Blog Hopping Saves Sanity!!!!

It should be against the law for the temperature to have been 33 at 2 PM in Cullman, Alabama at any time of the year!!  But, that is exactly what it was there today.  So glad my car has a good heater and I have some good warm sweaters!!  Regardless of the cold, I got all my errands taken care of.  Yeah!!!!!

(Not an actual photo of Cullman, Alabama!!)



I needed some time this evening to clear my head, so I did some blog hopping.  That is such a great way to get a fresh mental perspective on things!!  As I found goodies, I took notes so I could pass them on to you.  It is always better when you share things with folks.

Saw the most beautiful creation tonight.  Maya Road held a contest called Two Peas In A Bucket.  The gal who won the contest made a “book” using two trinket boxes with mulberry paper as the book binding!!  It is absolutely fabulous!!  You need to go take a look.  What a grand inspiration!!  I have just GOT to make one of these--or more!!

http://mayaroad.typepad.com/dt/2010/12/two-peas-in-a-bucket-maya-road-challenge-winning-project.html

And while looking at a blog with some of the most lovely Christmas trees and decorations I found information about a drawing going on with Whogga.  They are the makers of those boots called Uggs.  Anyway, if you just sign up for their newsletter you are entered into a drawing for a free pair of Uggs!!!  How is that for cool???  Here is your link:

http://www.whooga-eu.co.uk/birh.asp?p=Newsletter&eref=elizabeth.castleberry@gmail.com

And while we are blog hopping....
Has everyone been keeping up with the Tim Holtz 12 Tags of Christmas???  Here is the link for that again:

http://timholtz.typepad.com 

Tim (for anyone who doesn't know) is one of the most incredible people imaginable.  His work is amazing!!

All things considered it has been a day which was too full.  Hate to cut this short---but, that nice warm bed is calling my name!!

Thanks for stopping by-- 

Only 24 Hours In Each Day!!

I need to find a class in proper time management.  I am bad to start too many things at a time, bad to change from one project to another in the middle of everything!!  You add to that the many tasks and errands and offers to do things for others and you are looking at the need for at least 48 hours in each day.  Seems that any time I need to be in one place, I have somewhere else I need to be at the same time which is not in the same direction!!  I have been so tensed up lately that the right side of my neck is staying in a rock hard knot!!  I really need to get SOMETHING organized!!!  Tomorrow I have 2 things to do in Cullman (26 miles from home toward the northwest) and also have to go to Ragland (62 miles from home toward the west if I could go the best route, but more like 99 miles tomorrow since I HAVE to go to Cullman first!!)  Neither destination can be delayed to another day. 
The next day I will be taking my step-mom to a doctor appointment in downtown Birmingham.  When I get her back home I will help out around there awhile.
In the meantime, I have 3 regular assignments to get turned in for accounting and economics classes before Sunday as well as a group project for the economics class!!  So far only one of the group members has given any signs of life!!  I got all the research done on the first part of the project today, just waiting for the others to respond to that.
And we can't forget about CHRISTMAS!!!  I am making cards and gifts---feeling as though I am the entire team of elves!!! 
All right, ENOUGH of the belly aching!!!   It is time to get off my pitty-pot!!!

This is my grandchild--she is 18 and does not have any idea how special she is.  She is the reason I have to go to Ragland tomorrow.  I am taking her a computer desk and money for a T-shirt she wants.  When she graduates this year we plan to visit Michigan together.  She wants to see where I grew up, the St. Joseph lighthouse which I have tons of pictures of all over my house, and my cousin Rosetta.  This should be one fun road trip!!  Growing up in Michigan, my family came to Alabama once or twice each year to visit my dad's family.  The last time I went to Michigan was Christmas of 1995.  It has been awhile!! 

It is so abnormally cold for us right now--makes it hard to think--so perhaps I should go get under the extra covers and get warm as I drift into sweat dreams!!

Thanks for stopping by --  please come back--

Let's See Some Pictures!!

