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Staycation button 

Thanks to Cheri, I’ve signed up for yet another class, and like
Creativity Boot Camp it’s free, and it’s easy to sign up. I had just
found Kim’s blog in the last week, but hadn’t paid close attention to
the Stay-cation post. I’ve read great things about her online courses, so I’ll be looking forward to this once the July courses are over.

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Tonight Jessica Sprague is hosting a blog hop with 33 participants. At each site will be a free digital goodie. It starts at 10:00 ETS tonight and runs through Sunday night. I think there are prizes if you collect all the digital goodies. 

I won’t get my last prompt for Creativity Boot Camp up until tomorrow. I got to exercise class this morning, then to my Botanical Drawing class, and finally hosted lunch for two of my college friends. This is the third time this week I’ve entertained, so Tracy is taking me out to dinner tonight. We’re off to Consesus Lake and the North Shore Grill. It’s an absolutely perfect day for it! My friends and I sat on our patio chatting for most of the afternoon.

So, about the Botanical Drawing class. You might remember I received a wonderful gift from my friend, Mary, at Christmas. Once I had all these drawing tools at my disposal I felt compelled to do something about it. I have never had a formal art class. My first high school didn’t offer any, and when we moved to New York my junior year, I had several extra courses to take if I wanted to graduate on time. So last week I began an eight-week course in botanical drawing given by the local garden club. I was dismayed last week to discover there are only two of us with no drawing experience, and it quickly became apparent that group instruction was not going to be part of the plan. The instructor’s portfolio is stunning, done in colored pencil. We were each given a plant to draw and I survived the first week with one tiny sketch I felt was worthy of a beginner. The rest: nothing I would share even with my best friend!

Today was better. I read some material during the week, and started off asking a few questions about technique. The reading also helped me understand where to start. The group of women (most of whom come to all or many of these courses) are very friendly and nice, but everyone concentrates on their own work. As I went I asked some questions and got individual help, so I think I’ve
figured out how to operate in this class. Once I got a few drawings done today, the instructor told me to add some colored pencil. Frankly, I thought it would be weeks before I got to that stage, but it wasn’t so bad. I ended up with a drawing I might share with my best friend.   And some day, maybe, there will be something I’m willing to share here. Today’s post on Creativity Boot Camp was just perfect for this experience. I’m printing out the commitment and setting aside a little drawing time every day.

Creativity Boot Camp: Grow, Baby, Grow

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Today’s prompt was an easy one. 

Here’s a shot of the first tomatoes in our garden:

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Typically I take my point and shoot to the garden, but today I took my SLR with the Tamron 28-300mm lens. This was shot at 120mm; f 5.6; 1/200, ISO 100. The zoom on this lens really takes pretty decent macro shots. Close up you can even see the “hairs” on the tomato stems.

I was happy to see that the slugs seem to be gone, but found two snails attached to the new lettuce plants. We read in our organic gardening book that both coffee grounds and ashes repel slugs and snails so we took some of both and spread them around the perimeter of the bed. They warned not to use too many coffee grounds as they are quite acidic.

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We also got a fence up around our plot today. You can see the tall “plants” beyond our plot. They are weeds! There are only three plots that haven’t been claimed in the community garden and two of the three border ours. I’m hoping the mulch around the plot will help keep down the spread of weeds, but each time we go we need to dig out a few. If the plants have as deep a root system as our weeds, they will do well!

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The only thing ready to pick were some tiny arugula leaves, two kinds of basil, and some cilantro. We used the Thai Basil in a shrimp and tomato pasta sauce tonight. It has a lighter flavor than the typical basil, but is quite nice.

A Productive Day is Always a Good Day

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Some days I seem to get so much more done than others. Yesterday was a good day.

I paid bills. I balanced my checkbook.

We visited the garden. Sad to say the slugs are eating our beans and ate all the lettuce seedlings. 

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The tomatoes, peppers, squash, and cucumbers are doing well.

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Zucchini Blossom

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First Tomato

I went to the dentist to have my temporary crown removed and the permanent one put on. The crown didn’t fit as well as the dentist wanted, so it had to go back to the lab, so I have yet one more dental appointment next week.

