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Found this
at Cocoa Daisy
and just melted...
check it out. 

So worth it!

~hugs

Heartbreak...

"Heartbreak is life educating us"
                               ~george bernard shaw

I am sad to report that Despereaux Squeakling has passed away. 

We are not sure what happened but it could have been a number of things. 

He was so small

his mother was missing

his brothers as sisters were all popping up dead in various places at the school
(may have been poisoned)

but whatever it was,

we cared for him

and loved him

while he was with us. 

The worst part of it all

is that my kids are so sad. 

It is amazing...

the love they have in their hearts

for something that would repulse most.

I love them for that,

and hope they never lose it.

"no rodents!" and some bursts of creativity...

My son has wanted a hamster for as long as I can remember.

Every time we go to the pet store

(or happen anywhere around one)

it is as if he has a radar that goes off and it starts up all over again...

"can I have a hamster?"

"let's not start that again..."

"Mom listen, I have an idea... maybe when I am sixteen I can keep one in my car..." (which leads to a whole other dialogue about this delusion of his that he will magically get a car when he is sixteen...)

I am sure I will look back on all of this and laugh, right?

Last week

one of my colleagues at my school

told me that she stepped on a mouse

in her classroom

and didn't even know it!

I scoffed...

"stepped on a mouse? You would know if you stepped on a mouse."

She was so convinced that this really happened

and went on to tell me how flat it was

after the stepping, that is...

Now let me tell you,

I teach at a middle school,

and it is not above kids at this level

to play a little joke or two on teachers or other students.

I put it out of my mind and moved on.

Today, that same teacher told me she found

another little puffball but with obvious trauma

that caused its demise.

It was not flat this time

but was still in the same state as the other one,

dead.

A moment of silence for the little furry ones...

Just too weird...

as I said my goodbyes to my son this morning,

we walked into a short inner hallway

that leads

to the "mouse teacher's" classroom,

(sort of a tunnel from her room to mine)

I saw this little bit of fur and instantly flashed to the flattened and not so flattened critters...

This one was squeaking and

not

much

bigger

than

a goldfish cracker.

He could have used a small water bottle for a swimming pool.

Well, guess who found him first.

That is right...

my hamster wanting son.

Surprisingly, he trotted off to class without much more to say.

I scooped up the little guy and he was so stinkin' small...

what was I to do?

There are all sorts of creatures that would have loved a little snack such as him

but instead,

we ended up bringing him home.

Somehow,

the whole family loves him,

this poor little mother-less baby who chirps more than squeaks.

(he must know I like birds)

And after much deliberation and a family meeting,

we have decided to keep him.

Meet

Despereaux Squeakling

I know, it is nuts.

On another note...

I got my hands on 6 bistro chairs and started playing with one of them. 

The man that sold them to us had

this wonderfully thick

French accent.

He told us they came from France. 

Maybe they did,

maybe they didn't,

but it is certainly romantic to think they did...

They needed cleaning

and

a bit of paint

don't get me wrong,

I love distressed and used

but

these were sickly green with orange edges...

so I started by stripping one of the chairs. 

and guess what???

It WAS ORANGE! 

you know that old 70's style of staining?

ewwww....

sorry if you like that

but I just don't know how that was

ever attractive.

Saw this in a magazine once...

I used cardstock and cut out

a bunch of different sizes and fonts

of letters and numbers with my cricut.

I glued them to the chair

and then

painted the chair cream.

It isn't complete,

but here is an idea of where it is right now...

I think I like it.

Sometimes these ideas sound really great

and flop

and sometimes they actually

turn out ok.

hooray for ok!

there is still more to do. 

I want to lightly sand,

give some more coats

and distress with dark brown...

hopefully it will all still be ok!

Finally...

here is little turtle I

embroidered on a onsie

for a sweet little one on the way. 

it isn't much, but

the momma loves turtles

and I could not resist the chance to make

SOMETHING

for that little blessing!

~hugs

seems to be baby season around here...

just the other day

a girlfriend,

my neighbor,

came by to talk.

she asked if I had heard the big news.

what news? 

there is so much of it these days

(most of which i would like to block out)

she told me she is pregnant.

today, i went to a baby shower where three ladies are pregnant!

(one with twins!)

there were only 8 of us there...

I stayed away

from whatever water they were drinking.

next week i am going to another.

babies, babies, babies

but...
i love that baby smell,

no, not THAT smell,

the smell that is right in the center

of that swirl of hair

on the crown

of that sweet little angel's head

while asleep in your arms.

such peace,

such trust,

such calm.

I digress...

I have never been a big registry person. 

i mean,

i want to get the mom

or bride

or whoever

what they want,

but I love to give them

something that no one else will.

something unexpected,

something homemade.

I know it may be quirky...

but there is a lot of love that goes into each one

and each one is different.

Here is the one I made today

(some of the adhesive is still wet in the photo

and looks yucky,

but it came out ok)

the proud momma is having twins! 

bless her!!!

as i left the party

one of the "mothers to be" stopped me

and said,

"I want you to know, I am expecting a handmade gift too."

I smiled and said "of course."

fortunately,

she is only six weeks along...

i have some time.

~hugs

Whoosh....

it is Monday

trash day

and for my 12 year old's birthday

(in addition to all of the other goodies, of course)

i gave him something that money cannot buy

(well, at least not his money)

I told him i would take out the trash

for an entire MONTH!!!

needless to say,

he loved that.

as i was lugging our one bag out the door,

headed for those

large,

germ riddled,

daunting containers,

a warm breeze whooshed across the yard,

through the beautiful blooming jasmine

and right into my nose.

all of the sudden

that trash bag

full of

well,

trash

became a beautiful blessing.

the day is warm,

the sun is out,

our orange tree is heavy with citrus,

and the jasmine, oh the jasmine

it is just exploding

on our back fence.

i don't think

i would have ventured out there

if

i didn't need to take out the trash.

and i thought to myself,

sometimes,

just sometimes,

the gnarly jobs are full of joy too.

I hope you all have a trash experience today.

(just be sure to wash your hands afterward)

~hugs

silver sunday #5... what is it with shoes lately???

In keeping with my quirky tradition,

I am posting silver, but not really silver...

my mercury silver glass cup where I keep my paint brushes

the only ring i wear almost as much as my wedding ring
(can you tell it is a tree?)

and the shoes calling to me telling me that my trip to the gym is WwaAaaAYyyy overdue.

off I go...

~hugs

silver sunday #4... already?

for this 4th silver sunday

I will make this one short and sweet,

one photo,

one quote.

One shoe can change your life.  ~Cinderella

~hugs