Empty Nest and Giveaway!!!

My darling, sweet, protective, artistic, former Marine has been living with me for about the last six months. I love him dearly. He left home all too early the first time at the age of 18 after joining the Marine Corps. I thought I was going to lose my mind! You love them, you raise them, you nuture them, you try instill in them good values and life skills, and then poof! They leave you. They are gone!! One day they are your precious child and the next they are literally taken away by a Marine recruiter to serve their country.

I cannot lie. I wanted to inflict bodily harm on the recruiter, who literally took my son away. No matter where my pride and patriotism stood, I could not fathom someone taking my boy-child away to potentially be killed in the line of duty. And serve and fight he did. Two tours in Iraq when my world seemed to stop and I felt as helpless as a human being could in protecting their child from harm.

Fast forward. He came home safe. He came home unscathed. I thanked God and breathed for the first time in 4 years. I AM so proud of what he did. I AM SO proud to call him my son. A patriot, a servant to his country and my flesh and blood.

Now, that said, and as you can see, I love this young man with all my heart and soul, he's been living with me again. I've loved it. I've re-adapted. I look at the "Shotgun News" magazine on the coffee table placed atop my Romantic Homes.
I've overlooked the milk carton on the kitchen counter, the multitude of towels on the bathroom floor, the guestroom looking like it was hit by a tornado ,,,because you love them, and you are SO relieved that they are happy and healthy and home. You take a deep breath, and step over said-clutter.

I have SO enjoyed having him home. His letting his proverbial hair down and spending this brief time with me. I wouldn't trade this time for anything!!!!!! And yet, I am SO doing the party dance to have my space back and let HIM create his own!! It's only a door away,,,he's moving with his bud Frankie to my cottage behind me and starting back to college next month,,,,SO,,,he get's his space and I get mine back! Thank you Lord!! Bring on the party dance!!!


If you've made it this far in my ranting, please share your "emtpy nest" story. It can be one of having an empty nest, leaving the nest, what you think you'll feel WHEN your nest is empty, or having said nest full again. I'll be giving away a "nest related prize" next friday. Just post your story to my comments to enter and I'll create a random drawing.

Next week, I'll begin "re-feathering" my next with new decor and insights!

Hugs,
Shell




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The ADD thang,,,,,,,Artists Delusional Denial.....

Today was one of THOSE days! I worked on a bunch of stuff, including setting up and Etsy account, working a a crown for my dear new friend Lulu, working on some Halloween items-such as a "Boo!" Banner, and some Christmas houses- but I finished NOTHING! Nadda, nix, no. I looked around the studio at the various projects I had going and thought if anyone walked in it would look like I was on some designer class of pharmacuticals,,,

There was glitter and paper and ribbon and tinsel and paint and brushes everywhere!!!! Ackkk! I think some of it is good,,I think some of it has potential,,,and I think some of it will end up in the trash heap......It was one of those weird days.

Last night was great fun. I made dinner for Andy's buddy and future housemate. Dinner was good- I made them Steak Oscar (Steak with crab and Hollandaise) with sides of baked potatoes and broccolli and mixed green salad. I used the good china. The pic above is of Frank enjoying his meal wearing the crown Chelsea (my son Andy's GF and I made LAST week-tongue in cheek for Andrew's 25th) Heavy on Camo with a bit of bling to make it funny. My camera was dead when we went to show Andy in the crown,,,,but at least we got Frank!!! "Bon Fete Francious!"

Fall is approaching

This week when I popped in to Joyworks, the girls were changing the displays to reflect a more Autumnal theme. Then again, I was jazzing up some witches hats for Halloween to sell, so I guess we all thinking along the same lines.

THEN, this morning, while heading for my workshop I walked through my first spiderweb or the season (great) and tonight, while feeding the hounds in the mudroom I heard the first honking of geese preparing themselves for their upcoming migration.


We have TRULY had Summer in Washington this year, complete with a run on AC units and heat index warnings. I started to feel like I was living in another State. The grey, cooler day today was a reminder that my feet are still planted on Snohomish terra firma.

That said, I had a lot of fun making the Witches Hats shown above. This is my model and Muse, Marla, she is much more photogenic than I am and always a good sport. You can see individual photos at my other blog, which just shows my custom crafting items.




Looking forward to a fun weekend working at Joyworks and seeing all the new displays and arrivals!!!

Hugs,
Shell

Busy Day!!!

Here are a few projects that I completed today- this and that.

This morning I ordered a few more (we'll leave it at that) things for several projects. I screwed up on one order (ordering an inch of some Vintage garland) and had to call the Vendor and change it. I'd done business with her before and thought the prices and selection on her craft stuff was great!!!! We had a nice chat while correcting my order and I just wanted to share her website.

It's called Silver Crow Creations or http://SilverCrowCreations.com
Annie is a great gal and she and her husband work out of their home (a remodeled church in PA.) She has TONS of :

Dresden
German Buillion Threads (in awesome colors)
Vintage hard to finds
Rubber Stamps
Oh man, there site is huge, but the findings are great and so are her prices. I could keep her to myself,,,but I know as a small business they are struggling too! So check it out!! (I'm not getting anything for this, but I'd love it if you told her I sent you, just to know "we ARE all in this together.)

Hugs,
Shell

New sidebar slideshow!

Although the photos are far from perfect, I had fun doing my first slideshow for this site AND my other site http://BungalowBling.blogspot.com

Go to the sidebar at left and click on PLAY to see some fun photos of family/crafts/events and my animal housemates!!!! YOU may be amongst the photos!!

Not quite accurate on the photos zoom/clarity or editing, but I had fun anyway, and am learning!!!