I cleaned my desk.

I worked on the daily crossword.

I made 15 gift card holders. June 13th is Advisor Appreciation Sunday, and I am the chair of the Youth Ministry Committee. We are blessed with a dedicated Youth Ministry Director as well as advisors for the junior and senior highs in our church.

GiftCardHolders

All made from scraps in my scrap files.

I made a scrapbook layout.

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Core’dinations (Jenni Bowlin) cardstock, sanded lightly; black cardstock from scraps; patterned paper: Bitty Box Basics (PTI); Jenni Bowlin Banner Stickers in red and black.

I took Matt to dinner at The Tap and Mallet since Tracy had a dinner-time meeting at church. We finished the crossword puzzle while we enjoyed our beers.

I ironed curtains and got them rehung. Ironed a few other pieces as well.

I read blogs and was surprised to find one of my Weekly Gratitude pages featured on the Weekly Gratitude blog. I had no idea they ever checked my blog.

I read some more of Making Toast, the library book which I just picked up two days ago. It is wonderful, but a real emotional roller coaster.

Maybe today will be just as good!

It’s Sunday

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It’s Sunday, and it’s been a very productive day. I’ve done a lot of crafting (5 cards) but have posted them at Scrap-Mart and won’t post them here until they’ve shown up over there.

Tracy and I got all our vegetables in our community garden plot this morning. We have quite a few more tomatoes (16, five different kinds) than any other garden I saw, but that’s the veggie I wanted most. I used to can tomato sauce so if we have an abundant crop, I’ll be happy to drag out all the canning supplies from the basement. In addition to tomatoes, we planted three kinds of sweet pepper, cilantro, garlic chives, four kinds of basil, four types of lettuce, arugula, pole beans, zucchini, and cucumbers. We threw in a few marigolds for color.

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Planting a variety of basil was inspired by a book Sarah had (and I bought) called Grow Great Grub. The author said she only plants different varieties of basil and parsley. The basils provide enough variety in taste. We’ll see what we think. 

We also have some cherry tomatoes and one basil plant growing at home, thanks for my Mother’s Day gift from Matt.

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Hanging tomato planters are all the rage here. The cherry tomatoes grow downward. Here’s a view of them from underneath.

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I hope it works. We think we’ll need to put some netting around the bottom once the tomatoes form to keep the critters from getting them.

Tonight we went up to the boat. We have a small 20′ Cape Dory that hasn’t been in the water for the last two summers. Tracy painted the bottom of it this week and it will go in the water (Lake Ontario) on Tuesday.

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He wanted to get the registration on the boat tonight.

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I was glad I decided to ride along because on the way home we noticed a couple of photographers alongside the road and knew the swans must be nearby.

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The little ones are really cute, and it’s not often you can get so near them. I wasn’t sure my point and shoot would be good enough when I got out of the car, but it was just fine.

Wow & Wow Again

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It was a big mail day here. First the UPS man brought my prize from Making Memories. I’ve won a variety of wonderful prizes in giveaways on blogs but this is the biggest prize I’ve ever received.

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I think they sent me the complete line of Pitter Patter (both pink and blue) and Panorama (including an album kit). I got paper, alphas, and embellishments for both lines. There were two packages of the new Vintage jewelry line, ten packages of Design Shop stickers (these are great & you’ll be seeing them on cards and scrapbook pages), and five packages of beautiful metal embellishments. Now I need to find a place to put it all!

Then the mail woman delivered my package from Papertrey Ink. I only ordered a couple of stamps, but I did purchase some dies I’m anxious to use. It will be awhile, however. It’s been a very busy week. I’ve been out every night and gone the better part of several days. I did get some work done today in the perennial bed and it is looking better.

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We did our last cultivating at the Community Garden bed as well today and are ready to put our plants in as soon as we find time. Tomorrow I’m off with two friends to the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Buffalo. I’m taking three classes. One is a scrapbooking class with Basic Grey papers, and the other two are Making Memory Slice classes. I’ve started using my Slice more often but I know there is much more I could do with it.

