Jigged and Sawed....

 OK, so here are my unfinished growth charts. I have to get a router bit to curve the edges and then they are ready to be painted. then I have to put them together at a later date. More to come!

Women in Art.

This is so neat. I could watch it over and over again.

Tami had her baby last night!

I just got a phone call from my dear friend Tami. She informed me that she had herClittle boy last night. Philip Cady Russell was born on May 27th at 9:47 PM and tipped the scales at 7 pounds 2 ounces, 19 inches long.
I had a very strong feeling that "Fry" as they are calling him, was going to be born in May and not June as the doctors had predicted. I was right, I was right! His big brother Hayden and oldest sister, Meredith already came to visit him in the hospital. His little sister, Stephanie was at home with her Grandma. I can't wait to see how Stephanie deals with Fry. You have to check out the hyper links. Tami has blogs for all the kids and I love reading them, especially the girls....its so cute.

More info when it becomes availiable.

DANG IT!

Well, my friggin camera broke. I don't know what happened but let me tell you, I am not a very happy camper right now. A month away from my vacation and the sucker freaks on me. I called the canon help number and spoke to a guy with a thick southern accent. He walked me though reseting the camera. The problem is that after taking two pictures, I went to shut it off and the screen went black, BEEPED LOUDLY..how rude, and displayed, Lens Error- Restert Camera." I tried several times, I even removed the battery. The lense would not close and retract. Stupid, stupid camera! I spoke to the dude at Canon and he had me remove the battery. Then push the shutter button firmly, five times, replace the battery, switch the camera to viewing mode and turn it back on. At that point the camera lense retracted and the lense cover closed. Then when I tried to switch it to picture taking mode, the stupid thing beeped at me again and the error message was displayed. The lense was stuck out and open again. We tried this several times before we gave up and he gave me infor to send the mother hubbard in.

This can't be happening. I have Bunny Rue Rue photos to take. She has a bikini to model for us all in her little pool. She needs to laugh and smile for me. She's sitting up on her own now. Dang it, I need those pictures for my photo album. Not to mention Tami will be having a baby any day now and I need photo of the new little Russell. Seriously, this is the worst possible time for this kind of thing to happen.

What to do when Uncle Gary talks to much...

Well, Aunt Carole suggests placing your thumbs in your Ears, like so... Works for her, every time. Hehehe! If he starts talking louder, you just have to sing, "la la la", over and over, then after a few hours, he gives up and plays on the computer...making priceless self portraits of himself.

A growth chart in the making

I'm working on something new. I decided to make a template for a growth chart for Rue. I had a hankering to use my jig saw and drill. I have wood left over from a project and I'm going to use it up and get it out of the garage. I won't be able to show you the finished project until I put it together when I am home. I think it will be easier to mail before the parts are attached. I decided I'm going to have a wavy stem, with two leaves with Rues name and birth information on them. I'm not sure how I want to do the blossom yet, but I'll come up with something. I always do, after all. I have to find a box to mail this sucker in. I think there is one in the garage.
I thought about asking Marla and Jeff if they wanted one for Arianna but I figured they wouldn't. I could be wrong...Aunt Vickie will let me know what she thinks. I could always make two at one time. Just a thought. Maybe I should make one for Jesse and Megan, my parents neighbors. They are expecting a girl in August and are really super sweet people.

And the medal goes to....

I love buttons. I love ribbon. Hell, I love lots of things and tend to collect stuff off of packages and presents. I find it hard to part with the extra buttons that come with clothes even after I discard the outfit. If its worth passing on I do, but if it isn't fit for charity because I stain stuff like nobodies business, I take the buttons off before I trash it.
Over the years I have come up with a ton of notions. A while back I saw a picture of a medal that someone made using a button and ribbon. They looked like service awards that soldiers receive for bravery or advanced skills. I figure some day I might be a nanny for a little one again and they might come in handy. (Maybe Rue would like it too) How much fun would it be to have a ceremony for a preschooler who bravely sat through their shot at the doctors office or if they are afraid of cats or dogs, were able to summon the strength to pet it without hiding behind you, crying. How about an award for Extreme patience when they sat polity and played instead of running around like a nutcase when the car was getting its annual maintenance or at the bank. I like the idea for an award for a random act of kindness or for an act of true honesty. The possibilities are endless. I'm making them so they can be safely pinned on their shirts for the day or several days but after a week they must be placed on a felt banner that we can hang on the wall of their bedroom. Each award will be labeled with a tag on the back that says why and when it was awarded. When they out grow the phase, it can be rolled up and tucked away. Years later, long after they forgot about it, it would be fun to see what they accomplished.
I think its always a good idea to praise good behavior, its encouraging. Lol, can't you see a kid strutting around the grocery store, helping you get the items you need, perhaps wearing a super hero cape and showing off the medal on his shirt to anyone that will listen. Of course, it could be a little girl wearing a super hero cape and showing off her medals....valor comes in all shapes and sizes.