Thank you to those who have offered some helpful hints as to how to get through the process to get pictures added to my blog!!!  This is definitely a "live and learn" process.  One thing at a time and all will come together.

This was taked in early September on the side of my driveway.  There were several large areas of these "butterfly weeds" growing between the drive and the creek bed.  The yellow swallowtails seemed to claim them as their own.  I never saw any other butterflies on them this year.

Let's all get excited----I finally got a photo to get in place here!!!!   YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our community center is pretty small---about 12 foot square----but, this is a small and close-knit community.  This was one of the pictures I took for that photo journal.  There isn't a whole lot to our town, in fact this is the only "official" building there is.  The Bremen post office is miles down the road, off on a side road across the street from the Cold Spring schools!!  I never even noticed this building for the first 6 or 7 years we lived out here.

This beautiful antique wagon was placed by the gazebo which is in the yard of the historic reproduction house in Cullman.  I found this to be one of the most special things this fall.  Just HAD to get this picture for the photo journal swap at Swap-Bot. 

And this is my friend Kathy's scrapbook supply store -Scrapin Kats- which is closing December 13th.  I am not happy about that--but, I do understand.  I've already been scooping up some bargins while the closing sale is going on--and will get more before it is over.  (As if I don't have any supplies!!!!)  (SHHHHHH---don't let the hubby know.)
I am really excited about this picture thing!!!!!  I will try to be good and not over-use it---but, love that I will be able to illustrate what I am talking about.

Thanks for stopping by--

Who Turned Off The Heat?????

Alabama is NOT supposed to be this cold!!!  I do not like this, no I do not!!  It is below freezing outside--and it only got up to around 50 today -- with the sun out and all --
I have become a WHIMP!!  I lived in Michigan from the time I was 9 months old until 1972.  Michigan winters can last from Halloween until Easter.  My brother and I built a snow fort in the back yard every year with a tunnel which snaked from the back porch all over the back yard until it finally reached the fort.  I've dealt with temps of 30 below!  But, that was then and this is now and I am a full fledged cold weather WHIMP!!

I got hubby to go into the woody area and locate some sturdy branches for me today.  Everything is still wet from the rains, so they will need to dry a day or two.  Then I will paint them white.  Once painted, they will be put into a sturdy container and decorated.  That is what I want for this year's Christmas tree.  I have seen this done in a few different ways and like it every which way it is done.  As soon as it is all together I will get a picture and post it.

Mailed off 3 swaps from Swap-bot Tuesday.  Nothing earth-moving, just simple handmade notecards and post cards. Worked this afternoon on a photo journal for another swap.  It called for 10 photos from where we live.  I had fun with the gathering of the pictures.  Living in a community known as BugTussle opens the way for many out-of -the-ordinary photos! 
For pretty pictures, I took my camera to Cullman and enjoyed some of the really nice places there.  The picture taking was fun, the journal decorating and contructing was fun; the captioning was the most difficult part of the whole thing.  I used to have good penmanship--but, that was way back when.  Now my handwriting looks about as bad as a doctor's prescription pad!!

I've been working on several small cookbooks for Christmas gifts.  It had begun with the idea of making one cookbook as a gift for one person, then I got to thinking that I should also do one for someone else, then someone else...now it is several of these cookbooks being worked on as if one large project.  Then, while my youngest son and his girlfriend were visiting the other day, she mentioned how their vacation pictures were still unprinted.  The pictures are on their Facebook page, so I offered to retrieve them and print them out.  My new printer does such a great job.  Of course, I offered to put them all together as a scrapbook for them.  Somehow, I always seem to be working on more than one thing at a time.  Makes my life much more interesting anyway.

I really wanted to add pictures today, but the system seemed to think that the pictures I was trying to add might not belong to me.  They couldn't be more mine--they were all taken by me with my camera and put into my photo program on my computer.  Hopefully we can get this worked out very soon!!

Thank you for stopping by!!