After the convention we’re going to our favorite stamp store to look around and pay our fees for a colored pencil class we’ll be taking in July with Dave Brethauer (the owner of Memory Box stamps). After dinner at Pano’s we’ll finally head home. I’m really looking forward to a day of inspiration and good conversation with friends.

This morning Cathy Zielske debuted a new set of templates for a monthly scrapbooking project. I love the way she has it laid out and think this may be the answer for my Project 365 and Week in the Life photos. I love her clean and simple style.

Brenda Weaver has a great post about getting inspiration from a magazine cover. It’s geared to card makers, but definitely worth a look.

And lastly, a photo of our beautiful azalea:

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The Getty Center

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This was one of the first layouts I did for our vacation album, but it was just posted on the Scrap-Mart blog this week so I waited to post it here. Scrap-Mart, by the way, has an exclusive Spellbinder Nestibility label die available for pre-order. Nestibilities are one of my favorite dies, and I especially love the labels.

The Getty Center is one of the most amazing places we’ve visited in California. We spent about 3 hours there and barely scratched the surface of what there is to see. There are five different museum buildings (we only got through the photography museum) and fabulous gardens. The architecture is also worth the visit as are the views of LA and surrounding areas from the top of the hill where The Getty Center is located.

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Cardstock (American Craft); patterned paper (American Craft “Dear Lizzy;” journaling spot (Jillibean); buttons (Sassafras Lass); alpha and brackets (American Craft Thickers)

It’s Been a Wonderful Birthday!

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I’ve spent several days celebrating my birthday. When you get older, that’s a very good thing!!! And I’m not really done yet since I’ll be celebrating with one of my best friends on Wednesday. The best gift I got was having Sarah and Adam here this week. We had a lovely time, and a big family get-together on Thursday night with lots of food and a beautiful birthday cake.

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The icing appears a bit more blue than lilac in the photograph, but lilac it was to go with the annual Lilac Festival in Highland Park this week and the beautiful flowers Tracy sent me.

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Last night we had dinner with our book group and when I got home I had an email from Katie telling me to check the Making Memories blog. What a surprise! I was one of three winners of a lovely package of new product just out by Making Memories.

Prize

Last month I won another fabulous prize from Moxie Fab World. The Hello, Sunshine papers from lily bee are just so bright and cheerful. I know I’ll have a lot of fun using them. I’m feeling very lucky these days.

Today Sarah was off leading a retreat in Canandaigua and Matt was working all day so Tracy and I drove to Ithaca. It was a beautiful day for a road trip and we visited some of our favorite places, starting with the Ithaca Farmer’s Market.

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We bought quite a few varieties of herbs and a few tomato plants from this stand for our garden. And some rhubarb for rhubarb coffee cake—a favorite of everyone here.

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But the market has more than just fruits, vegetables, and plants. There are food and bakery stands. I had a berry scone.

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There are pottery stalls, weaving stalls, basketry stalls, and stalls selling homemade food products.

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I love the packaging for this Finger Lakes Popcorn!

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From there we drove to the Cornell Plantations. I was pretty sure the azaleas and rhododendrons would be in bloom and I wasn’t disappointed.

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The dogwoods were beautiful too.

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And I was glad to find these beautiful blue flowers for a photography challenge.

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On our way back to campus this deer appeared out of the woods and was happy to pose for a photo. We’ve never seen a deer marked quite like this one. He has a neck band and two ear tags.

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Our next stop was the book store on campus. I got a new fleece and Matt wanted a set of license plate holders. The Cornell campus is just beautiful.

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Our last stop in Ithaca was one of our favorite restaurants. Matt found it when he was there, and the food is always superb.

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We did a little shopping at the Waterloo Outlets on the way home and were here by dinner time.

Sarah just arrived home from her retreat which went very well, and tomorrow should be a much quieter day.

Three Cards

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We’ve finished all the “must do” items on our list before Sarah and Adam arrive tonight. They fly into Buffalo at 11:10 tonight. I hope they’re on time since Tracy and I were wide awade at 5:00 this morning. It’s only 8:00 their time so they’ll be chipper! 🙂

After exercise class this morning I got to work on three cards that needed to be made. The first is for my BIL & SIL’s anniversary tomorrow. Since they’ll be here for the family party on Thursday I’ll give it to them then. I saw the punched heart technique in a magazine I was browsing through at Barnes & Noble when we were keeping warm there on Saturday night, so I can’t give credit for it. The mat on the focal panel is actually green, but came out really dark in this photo.