I'm pimpin' out my Aunt Vickie...

I'm not sure people know what they are getting themselves into. Everyone wants to join the club and call my Aunt Vickie, "Aunt Vickie." I guess I can share her. Heck I've already got a ton of other cousins and she has a bunch of nieces and nephews on Uncle Johns side (but they are not as much fun as I am)...so it shouldn't be hard to let other people jump on the Aunt Vic band wagon.

I have to warn you, once you start calling her Aunt Vickie, there is no turning back. Yep, you are stuck with her. So, don't come whining to me when Aunt Vickie drinks all your wine or when she starts playing pranks on you and teasing you. She will, oh she will. That's part of the deal...you have to just put up with it. Piss her off and she will smack you with a broom...ask her brothers. If you leave her alone with Uncle John to long, unsupervised, they are bound to be sneaky....which will lead to a snorting laughter attack. Yes, she snorts when she laughs. She has a dirty mind but will try to blame it on you. Don't you dare let her do that. Also, she will try to convince you that her halo is bright and shiny....nooo, that isn't true, she likes to swipe ours when we are not looking and play it off as hers. Don't fall for that either.

Whatever you do, don't let her mop your kitchen floors. She gets it confused with washing a car and dumps a whole bucket of water on the floor. I hope you have a wet vac handy or a crap load of towels. Oh, she's not so bad...but don't depend on her to save you from a snake because she would sooner shove you to the ground in an attempt to save herself and seek safety. The sound she admits when she is doing it is enough to cause hearing loss. If you pretend like you are going to pick the snake up and chase her with it, she will swear she will hate you forever but I don't think she really has it in her. Oh yes, and I'll warn you right now that you will never be able to take a family picture without her tongue sticking out in it. You know, I swear she must have gotten a hold of my Katie when she was younger and told her that tongues sticking out in pictures drove me nuts...Katie does it too and they are not related.

All in all, she's a pretty great Aunt. Oh and even if she says not to tease her about her lederhosen, don't listen to her. Rule number one of Aunt sharing is you have to tease her as much as the rest of us do. No sucking up! Things to remember: You must ask her to explain how she got her head caught in a steering wheel and not accept the answer when she swears booze was not involved. Don't believe her when she tells you her age. Ask me, I know the real deal. If you left it up to her, she'd have you believe that she was 8 when she had her son. Shes a fun lady to hang around. That is why all the kids in the neighborhood end up at her house and she doesn't have kids living at home anymore. Don't let her near your car at night, or day as far as that goes...she's a deer magnet and sure enough something is going to get dented or totaled.

She's a handful but she is worth it. I don't think you could ask for a better Aunt. Unless of course your name us Rue, because that little girl has the best Auntie in the whole wide world (ME)....closely followed up by the best Great Aunt in the World...aka, Great Aunt Vickie. (My other Aunts are wonderful too...with the exception of the one who shall not be named...but everyone knows who that is. Shhhh, don't tell her I said that.) Oh, who wants to make Aunt Vickie a pair of crocheted lederhosen for her next birthday? She secretly wants a pair. Unlce John keeps stealing her old pair.

So, share her! No fighting over her or tugging at her because then I will have to take her away and then you will be sorry. Don't make me pull this blog over!

Rue and her Paw Paw and Grammy

Rue has her Paw Paw wrapped around her little fingers. When its time to be burped, she gets the royal treatment. Yep, she gets propped over his leg and Paw Paw reads her a book while he tries to pat those bubbles up for her. She seems pretty happy with the arraingement. Trust me, if she wasn't, she would let him know. She laughs at her Grammy a lot too. I dont' blame her one bit, I do the same thing. I laugh everytime I see this picture. That's my Bunny Rue Rue...and I can tell she is going to be a silly girl. I wouldn't want her any other way. She's getting so big and I'm missing all the cranky teething issues....whew. She's my girl. We talk on the phone, well she looks at the phone trying to figure out where the sound is coming from before she tries to chew on it and I do most of the talking. I just hear a bunch of heavy breathing and some laughing.

