Contrast to my greens

John and I went on a Jeep ride Monday and he stopped and did a few illegal U-turns for me.  These was a cool barn, I will show you some time this week, and after about 10 minutes of every angle and a guy on a motorcycle checking me out that he almost tipped it over I got back in the Jeep and then noticed I didn't get this shot.  I loved how the willow tree was hanging behind the Standard sign.  There is so much green right now that any contrast to it pulls me right in.   Maybe that guy was checking out the willow tree and not me :)

More Jazz

Jazzed Up Junk is all about color, bright, fun, style, creative, unique.....(as our husbands call it) "junk".    Jeannie and I are creating  daily.  Too bad we don't have my big garage in her location :)  Last Friday I was off of work so her and I went junking.... we are dangerous when we get together, the pick-up was full once again.  If you're up for an adventure and want to see all the creations mark your calendars for July 25th at 4:00, it's an afternoon of guaranteed smiles and lots of "oh that's so cute"

Here's another look....

How about some Jazz

Here's a peek into some Jazzed Up Junk.   After yesterday John thinks the colorful body painting I'm sporting is a bit sexy..... aqua, pink, lime green, red (and it doesn't wash off.... ) 

A child's footstool

A super cool bench

A fun funky lamp

A Jazzed Up Suitcase (perfect for storing little girls dress up clothes)

Lots more to come..... 

Memorial Weekend - Saturday

Today started out okay, no sun but no rain either so I got started on some painting jobs well that came to a halt when the rain started and didn't quit.  So I cleaned the house and made a fabulous lupper (lunch and supper) for us.  John and I pretty much eat when we're both hungry and sometimes that doesn't happen until like 3:00, so lupper it is.  I'm loving the new Bud Light Lime-A-Rita.  It's so good and in such a fun can, if you know me at all you know the package is what sells it for me.  Make the can green and pretty and I'm sold.  John likes to spoil me with a salt rimmed glass n/ice and it taste even better.   

I'll be showing you some Jazzed Up Junk during this holiday weekend and throwing stuff in between now and July 25th so stay tuned.  If you didn't get to last years sale you can't miss this one.  More stuff, more fun and of course reasonable prices.  Here is last years sale.... here or here or here or here or here.  If you like that you'll flip over our stash that's already waiting for the sale.  

Memorial Weekend - Friday

I so needed a holiday vacation to do stuff around the house.  I started on Friday, lots of errands done in the morning, bought lots of stuff for our upcoming Jazzed Up Junk Sale (July 25th, mark your calendars), painted, sanded, hammered, distressed lots of stuff, and planted many containers.  The night ended with a fire in the pit, it was a enjoyable night.  Here is the porch with our candle lamps and the patio heater glowing.  So comfy warm we almost forgot to go to bed.  I love long weekends.

Rainbow

tonight after the storms there was a beautiful rainbow but it was still quite dark.   I took a couple photos and my phone was buzzing in my back pocket...

text - do u c the gr8 rainbo?

me - I do I am taking pics of it

text - we were going on 13.  Looks like the pot o gold is in yr yard

me - no $ here but beautiful pics are bein' taken

Charlie 6 months - Sneak Peek

 Back when Lynn was going into 1st grade she had to transfer to a different school so being the worried mom that I am I wondered if the kids would accept her or be mean to her.  Come on I know it's fun to be mean to the new kid.... I'm sure I did it myself :)

I was talking with another mom and she told me that her daughter, Sarah, was in the same grade so she would tell her to watch for Lynn and be her friend.  She did and they were friends all through school.  Sarah called me the other day to see if I could take pictures of her little boy.  I swear this little man is as sweet as she is, he's tall for 6 months but so tiny and light.  It could be that I'm used to picking up Maxwell.  Those big blue eyes and that cute little face..... I ate him right up and he loved all the snuggles he could get. 

He was sitting really well already which makes my job lots easier and with his cuteness I enjoyed ever minute of it. 

Grandma loves to buy him clothes so we had plenty of outfit changes.

Oh Charlie you make my heart melt....