Hugs,
Shell

Photos,,,,please enlarge!!

I'm still trying to get all this blogger technology down......I hope that you can click on any of my photos/images as I can to get "the bigger picture." Please click with you mouse on any of my images and they should refine/enlarge........

Hopefully, if you are new to blogging,,,,,,,this will work on other blogsites as well,,,,so you get the "big picture!"

Shell

Jill's 50th,,,,,,Part Deux

So, Jill arrived at her 50th party, to a beautiful venue and a lovely meal consisting of:
Various appetizers
Shrimp Coctails
Herb Seasoned Chicken Skewers (Sandi)
Home made to die for rolls (Luanne)
Seasoned Spinach and strawberry Salad (ala Clarice)
Pasta Salad (Moi)
And Glorious Fruit and dip from Kay,,

It was awesome!

We had a brief respite while Jill opened her gifts (Including both thongs and pink "big girl panties" from an anonymous giver........)

We had great laughs and then as our food SLIGHTLY settled, Amy brought out cupcakes extrodinare from our friend Lisa at "New York Cupcakes" Redmond, WA AND homemade coconut ice cream Created by Rita using Jill's mother's recipe. completed with toasted fresh coconut,,,,,,,,,OMG,,,,,I think we were all in a coma, when all was said and eaten/done!!!! I tried to Blog a bit when I came home,,,,but come on!!! This was Uber extravaganza!!!!!!!!!

Enjoy the photos!
Hugs,
Shell

Jill's 50th,,,,,Part 1

Last evening, we had a wonderful party hosted by Clarice (my boss from Joyworks) at her lovely home and garden in Lake Stevens. To say Clarice is a wonderful gardener, is an understatement! And, it spite of our inclement (HOT HOT HOT) weather here in the PNW, her yard looks spectacular!!!!

Jana, her daughter and partner in design, along with our beloved Sandi, created the perfect setting for our coworker Jill's 50th birthday. It was a spread right out of Romantic Homes or Country living!

Now, one thing I have to clarify, before I reveal pictures of the setting is that we say "boss," we say "coworker," but I know that my fellow shopworkers would be the first to tell you that we have a much deeper commitment and friendship than strictly work. Prior to my Joyworks days I worked with a lot of women, in a lot of places. I've never worked with such lovely women!! We are different in many ways, but the mix works well!! No one leaves,,,and if they do, they come back!!

With that in mind,,,,there is nothing like a Joyworks party,,,and Jill, usually orchestrates the gatherings we DO have, so I think we all tried to make it extra special for her 50th,,,,,even if she DOES say "brick brack."

Jill loves animal prints, so we created items with that in mind and added touches of pink. I made her a cake topper and a crown that matched the theme. Here's the scene,,,,next post will be the event itself!!

My kids,,,,,and my Kids

Andrew was at work tonite,,,and his "bestest" childhood friend,Erick, aka my "other son," stopped by tonite to tell me he proposed last night.........I laughed and cried,,,,,,,,,This is my "babies" bestest. i wish him and Jessica the best. They have been together a long time, and yet I've known Erick for years.

May God Bless their future and their union....And protect and strengthen my Erick boy in his union......

Shell

Good Lord, I'm Blind!!! But I look Hot!!!

I got new "Ferragamo" glasses today, they help with Near/Far sightedness, I guess, and my astignatism,,,,,,,I could have gone to Italy at the cost of these babies, and they make me feel like I'm on another planet......I think people pay good money for drugs that make them feel like this,,,,,,,,,,,

But I think I look hot,,and that is all that matters, right? I'll get back to you on that!!!

Hang in there,
Shell

Annie's Fun Event Last Night

Last Evening, Annie's on First (Annie & Mary) hosted "Hot Blogust Nites." Although NOT hot (Thank God) it was a very fun evening!! Annie's invited bloggers to come to our little town and give us all an opportunity to put a face to the name.



Gals came up from Oregon and Rene' (Mary Jane's Farm) made her way from Idaho. Rene' had a "badge emergency," so Jana and I fixed her up!! Timi, from "Jesus Loves Casseroles" had a darling badge,,,,
I wore one I made for my crafting site, "BungalowBling."

All the shops had yummy treats, offered discounts, and Annie's had free drawings!

All the shops were dressed up in their finest and I managed to (once again) help stimulate our local economy!!

Let's do it again soon! So fun to meet all of you here in our town!

Hugs,
Shell

Hot Bloggist Nites,,,,tomorrow in Snohomish!!

Tomorrow/Saturday in Snohomish Annies on First is sponsoring "Hot Bloggist Nights." I have some stuff in Joyworks that I've crafted and will add a few things tomorrow....before the event.

It should be fun to put some faces with the (bloggers) names. Looking forward to it and some cooler temps! I think we may still be in Washington after all!!!

Hugs,
Shell

Great Day for a wedding!!!

Today I helped friends set up for a wedding at Hidden Meadows here in Snohomish. It's a lovely venue and I truly wish I would have taken more pictures, BUT I WAS TOO BUSY!!!! I helped with flower arrangements/tulle/table set up etc. I had an hour to come home and shower change, eat and put my "face" on.!!

The event was spectacular and the weather held at about 93.....Are you KIDDING ME?? Where do we live now???

My "date" was my friend Laura since her hubby didn't attend. She also helped set up today. Here's a pic of the ceremony and the bride and groom singing a duet,,,,,,,and a pic of my bestest bud Laura and I prior to heading home,,,,,,,,,

Lovely day but a lot of work and a LOT of heat!!!!!!!!

Hugs,
Shell