Finally! More Rue pictures

 If you keep on people long enough, you finally get some pictures of your neice. Rue is getting big. The little turd better stop growing, atleast until I get there. She's going to kill my back, I know that already....but that is just part of the deal. If you want to spoil her, she has to injure you, that is just the way it goes. Her 1/2 birthday is coming up on June 9th, but I already sent her present. She needed a book case for all of her books and toys...so I had it delivered earlier in the year.

Under supervision...

So today was the day that Sam had some of his Science project pals over to work on their big visual display. They needed to build a 3 foot by 3 foot jail of sorts to house their giant molecule. Don't asked me what the technical term of it is. I don't do the book learnin' I'm the contractor in charge of the dirty work. I went with Sam to Home Depo on Friday to pick up a crap load of supplies. We brain stormed and eyed materials before I came up with the easiest and cheapest way to do this thing. So, today I manned the jigsaw and did some prep work, like find the correct size drill bit so the dowels "bars" would fit into the pilot holes. I thought I was the only supervisor but we soon discovered that there was a pigeon on the roof that kept a close eye on all of us. He'd keep moving around but he was intently watching what we were doing. I was sure he was waiting for us to leave so he could drop a few poop bombs on the car. After all it was clean, those "rats with wings" love to mess up clean paint jobs. Anyway, we are letting the paint dry and the boys will be getting the rest of it done in the next few days. It's due on Friday, which means I have to take the seats out of the van to transport it. A nannies job is never done.
Funniest moment of the afternoon is a toss up between Nancy opening the door when they were almost done and shouting, "Holy Shit!" because she was surprised that it looked as good as it did and in such a short amount of time...OR.... When the boys were almost done drilling the holes for the bars and said that they only had one side left to drill. I said, "Nope you have three sides left." They looked at me funny and I said, "Think about it, you will get it." but when they still didn't get it and tried to argue with me, I said, "You have to drill the top holes, so that means you have to do the two parallel sides on the inside." To which I got a long, "OHHHHHH YEAHHHHHH!" My Parents raised a mechanically inclined daughter...those chumps should know this by now, sheesh!

What I made for Aunt Vickie...

OK, I can show you what I made for Aunt Vickie now. She received it in the mail on Friday. I made a wine bottle night light with grapes on the top and let me tell you, it looks prettier in person when its plugged in in a dark room. I just knew she needed one for her "wine cellar" theme she has going in her basement now that she has become a total wino lush....lol, I'm only joking. Shoot, she didn't drink for years so she has to make up for lost time. I have another set of red grapes and one set of green grapes so if Anyone else wants one...lol, I'll take orders. Actually, I might make a pair for the winery in Pawnee City Nebraska. That could be fun. Maybe Vickie could get some free booze out of it.

That's it...I need to start sewing doll quilts.

I have collected a lot of bargain fabric over the years. Most of it is fun stuff, very bright and kid friendly. I have wanted to learn to quilt and I honestly have to start with small projects because a huge quilt would be overwhelming for me. Anyway, since I have a baby niece now....I must, MUST make a dolly quilt for her. Plus my Cousin Jeff has a baby girl now and so Does my Godson's Uncle and my parents neighbors are expecting a girl in August. That means I need to get my rear in gear and make at least 4...5 if I count my friend Susan's new Grand daughter. I have some time because they won't be needing them until they are at least two years old, three would be better.

I didn't take a picture of the fabric that I have for dress up clothes. Remember I made all of those clothes for my friend Tami's little girls. Yep, and without patterns. Hey, I'm a fly by the seat of my pants kind of gal. I'm just lucky that I can visualize things. OK, so if I have not posted a pic of any dolly quilts by the end of October, yell at me. Sometimes I just need to be pushed into things. As of this minute though, I am planning to start work on them in August.

What finger are you?

You Are a Ring Finger

You are romantic, expressive, and hopeful. You see the best in everything.You are very artistic, and you see the world as your canvas. You are also drawn to the written word.Inventive and unique, you are often away in your own inner world. You get along well with: The Pinky Stay away from: The Index Finger

What a surprise!

I had lunch with Katie today and when the bill came, she said she was paying. Yep, Katie treated me to lunch, it was sort of my birthday present. How sweet is she! On top of that, we made plans to see a movie together. I can't wait.

