Come shop Vintage 615!

Just a quick announcement to say Vintage 615 in Spring Hill has started to carry a collection of my art! Yay!! Clever name, eh? ~ 615 is our area code.

If you are local, please come by and support this business!

A peek inside my "studio"

Often, when I talk about what I've been doing, I will refer to time in my "art studio".  Many of my Facebook friends have asked me to post pictures of my art studio or commented about being jealous.  Probably because it sounds a lot more glamorous than it really is!!

My "studio" is really just a small part of our unfinished basement.  My little nook of peace and solitude.  No fancy lighting, decor or design here....I don't even have finished walls and my "rug" is a moving blanket on the floor!  But it is my little space and I enjoy being able to create here, make a mess and leave projects to work on later.

Yesterday I cleaned it up so I could get started on some new projects.  I decided to take some pictures for the curious to see.

So here it is...

Where my puppies like to lay while I create.  Occasionally, I get a friend that will sit here and visit too.

My table where I make the biggest mess.  Nothing special here, just a plastic table with paper on it.

My crazy paint, spray and ink supply!

Love picking up cool containers for my stuff like these old soda crates.

Some of my frequently used stamps.

Clean canvases, awaiting their turn.

 Canvases I have started.  They have backgrounds or need finishing touches.

And my desk/table I saved from the garbage...you can see my re-do on this gem here.

One day I will have walls, paint, nicer storage and funky floors, but until then this is my little corner of paradise. Hope you enjoy this little peek of my world!

My Champions

Another end to a great soccer season with Vince coaching Ben's spring team.  He loves to coach these boys and feels he is investing time into them as well as showing our son his love.

These boys have grown up around Vince (literally ~ they are getting so big) and he has been able to serve as their coach since the elementary school years.

Last night was our last game...the championship game.  It was our blue Screaming Eagles against the "red" team.  They were a tough opponent last game but we beat them 1-0.  Last night they proved to be tough again.  We scored about halfway through the first half and led them 1-0 until the last five minutes of the second half when they scored and tied it up 1-1.  Our goalie, Josiah, played an outstanding game stopping too many goals to keep count! The one that went in was just one of those unstoppable "perfect shots".  Time ended and we went into overtime.   The red team scored first in overtime, time was running out and if we didn't score, game was over.  Time ran out again and we ended up losing 2-1.

Now, I must say I was quite proud of these kids.  They held their head up high, shook hands and truly complimented the other team on their great play.  No tears, no tantrums.  Trust me, they have come a long way since those elementary years.

They stopped and posed for pictures with their "runner-up" trophies and you just felt they were happy even though they were not named "champions".

A parent emailed Vince and cc'd all the parents his message.  I think he said it best:

Vince, I appreciate so much who you are and what you are to my son, Sam.

While he might not have a first place trophy on the mantle, there is an image of a champion in his heart and mind that looks just like you, and for a father of a boy (a boy who is still mostly afterburner and not enough rudder, yet),  that’s invaluable.

Thank you sir for a great year.  Alan Lennon

Well said.  I am proud of my husband for taking the time to coach these young men and proud of my son for growing into a champion of the heart!

Time with Dad

One of the reasons I love my husband so much is because he has a heart the size of Texas!  He is a very giving person and once you are in his very small, selective tribe, you are there for life.  He literally would do anything for those he loves.

Of course, being a dad, his kids have that extra special tug on him.  I like to joke around and sometimes call him "Daddy Big Fun" because he is a child in an adult's body...he is always looking to goof off and joke around and most the time we laugh, we are laughing at him not with him, but he doesn't care because he made us laugh.

Every day he plays a game of basketball with Ben in the driveway.  I honestly think Ben looks forward to this every afternoon ~ rain, cold, hot, tired ~ no matter, they play.

I love to sit out and watch them ~ Ben likes to show off for me when I do and usually makes some amazing three-pointers.  Both of them smack talk and joke around.

It's such a great thing and I am sure will be a great memory for Ben one day when he reflects on his childhood.  So I thought I would capture one of their games on film and post them for prosperity.

Ben trying to "juke" his dad.

Little smirk of success!

Mother's Day

It was a lovely Mother's Day for me. I spent the day being pampered and spoiled by my family.  My beautiful daughter made me her very own recipe of cinnamon pancakes and served it with some piping hot coffee.  My son created a treasure hunt for me to find the presents that he and Sarah so carefully selected at the store.  Plus there were art drawings and handmade cards ~ my favorites.

It is hard to believe this is my 17th Mother's Day I have been able to celebrate as a mom!  I feel like the luckiest person in the world to be able to call myself a mom...and to be a mom to Sarah, Haleigh  and Ben has been the hardest, yet most rewarding job in the world.

I often remember my mom saying "it goes so fast" ... (and she still says it today) but as a kid, I never felt like growing up was going fast enough.  It was all I could do not to count days between birthdays!  And she is right, it does go by too fast.  So fast that I would just like to punch time in the face!  Time is my worst enemy.

Thank you too to my mom who worked hard to raise me and teach me values.  She was very protective (probably a little more than I liked) but always had my back and my best interest.  I love you.

(my family ~ me, dad, mom, and my brother James)

Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day!

Spring has SPRUNG!

This is a picture near the entrance of our neighborhood of the cherry trees in bloom. Every year I say I am going to take a photo and end up waiting too late. But this year I got a perfect photo! Yay!

While Vince was in Russia, I dug in deep...to my backyard, that is.  I spent several hours digging, weeding, planting, going to Lowe's and then going to Lowe's again. At one point I had planted 48 plants in our yard! (and no, that does NOT count the annuals).

It was all worth it because our backyard looks great and I have been enjoying sitting on my deck watching the birds, drinking my coffee and taking in the scenery before the hot days of summer turn everything brown and crispy!

So I thought I'd share a few photos with you...

I think Van Gogh painted my garden! :)

Morning dew on the Hibiscus.

Iris in full bloom along my garden gate edge.

I love blue flowers in my garden...not sure why, but I find them very appealing. Here is some larkspur.

This is the second year I am trying poppies. I love poppies, they are just so carefree.  But if they don't turn out to be soldiers in the garden this year, they won't be coming back to my yard next year! 

Just some other iris blooming around the yard. I love to try and find new and unusual colors. I planted some this year  (that won't bloom until next year) that are blue. See? I told you I like blue flowers! :)

 And I love the unusual shape of the digitalis ~ aka: Foxglove. They are delicate and stately all at the same time!

And my favorites... peonies! They are sooo close to bursting into bloom (usually by Mother's Day)...I can not wait.

Happy Spring & Blossoms!

Pretty for Prom

It was Sarah's first prom! She went as a sophomore with her boyfriend Cody.  Here are a few snapshots of Sarah and her prom group...just two couples at our house and a whole gang of kids met up at the barn for me do their photos.

I think they all look great!