNOW I really am that old, but if I ignore the various aches and pains, and avoid mirrors, (oh, and forget I have grandchildren!)  it just doesn’t seem real.

I still have the same zest for living I had many, many years ago. I am not so stuck in my ways I can’t appreciate new ideas. I love having new experiences and seeing new places, and still enjoy learning new things, mastering new technology.

BUT, reality is reality, so aging will be on my mind this week. I’m sure I’ll be writing more about it. There is still much I don’t know, but one thing I know for sure, “Old age is not for sissies!”

Moving right along, today was art camp at Gaga’s day care! The girls were working on their ATCs and Josh wanted to do some, too!

Bea’s is the big watermelon, Hannah’s the one on the table, and Josh’s the small one.

Next up were their Flat Fannies and Flat Felix! All 3 did great jobs, and their pals are ready to go on summer adventures, where they’ll be photographed having fun, and posted on the Flat Fanny Facebook page. This is for kids and grown-ups alike…ANYONE can participate, so if it looks like fun to you, check it out!

Okay, so I wasn’t the one doing the art today. But I was facilitating it, and that’s almost as good. Ha! Who am I kidding? It’s way better!

Paper Challenge Day #17 – Father’s Day

Hope y’all had a fantastic Father’s Day!

We did ours in 2 pieces this year – we just couldn’t make the schedules work so we could all be together on the same day without putting it off for weeks!

On Saturday we went to brunch with our son and his family. I got a picture of Mr. Tattered and his boy (well, man!)

But I didn’t get a shot of my son with his little man! Grrrrrrrr I did get one of the worm by himself! He has an AMAZING smile!

Then on Sunday we went to lunch with our daughter and her family. Cute daddy/daughter picture!

And realizing my mistake from the day before, got a picture of the the girls with their daddy!

We had a wonderful time both days, but we’re still looking forward to the next day we can get together all at the same time. Remind me again why people have to work for a living! Heeheehee!

This year I figured since I’ve been making cards for perfect strangers, it would probably be a good idea to make one for my man.

The outside was pretty simple so I made the the inside the centerpiece, showing a then and now photo…

Mr. Tattered was so happy with it, and that made my heart swell. Time VERY well spent!

This is my first Father’s Day since my dad died, and I was slightly concerned I would be overwhelmed with sadness for what would never be, but I was fine. I got a little sad with so many people paying tribute to their wonderful fathers on Facebook, but you know, some of us get amazing dads, and some don’t. I didn’t. He did the best he could with what he knew how to do, and for the most part I’ve learned to be satisfied with that.

It makes me even more grateful and appreciative that I have the family I have.

Paper Challenge Day#16 – Mr. Tattered’s Garden

In honor of Father’s Day, I thought I’d show you around Mr. Tattered’s portion of the garden (small as it is, to hear him talk!)

And yeah, really, I do have the lion’s share. But he determined the amount of space he thought he’d need, and I got the rest. I can’t help it if he underestimated! (At least that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it!)

And I DID offer him a space in my section for his plum tree (more on that here!)

Well, the plum tree has a GREAT crop this year, and although we are fighting the birds for the crop, we’ve still got tons! And these are not you run of mill, available anywhere plums. They are Santa Rosas. When ripe, the insides are are nice and red and juicy – just the way we like them. But, even when they are not quite ripe and a little tart, they are still delish…

This is this morning’s harvest. It’s a little hard to see the scale, but this is a 5 gallon plant container. Enough to share with both the kid’s families, and still have more than enough! And these are just the ones that the birds (or ants) didn’t get to! Best yet, there are still a bunch left!

I don’t know why, but I love photographing the tree – maybe it’s the contrast in colors?

You can see the netting we tried to put over the tree to keep the birds out, but they pretty much just laughed at our efforts!

But plums are not the extent of the garden goodness.

We’re harvesting cherry tomatoes like crazy. Both bushes are very prolific, and these golden gems are almost like picking candy off a bush they are so sweet. Although they are perfect in a salad, they are just as good right off the vine!