I also managed to run all of my errands. I picked up more propane at the booze store in Freeport and the guy pissed me off. They had all the doors open because it was nice out and windy. I was walking up toward the door and was going to sit the tank down before I went it. I just wanted it to be in site so nobody took off with my refund. Anyway, the guys yells at me to leave it out side. I stopped and said, "Yes, I know that...I have been here before. I just wanted to sit it by the door." and he said, "Oh." in a grouchy manner. I was nice until he gave me the wrong change and brought it to his attention. He tried to argue with me for a minute until he figured out I was right. I hope his wife or girlfriend doesn't put out tonight...the man doesn't deserve it.

Anyway, I'm off to find a spot to put the last half of the flower flats in the ground. Total I a full flat of flowers left. That never happens. I think they will work great as filler though. I better get to it before the thunder storms roll in. The were predicting 5PM...I have a half hour to go.

Who is a happy camper?

I AM, I AM! OMG, you have no idea how much better I feel. I went to the doctor on Monday and told him again that I didn't like the way I felt on the medicine that he had me on. Last time I told him that he just doubled my dose....moron. Anyway, I told him, that the stuff only brought my bp down in the morning and afternoon and that it climbed back up in the evening and first thing in the morning before I took my dose again, plus it upset my stomach and I felt so low. FINALLY he took me off of it and put me on something else. Can I tell you, I feel so much better, its not even funny. I think the other medication was making me feel depressed. I really do. Yesterday I felt so much happier and my tummy didn't bother me at all, plus my bp was below the hypertension mark all day, all night, this morning and this afternoon. I have energy, I'm my old happy go lucky self again....yeah, life is good. Now if that ass would have listened to me the first time, I could have felt like this two months ago. Yet another reason I don't like doctors.

Look out, the old Netter is back.... oh, its a good thing, stop making that face.

I wanna keep it!

I just made something for my Aunt Vickie and I really want to keep it for myself. I think I will have to go back and buy some more supplies and make one for myself. I'm trying to decide if I should post a pic before she gets it or if I should wait. Hmmmm. Well, we will see.

More about yesterday...

I love going to the planting fields. It's just lovely and its good exercise. I could spend hours walking around on the property, weaving off the paths and strolling through the trees and shrubs. There were chipmunks all over the place, little lizards, and birds a plenty...everywhere you looked there was something zipping to and fro. Spring has finally arrived and all the trees are turning a lush green. Even if it was a tad bit humid, it was still a lovely day to be out in nature.

While we were in one of the greenhouses, Jean and I were trying to decide where the lovely fragrance was coming from. We finally discovered a blooming plant that was the culprit. Jean leaned in to get a good sniff and ended up with a streak of pollen on her face between her nose and her lips and cheek. Then we ran across a statue that reminded us of Katie...and so we had her pose next to it. Katie is always grabbing her boobs, its her signature move...lol, and I kid you not. We were clicking pictures left and right. I'm sure Katie got a ton of bad pictures of me. It was humid so it was a bad hair day, worse than usual I can only assume. I did have a great day though. Any day walking in a garden is a good day.

Katie is a sick puppy....

When my birthday rolls around, I can't wait to see what Katie creates for me. She makes naughty cards. Sometimes they are pronographic in nature, sometimes the are a tad more reserved but they are usually enough to make your tummy turn. They are great fun. They don't have a color printer but they are just as much fun in black and white. Are you ready to see this years card?

Are you really sure?

Once you see it, there is no turning back.

Ok, here you go.

Yep, that is the mind I helped nurture as a child. It's not my fault, really it isn't. lol....no, seriously, Katie is very creative and isn't afraid to offend. Lucklily, I know that when I get old and need someone to help take care of me...Katie loves me enough to touch my poop. That's what you call love.

Oh and as an added bonus...she made me this:


Uhhhh, yeah, she likes to spice things up by adding people like Michael Jackson and Dakota Fanning....even a little Henry Kissinger.

There is nothing like a walk through a garden...

To get a better view of all the lovely pictures that I took today, Click on the picture block.

I went to the Planting Fields with Katie and Jean today. When I woke up I was afraid it would be a bust because it was foggy, humid and spitting out. Luckily by 11AM, the sun was out and it turned out to be a lovely day for a walk.

Gonna party like its...