Anniversary

Card base: Impress; patterned paper: Scenic Route and unknown scrap; sentiment: Saavy Stamps; heart gem: A Muse

The next is a sympathy card; the message is on the inside.

Sympathy

Cardstock: Select White and Sweet Blush Papertrey Ink; embossed cardstock: Creative Imaginations; flower dies: Papertrey Ink; pearls: Michael’s; silk ribbon purchased from Ellen Huston

Yesterday I got an early birthday gift from my friend, Mary, when we went out to lunch. It’s this beautiful berry bowl. I have nothing like it and navy blue, red, and yellow are my happy colors.

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I had lots of fun making this thank you card for her.

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Cardstock: Bo-Bunny & PTI New Leaf; patterned paper: Bitty Dots PTI; label and chipboard: Cosmo Cricket “Garden Variety;” alpha stickers: October Afternoon.

Here’s the inside of the card:

BerryInside

Patterned paper strip: Cosmo Cricket; alpha stickers: Adorn It.

A question for anyone who has a Typepad account. In my draft, all the images in this post are centered, but none of them are in the published version. Any ideas why?

Happy Mother’s Day

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Happy Mother’s Day from wintery Rochester! Yesterday a cold
front blew through taking with it our power and pulling down limbs and branches
all over the city. We still didn’t have power this morning and the RG&E’s
estimate was maybe by midnight tonight. Last night we ate dinner Buffalo Wild Wings,
and then headed over to Barnes & Noble. We hung out there until 9:30 when
we finally came home. Thanks to our camping lanterns we could read
in bed until we got sleepy.


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This morning we woke up to SNOW!!!! I have to admit it put
me in a pretty unhappy mood. I really hate being cold (the house was down to
58° before we left for brunch), and I still have a lot on my “to do” list before Sarah and Adam get
here—all of which requires electricity. Ah, well. 

Here’s the Mother’s Day card I made for my mother-in-law:


Mother'sDayCard 

Cardstock: Dark Chocolate PTI; patterned papers: Jillibean and October Afternoon; stamps:  Just Rite and Papertrey Ink; ribbon: Pure Poppy PTI; Spellbinder’s Oval Nestability & Standard Tags

With Tracy’s sister, Jill, and her family, we took Ellie & Bill to brunch today. As we were leaving the street, an RG&E man told us it would be tomorrow before we’d be back online. Jill and Tom have a generator, however, and Tom was headed our way with it, when suddenly we had lights—and most importantly, heat! It was an unexpected and great Mother’s Day gift. Hope your day has been filled with happiness and family.

Garden Update & Two Cards

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We’re madly trying to finish up some household and major cleaning projects before Sarah and Adam come next Tuesday. Yesterday the plumber was here for three hours and made some much needed (and overdue) repairs to both bathrooms. We couldn’t find appropriate fixtures for a 80 year old house in the city, so our plumber recommended a supply store in Livonia. The owner was very knowledgeable and we got the porcelain handles we wanted. On our way home, we stopped at the garden and got a lot of work done there. I cultivated the whole plot while Tracy weeded and mulched the paths around our plot. It still needs work before we can get plants in, but it looks a lot more like a garden than it did. Tracy’s working on washing windows, painting the medicine cabinet doors, and I’m in the midst of cleaning.

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Thank goodness for our battery-operated Black & Decker cultivator. It would have been a lot harder with a spade!

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After working on some projects at home, Nancy and I went to Image City to see a new photography show and out to lunch. When I got back, I had time to make two cards, one for a friend who has just had major foot surgery (artificial joint replacement) and one for a young friend of ours who’s birthday is Tuesday.

AdirondackChair
Stamp: Lockhart Stamps & Papertrey Vintage Picnic Sentiments; patterned paper: A Muse & scraps; Copic markers

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Stamps: Paptertrey Ink Enjoy the Ride & A Little Argyle; cardstock from scrap files; buttons: PTI & stash.