He had a new swimming outfit so I grabbed the basket that we used to put our towels in at the city pool.  Sarah even remembered putting her towels in those baskets.  

Thank you Sarah for letting me snuggle with Charlie, I love his name.  

Baby Bump + Sneak Peek

This young lady is near and dear to my heart and I can't wait to meet their little one and I can't wait to watch her be a mom.  I've watched Nikki grow from a little girl, through her teenage years, schooling, work, taking care of her Grandma, getting married and now having a baby.  

I remember the song her daddy wrote her on her wedding day...... one verse was to make them grandparents soon!!  Well here they are pretty darn close to that moment.  

I love me a perfect baby bump!!

They are both loving every minute of this time in their lives.  

One of Mike's t-shirts for Nikki to wear...... fit her perfectly

And of course Mike couldn't resist

Another thing Mike couldn't resist...... 

What a wonderful way to spend the afternoon, these two will make wonderful parents and I can't wait to snuggle with their little one.  

Family Sneak Peek 1 Year Older

This family was here about a year ago and had some pretty sweet photos.  The 3 boys are so fun and energetic, they knew their little sister would be a bit shy in front of the camera so they stayed in position for when we could get her in.  

We tried to distract her with a tea party which worked for about 7 seconds. 

Right here is when she noticed mom got too far away from her.

The three boys hammed it up while she warmed up a bit more.

Even a change of shirts..... love the tough boy look.

Little washed out look for those tough boys.  Dad bought these shirts for them so this was his request.

We got her to sit on the horse for another 7 seconds so mom could have a 2 year photo for her wall.  Grandma was with and said she had the same problem with her mother's 2 year photo, she only got one pose and there was a big ball in it.  I guess it was payback time and sometimes you just have to let the kids be who they are.

Since the horse was a bit of a hit we quickly changed those boys back to their polo shirts and tried to get one more.  

No matter what these children are adorable and very sweet, this mom is very proud of her children and should continue to be.  Such a beautiful family.

There's a bear in the tree!!!

There's a bear in the tree...... right down the road.

Okay so do you think I'm a bit close to a momma bear in the a tree with her cub on her back?  When will I ever learn to take safety into consideration when getting the perfect shot?  So let's go under the tree to the other side so i can get her cute little face.... yea that's my thinking

Isn't she cute and she couldn't hurt me right?  Her claws aren't that long and pointy..... Okay so maybe we should have thought about no being so close but she was so comfy up there.  These photos were taken about 7PM and she had climbed up there about 5AM that day, she wasn't coming down.  The DNR or police didn't seem to want to help this family with a bear in their backyard so they played the waiting game until she was ready to come down.  These photos were taken right from their patio.  

I did think about not being very safe a couple times during her photoshoot.  I knew I couldn't run faster than her but I was pretty sure I could run faster than John so I felt a bit safer.

Yellow weeds

So let's make these pretty since they are driving everyone crazy.  

I swear everyone is talking about them this year and I think it's because they are so bright and reflect the sunlight making them look brighter and yellower than normal.  

I see fields, and fields, and more fields......covered in yellow on my drive home and think..... ohhhh that is so pretty.  I see them covering my lawn and I think oh maybe they aren't so pretty....... then I walk through my flower beds and think....... these dang weeds have got to go.  

But they are oh so pretty in places that I don't have to weed and reflect he sunset in ways that take your breath away.  

Still here

I'm still here.  Life has gotten busy and something had to be put on the back burner and the blog happen to be what I chose.  I've been working on a few projects that have consumed all my time after an already full day of work.  But...... I have enjoyed every minute of it, it's something I needed to do for myself.  So I'll be back when I can and hopefully you'll keep checking in on me.  

The other night I took a walk outside and the crab apple tree was moving and buzzing with thousands of bees.  Of course I grabbed the camera to see if I could stop one of those bees in action.  I love that you can see the pollen on his legs.   He's a busy little bee.... I can relate to him :)

And one more just because I've been gone for so long.

Do something for yourself and if nows not the time then ask yourself "if not now, then when?"