It's my Birthday! Finally it has arrived, thank goodness. Now I can open that package that I got from my Aunt Vic.....I wonder what it is? Hmmm.

I'm going shopping with Jean for new sneakers...fun. and Katie is going to be with us...so that will be great.

Gotta run, I need to get in the shower and fold some laundry really quick before all my stuff wrinkles. Then I'm out of here until mid afternoon. I do not want to spend my whole birthday in this house. I'll just be reminded of all the things I need to do or should be doing. It's my birthday, I don't hafta...lol. (that is what you call creative spelling)

My birthday wish is this: May everyone have a super day! Wasn't that nice of me to share my birthday wish....I sure thought so.

It's only words.

You.
Can.
Only.
Type.
One.
Word.

No.
Explanations.

1. Yourself: Fluffy
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend, spouse, significant other: invisible
3. Your hair: soft
4. Your mother: spunky
5. Your father: goofy
6. Your favorite item: kittens
7. Your dream last night: floating
8. Your favorite drink: malt
9. Your dream car: convertible
10. The room you are in: basement
11. Your ex: stupid
12. Your fear: forgotten
13. What you want to be in 10 years? alive
14. Who you hung out with last night? Sam
15. What you’re not? skinny
16. Muffins: blueberry
17. One of Your Wish List Items: jewelry
18. Time: fleeting
19. The last thing you did: typed
20. What you are wearing: pj's
21. Your favorite weather: sunny
22. Your favorite book: fiction
23. The last thing you ate: apple
24. Your life: blessed
25. Your mood: contemplative
26. Your best friend: Raine
27. What are you thinking about right now? Rue
28. Your car: Honda
29. What are you doing at the moment? blogging
30. Your summer: hot
31. Your relationship status: single
32. What is on your TV? nothing
33. What is the weather like? cool
34. When is the last time you laughed? today

I
Tag:
Marianne
Kare
Brandy
AJ
Sue
Peg
Priscilla
Andi
Kari
Lucy
Miyon
and
anyone
else
that
reads
this.
hehehe

I'm still here.

I know that I have not been showing my face on Blogger and Twitter as much as I normally do. I don't know what's up with that. I guess I needed some inspiration or something. I had things I could blog about. Wonderful Birthday packages that I received, crazy people that let their kids hang out the window of the car as they drive down the street...speeding and swerving because they are fixing their hair in the rear view mirror, yeah I have stuff that I could have blogged about.

Anyway, I'll get to it.

First my super package... Brandy tortured me with thoughts of this package for quite some time. I tried to get her hubbie Jeff to spill the beans about what was in the box but he knew he would be beaten to a pulp if he blabbed. DANG. So I opened it up...Brandy wrapped that package in so much clear packing tape that it took me forever to get into it. I mean I really had to preform surgery to get that bad boy open. Then the fun began...It's like the packages was endless. Brandy packed so many fun things in there. I have lots of bamboo needles to mess with, a change sock full of nickles and dimes so I won't be getting a parking fine anytime lately. It had a cord maker which I had been eyeing in the store, a yarn cutter which I had also been eyeing for myself, a funny book on how to make sock creatures with your cast off socks. Everyone knows how many cast off socks we have in this house...lol, a chunky sign that I'm hanging in my bathroom, a cute little "Let's Bee Friends" thingy that I put on my shelf in my bedroom and my favorite....The bag that she made for me. She had posted the yarn on her site and I had commented that it looked like sherbet ice cream and good enough to lick. I Loooove it. It's so soft too. Brandy really spoiled me. I'm not sure I deserve the spoiling but I sure do appreciate it.

I'm working on my spring swap and I'm about ready to tear my hair out. I'm telling you, this shouldn't be so hard. I made one already but I wasn't happy with it and decided that I would make a second one since I had worked the kinks out. RIGHT....I'm telling you, the easy part is taking forever today. I'm not sure why but I have been frogging it like crazy. I really need to put it down for a couple of days and try again then. I think I am just getting worked up and its causing me more stress. I have other things I can work on. Like the metal lawn chair photo frame.
My Grandpa Virgil had a metal chair like this and if you were sitting in it, he'd shoo you out of it. I swear it had his name on it. Grandma and Grandpa used to sit outside in the evenings and that was his designated sitting spot. His chair was silver with a red seat and back so I'm going to paint it with enamel paint and place his picture in it. The chair was very inexpensive so I don't mind putting a little time into it. I'll post a pic when I am done with it.

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