This was my first attempt to use both Enjoy the Ride and A Little Argyle. I love both sets, but would have redone some of this if I had had time. It’s going to take a bit more practice than I’m used to having to do.

Gardens

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I hope you had as much fun as I did on yesterday’s international House Party Blog Hop. I loved seeing how themes were chosen and embellishments used; I got a lot of good ideas.

I’m slowly getting the layouts done from our California trip. Here is one about Sarah’s garden that we helped her plant while we were there.

SarahsGardenLO 

All Cosmo Cricket Garden Variety papers and chipboard except for the Basic Grey Ambrosia alpha stickers.

Journaling reads:  Sarah asked for an early birthday gift while we were visiting. She wanted to take advantage of her dad’s and brother’s expertise. She found a fabulous nursery nearby & we spent a morning exploring and buying flowers, vegetables and pots since she can’t dig into their rental property. She ended up with a great variety & hopefully, she’ll have lots of flowers and veggies to pick on her birthday in August.

And we hope to have a vegetable garden this summer as well. Our yard is heavily shaded and my attempts at growing tomatoes in a pot have been pretty disappointing. When I read that our town’s Community Garden was taking applications for new plots, I got my application in right away. We now have a 10×10 plot. Yesterday was a Community Garden Work Day. Tracy and I tied the fencing to the posts around the entire garden and got a start on weeding our little plot. It’s going to take some work before it’s ready for the plants. Traditionally, it’s not safe to plant here until Memorial Day, but it’s been so warm this spring we may try to get them in a week or two early.

 

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Auburn and Skaneateles

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One of my volunteer jobs for the past two years has been to chair the Youth Ministry Committee at my church. This is my second round at this post, and it has been quite different since I no longer have kids in the program. The new Youth Director and I have become quite good friends, and when she said she was going on a scouting trip to check out sites for the upcoming Mission and Music trip for youth in June, I volunteered to come along. We had a fabulous day. It was warm and sunny, and we spent the better part of the day at two beautiful lakes: Owasco Lake in Auburn and Skaneateles Lake in Skaneateles. The only other time I’ve been to Auburn was this winter to visit the Seward House and Tiffany Chapel. (It’s the second page on this post where I was catching up with my Christmas Journal.)  I had no idea there were such beautiful parks there as well. 

Emerson Park on Owasco Lake:

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ThreeTrees 

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Jane and I were surprised (but pleased) to see this memorial to the women who fought in WW II.

On our way out of town we found a second park and these cute ducks were willing to have their picture taken. I love the markings on the female. Sometimes the females are so dull, but not this one.

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And in Skaneateles:

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We had a fabulous lunch at the Bluewater Grill:  scallop and corn chowder with a grilled smoked turkey and asparagus panini. They were perfect together and just delicious.

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The Episcopal church sits right on the lake. It’s a beautiful building.

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The red doors were my favorite.

Our kids will be staying at the Presbyterian church across the street. The sanctuary is stunning. The afternoon sun was streaming through their stained glass windows.

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I especially liked this one.

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Skaneatlees has wonderful shops as well, so after lunch we spent some time browsing (and buying). I was too interested in the shopping to remember to take photos!

I’ve Been Tagged

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I’ve been tagged by Mindy, one of the Design Team members at Scrap-Mart. She likens these tagging adventures to the chain letters of the past. I much prefer blogging.

