18 Years.

Almost 50% of marriages today end in divorce.

This year, especially, my husband and I have been bombarded with this news; couples that have been a constant in our lives, are no longer. It always leaves us shocked, sad, & dumbfounded. I listen to these people and hear the very same situations & feelings we’ve experienced. “What is the tipping point?”, I always wonder. Sometimes I can understand, and sometimes I just don’t get it.

Whatever love gods were at work when Mister & I were “matched”, they were on their “A” game that day. This is not to say it is love rainbows and unicorns over here.

 

Far, very far, from it. The running anecdote in our house is, “You may not be perfect, but you’re perfect for me.”

 

{Throw Back--Circa 1993ish}

Jacked up on Coffee & A Day Off

Procrastination in my gig--there are a few preferred methods, but the old doodle bug makes the top 10 list of ways to NOT do the laundry.

I'm on a PTO today (a glorious day of paid time off) and after I've consumed an entire pot of coffee  and read through my blogroll, naturally, the only thing left to do was draw.

(Really? The 1/4" inch of milk in the frig was maybe a good indicator that the grocery store may be more of a priority today but hell, no one is starving in this house.)

I doodled my sister's family to give them for a housewarming gift: I don't cook well so art vs. a casserole is a NO-BRAINER.

 

 

And then, well, I was on a roll:

 

 

The library is my own personal nirvana. Books are the ticket to paradise--I can think of only a few things better than curling up on a cloudy Sunday with a good book. This doodle is destined for more, but the idea is still percolating.

 





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Random Thought #2

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This week at work we had a "Creating Your Legacy" workshop. I tried to keep an open mind, but it was slammed shut after:

 a.) listening to a panelists of "leaders" talk about their jobs. My job and what I leave this world, do not co-exist--other than financially and in a lesson to those after me to please listsen, "Do NOT do anything JUST for money."
and
 b.) then we were asked to volunteer to share our work.

And this girl is, Done.

I take this self-reflection crap seriously and frankly, an introspective exercise should not be made into a group project if you want to do it right.

But, I was reminded that these books I'm filling up with my thoughts/words, might just be considered something of a legacy.

Nice. I've left random thoughts & partial pages. Your "mom/grandma/great grandma" is not a fan of mass gatherings. Your "dad/grandpa/great grandpa" is a smartass.

Your "mom/grandma/ great grandma" hates her hair, nuetral clothing colors, and being cold.

 

& Your "mom/grandma/ great grandma" considers self-inflicted violence to deal with irritation.

Yep, nice. Really nice legacy.

Yuletide Groove

Maybe this happens to every mama once their kids get big-the unChristmas spirit. The believing is gone, the magic subsides, and you’re left with a dusty, broken, and incredibly fake Christmas tree that no one wants to help you decorate.

 

Even you don’t know if you can muster the gumption to dig the thing out of the storage room.

 

IF you find it in your heart to just wrestle the tree up the stairs, you know for sure you do not have it in you for the rest of the yuletide paraphernalia you’ve accumulated.

And as long as we’re being truthful, you aren’t really sure if you ever really liked stuffed snowmen and ceramic replicas of Tiny Tim’s village OR if they just symbolized something greater.

 

The talk of “Something greater” always brings me here: nostalgic and wanton for those feety-pajamed little kids. A six year old would never allow this seasonal apathy.

 

Sadly (or not), finding a few more feety-pajamaed, giggly, tow-headed toddlers to play with is out of the question for us so I needed another route to find my spirit.

(Because the truth is, even these “reluctant to help”, non-believer big kids would balk if Christmas went ignored in this house.)

 

No joy would come of unstacking the 500 boxes of Christmas crap to get to that stupid tree, so I did what any resourceful person would do. Bought a new one; a fresh start for my holiday spirit.

 

Completely untraditional (and really cheap) tree that everyone, Big Mister included, thought was the dumbest and most unChristmas idea on the earth.

 

Behold…the chic, glittery, color coordinated key to getting my mojo back.

 

 

(flash)

 

(no flash)

 

 I spent the next few days, jazzed to get Christmas back.

I chalked some art for above the fireplace (thrilled!) and added nothing but a few pops of “red” at the request of the mister. No snowmen, no houses, no candy canes—nothing I didn’t love.

 

I do love a twist of the traditional, so I set about making small pieces of our family’s tradition visible; a little here, a little there.

 

Our stockings and my inheritance (a set of hand embroidered alphabet ornaments by my mom back in the 70’s that I was just given a few years ago) We used these as kids on our Christmas tree--I treasure every last letter.

 

 

The nerd girls that I've been whipping up, finally, have a place to live.

 

 

See? She's super happy to be living at the corner of Glittery & White.

 

 

And so is she...

 

 

It's a party under the tree over here...

 

Disbelievers and Freaks on a Whim

Christmas is over-I have a food, snow, and cooped up in the house hangover that I've been nursing with a needle, some fabric, and a little bit of fire.

Google Reader has been overflowing with blog goodness from all the "crafties" I adore--their projects and handmade gifts, the glitter, the bling. I couldn't stand it. These few days off would never come...Ah, but yes, they did.

My reward for wrapping all the presents was to allow myself the time to make these. Tutuorial here (yes, fire is involved.) These are so much better than pulling artificial flowers apart--you get to pick the color and the shape.. You get to play regular old Mother Nature for these.

I added tulle in between the layers of some of mine and of course, not complete in my world without some vintage bling for the middles.

I had a hard time parting with this rhinestone button. I often wonder what the original garment looked like that this was salvaged from.