The grapes are just beginning to ripen, so it will be awhile before they are ready. Last year we lost a lot of the crop to big ol’ honkin’ rats, but this year there is no sign of them – not yet, at least. We’re keeping an eye out.

New this year are chile peppers. The man has visions of homemade fresh chile rellenos – we’ll see how that goes!

*************

On the paper challenge front, I worked a little in the art journal, but the big project of the day was getting my June ATCs done for my monthly Fly Tribe ATC Swap. This month’s theme is Summer Lovin’ and I have to confess, Hannah gave me the idea to put a heart in the middle of the sun.

The girls (who participate in what has become the kids division) need to get theirs done in the next few days, but I’m not going to show them mine, so they can do their own interpretation without my input. I’m kind of anxious to see if Hannah follows through on her original idea, and if so, how it is different from mine! Bea normally just follows Hannah’s lead!

We Have A Graduate!

Bea graduated from Joy of Children Preschool tonight. What a milestone!

The kids did a darling performance that included all the kids, not just the graduates, so Josh was able to participate, too. Double the fun!

Josh breakin’ it down!

She made the cutest little graduate!

Bea with her teachers Miss Elaine, and Miss Alicia

Bea and her flowers – purple, of course!

Aren’t they just so cute?

Love my beautiful family!

The flowers were so pretty, but the best part was, she loved them!

********************

Art took a back seat today, but I DID get some done! I did the background for another 2 page layout in my Radical Wellness art journal, and got the bases done for my June ATCs. I am so excited to be “arting” everyday!

Paper Challenge Day #14 – A Lightbulb Moment

Today was a good day. Nothing amazing happened. I did some art in the morning, and had the kids in the afternoon. Then a little more art in the evening. Pretty much an ordinary day, so what made it  so good?

I’m being kind to myself. I haven’t said a bad word to myself all day. I’ve been patient with my shortcomings, accepting of my limitations. I’ve pushed myself a little, but gently. I’ve said “atta girl” several times. It is downright amazing what a difference it can make in a day. A real lightbulb moment for me.

And to what do I owe this new gentleness?

Radical Wellness. Believe it or not.

I’ve never in my life used art to heal myself. Never. I’ve read self help books, taken seminars. But this class is different. I am so enjoying writing all the negative stuff out, then covering it up with beauty. Why it makes a difference is beyond me. I know the mean words are there, but something about using them as a building block to get to the encouraging words works for me. Who knew?

Yesterday I showed you the beginnings of my first page. Today I finished it.

But, the more I looked at it, the more I wished I had done her with blond hair. So, I took, what for me was, a brave step and started that side of the page over. I was a bit nervous, because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to do one that I liked as well. But, aside from the fact that the words on her hair don’t show up as well, I’m pleased.

I suspect I’ll be deviating from the class and adding more pages to my journal. Now that I’ve discovered the joy of art journaling, I want to add more encouragement for myself than what the class calls for. Not that there isn’t lots, but some of it is in the form of a workbook, and I think I’ll be doing some of the workbook in the journal. I like to freelance like that!

But in addition to how thrilled I am with the “wellness” component of this class, finally taking the first step in learning to do faces has me over the moon. Woohoo!

Paper Challenge Day #13 – Radical Wellness Art

I’ve been slow to get moving on my “Radical Wellness” class (with Tam Laporte) but I’ve finally started, and it’s playing nicely into my paper challenge. One of the most important parts of the class is the art journal that we’re supposed to do as we figure out why we’re allowing ourselves to live unhealthy lives and working our way back to health.

For the 1st page, we started with journaling on the blank pages in pencil and a couple of different pens. Since it was going to be covered up anyway, I was pretty mean to myself, much as I am most of the time when it comes to my weight (which is one of the key symptoms of unhealthy living!)

 

They aren’t words I want to reread over and over, but it was good to get them out there, then cover them up, as a first step toward learning to be more loving to myself.

 

One of the scariest parts of this exercise is that we were doing a face as the primary focal point on one page, and I’ve never done a face before – which is probably why I’ve been dragging my feet about getting started. But, I jumped in, and although it’s not a masterpiece, I’m pretty pleased with my first attempt.

 

And best yet, I had LOTS of fun!