Ten Things That Make Me Happy

  1. Family Time. There’s not much that means more to me than spending time with my husband and kids. I never get enough of it. Even though Tracy and I are both retired, we’re really busy with our own projects and need to make time for ourselves. When everyone’s together, it’s the best!  FamilyCastleHorizw
  2. A Good Book. I love to read and a book that grabs my attention and makes me think is one of the great pleasures in life.
  3. Travel. Although I hate to fly, I love to travel. I never get tired of seeing new places. We were on the road for 29 days last summer, and I loved every minute of it. I love the anticipation of trips almost as much as the trip itself. We’re tentatively planning a cruise to Alaska in 2011 with very good friends and I’m already excited. 3.27Pacific1w
  4. Good Friends. I am truly blessed with good friends, and enjoy all the time I get to spend with them.
  5. Learning New Things. I think this is one reason why I loved teaching. I was always learning something new. Now it’s my hobbies that keep me on my toes!
  6. Creating. I never had an opportunity as a child to take an art lesson. We didn’t even have art classes in my school, so I never considered myself the least bit creative until I started sewing as a teenager (for 4-H) and stamping as an adult. If I could go back and choose my career again, I think I’d choose graphic arts, even though I loved my teaching job.
  7. Photography. Of all my hobbies, photography has done more to change how I see the world than anything else. I’m so much more observant, and examining the great photographs on sites like Pioneer Woman help me develop a more critical eye. It’s another career I’d love to have had.
  8. Sunshine. We don’t always get a lot of it here in the northeast so I am really appreciative of it when it’s here. I love my house, but it’s surrounded by trees, and has old windows. If we ever downsize, big windows and a sunny location will be #1 on my list.
  9. Flowers. I love them inside and out, from the grocery store or the florist. I’d have them on my table every day if I could afford it.
  10. Good Food and Cooking. I love to eat out, and I love to cook. I’m always collecting new recipes, and I read cookbooks like a novels.

Five Random Facts

  1. I was a clumsy child, and very unathletic. Nonetheless, I played on the varsity field hockey team my junior year in high school. Even more amazing, I actually got playing time. (But I definitely did not love it.)
  2. I was painfully shy as a child. Friends who have only known me since college find it hard to believe, but I was so shy I hid under tables to avoid meeting new people who came to our house to visit.
  3. My freshman RA was sure I’d be the one kid on the floor who wouldn’t make it. She never told me at the time, of course, but many years later she was asked to witness our wills in our lawyer’s office. We hadn’t seen each other in years, and she told me then. I not only lasted, I flourished!
  4. I love to organize. The first time I was in The Container Store, I thought I’d “died and gone to heaven!” It’s a good thing there isn’t one around here. I’d be broke.
  5. I’m terribly afraid of heights. I have a hard time on a step-ladder, and hate most amusement park rides. 

So the deal is to tag five others. All of these women I’ve met through blogging and the internet. I’ve loved getting to know them through their art and their blogs. I hope they’ll play along.

  1. Joni
  2. Rhona
  3. Amy
  4. Rinda
  5. Mel

Birthday Road Trip

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Two of my friends and I have birthdays within six weeks of one another. We decided to celebrate by taking a road trip on Saturday. We drove down the west side of Cayuga Lake, stopped at the Ithaca Farmer’s Market (no great photos), and went on to Aurora. We had lunch at Pumpkin Hill and then visited the shop, grounds, and home at MacKenzie Childs.

Pumpkin Hill is a delightful restaurant.

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The inside.

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The food is wonderful, and there are so many special touches. Here are the menus.

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Karen’s salad came in a colander.

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The dessert menu comes on an old rolling pin.

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Another group of women were hosting a surprise birthday party. The table and the favors were really lovely.

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 BirthdayFavor

I’d never been to the MacKenzie Childs Estate. Everything about it is beautiful. I love their products, although they are a bit expensive for my budget.

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The shop.

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And some photos of the beautiful setting for this place.

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And one of the beautiful flowering trees. As you can see, it was a picture-perfect day!

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Think Spring: Start Your Day

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It was another amazingly hot day. The thermometer outside our bedroom window registered 90° as we got ready to go out to dinner. We met friends at a lovely restaurant on Consesus Lake and sat outside on the patio. It was just like summer, except for the bare trees. That won’t last long if this keeps up. Our daffodils went from tight buds to full flower in just one day. When I drove past Highland Park this morning you could see the lilacs beginning to bud. The annual Lilac Festival doesn’t begin until May 14th this year, so I’m sure the festival organizers are praying this heat wave will be short-lived. I, on the other hand, am perfectly happy with the warm weather. It was very warm, but certainly did not feel like 90°.

Today’s prompt for Think Spring was to capture the start of your day. I took several different photos, but finally settled on this one of my Eggbeater omelet and a catalog I was browsing while I ate. Tracey Clark took her photo with her wide-angle lens so I got mine out. It hasn’t been on the camera since last summer. It’s good to try new things.

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