The green looks sage in these photos--in the real world, it's a vibrant silky lime color.

I've been a sucker for rosettes on anything for the last year or so--if there are flowers, it automatically visits my closet.

I am fortunate (or unfortunate depending on how you look at it) to have some very close family (Sarah, this is you) and friends who- I'll just say it-think I am the biggest freak ever. (A freak in the most loving way, but still...)

They are just people who need to have a reason for things. They have no use for "pretty" without a purpose. Things cannot just "be"-they must have function.

I, on the other hand, have purchased dish soap for the fragrance, really gross salsa because it had a cool label, pounds of paper just because I loved the design, and a magazine subscription for a magazine written entirely in French (which I don't speak) strictly for the pictures. Yes, you can say it, f-r-e-a-k.

Well, for my loving sister who was sporting a Kum & Go sweatshirt (apparently, this is a gas station chain in Iowa) and reluctantly, my flower pin for good measure this Christmas AND my practical friend who just needs minor usage inspiration-a bit of help....

Yes, that's the First Lady sporting a flower pin, and the lovely Sarah Jessica Parker. JCrew also believes me and so does Anthropologie. These are definitely not "matronly"---(Sarah's word, not mine) little sister. Where did I come from?

If the flowers weren't bad enough, you can about imagine what Sarah would think if she saw these? I actually spent time "glittering" clothespins.

The uses are many--to hold your wishes. (Be careful what you use it on...)

A book marker? (Is that one word or two?)

A magnet to hold a favorite photo?

Pretty can have function or just be--it's possible. It's also possible that I may have a small freakish problem with aesthetics.

See you soon at the Market-wearing and believing in pretty.

Feeling Old? Don't Read Any Further.

I think we receive moments, glimpses of perspective, flickers of our lives as they progress. There are moments of sheer joy, utter contentment, ahas, sadness, grief, loss, confusion, etc.. yada yada.

They really all mean one thing and that is simply, Life goes on. It continues to happen, with or without your buy-in or approval.

When you stop and take note of a moment, when you recognize it for what is, when you twirl it around your subconscious- this is when those moments can equate to either growth or acceptance.

Not profound, but I’m confessing. Sometimes I take my life for granted.
I’ve received a few moments in the last few days that have hit me that my life is continuing and I might have missed some time somewhere.

At the job I do for money, things are always changing. People leave the company, people get hired. The job pool is full of college graduates looking for work. They often end up here. Their ages never meant anything to me-they became my peers, my co-workers and that was that.
Until, that is, this past week, when I received the moments. Two to be exact-same context for both.)

The conversation went something like this;
Newbie, “ You own a boutique? Cool. I’ll have to ask you for ideas for my 16 year old sister’s birthday.”
Me,” Yeah, I’m pretty familiar with that age. My daughter is 16.”

Little Miss

Now, just when did I become the “mom”? My own little sister was 16 once and it seems like yesterday.

Sister and I

The other was a reference from another newbie-her little brother’s age-12.
So at the same time her mom brought her brother home from the hospital, we added Little Mister to our family.

Little Mister

This morning I hear this list on the radio:
http://www.kare11.com/news/national/national_article.aspx?storyid=822664&catid=18
The list consists of how new college students see the world.

The two that really did me in were:
- According to the list, most students entering college this fall were born in 1991.
(1991 was one of the best and most carefree years of my life. I can’t fathom that these kids were just babies when I was trying to look cool with a pack of Salem Lights.)


- They have never had to "shake down" an oral thermometer. (What? I mean this is one gesture that we all copied from our moms. You play house, dolly is sick, you shake the thermometer to take her temperature.)


I’m reduced to sharing “When I was young…” declarations with my own children.
My parents are old in the same way I’ll always be old to my children. It’s all relative.

The best we can hope for then, is to keep our spirits young. I feel like the same 17 year old just with a mortgage, a few added responsibilities, and a different perspective.

So, I’ll continue to take my kid’s temperature “old school”, complete with “shaking it down”-they’ll be able to amaze their friends with the “vintage” technology their mom taught them. I might still be cool. (or whatever the word is these days.)

Fathers, Fabric, and Fortune

Happy Father's Day, Dad.


My father's lessons:



1.) If you have love, you need nothing else.

2.) Out of everything, there is a blessing.

3.) When you love someone, it is forever, no matter what.

Love you, Dad.


Got an email on Friday from my inner conscience (also known as Mrs. Possibility). She has this uncanny ability to just always get it, no matter what. To tell it like it is and to remain calm, to trust and know herself. I aspire to have it..

Anyways, the email...

Point #1-Because the day...stretching outbefore me...filled (at the moment) with limitless opportunities...is...ALL IHAVE!

Point #2-This is...Your Day.
Not "their" day.
This Day belongs...ULTIMATELY...to You.
Not "them."

Talk about rattling a core. (And guilt for not living today!) Thank you, Mrs. Possibility. I needed the "time out".

So, I lived a little, my style, this weekend and tackled this bag by Sew Liberated.

I also found Scrap Fabric Use #103...Fabric Fortune Cookies(tutorial here).. (I wonder to myself Why all the Asian inspired stuff lately? I haven't a clue.) We could all use some encouragement every now and then. (Especially if Dad isn't available or Mrs. Possibility is single-handedly
busy running her empire and family...thank you universe for these people.

Happy Sunday!

I used this quote for one of the cookies, only I wrote it out of sequence but still, a goodie.


"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think."
Author: Christopher Robin