best wishes for.....

party pictures tommorrow!

hugz and blessings to you all for a peaceful, joyous, splendid, artful NEW YEAR!!!

NATURE'S ART

when the weight of the day
becomes overwhelming,
bear the brunt of the storm,
for soon the layers will melt into the soul of your being
and nourish the new life that sleeps
only to be awakened in the warm sun of new season.

the snow...

came and went...we ended up with a white out for a better part of the day today...AND 6" approximately of the heavy wet snowman building snow!...i worked on my recipe for the sweet treat recipe swap for karla and beth. I chose a recipe that my mom made all the time when we were young! IT'S VERY VERY YUMMY!



well while i worked on my recipe maddy and maxx and kevin played in the snow at their house...they built four snowpeople in front of their house...maxx took his first sled ride although, in his full snowsuit, he couldn't move and resembled the little boy from A CHRISTMAS STORY




MADDY HAD A GREAT TIME





...AND THE FAMILY HAS GROWN bY FOUR!

happy hugz that the snow is over...for today!

as we sit and wait...

for the BIG storm that was supposed to begin this morning at 6...hmmm looking out the window...still nothing...supposed to be 4-6 inches of heavy wet snow...tap tap tapping finger on the desk...and maddy PROMISED that she would help build a snowman for me! and we could wrap his neck with a pretty scarf...time will tell!

yesterday i spent the bulk of the day working on swap art...it was a grand feeling! I finished components of the banner swap....
my word that i'm working on is ART...




then i finished up a fabric book page for another group...the theme of this book is FAIRY CHILDREN!





was a busy day!

so what did everyone get for Christmas!? I had asked for Ox, Moxy and Babo for me! My hubby just scratched his head and goes...what the heck is an OX,moxy AND BABO??? well shannon showed him and they appeared! here they are in my Christmas tree...the little rascals...they are going to move into my studio to kick my muse in her tushy...i think they will take over the studio...



On christmas day we realized that Maxx got a new tooth from santa!





hard to photo such a wiggly head...lol..and you DON'T WANT TO PUT YOUR FINGERS ANYWHERE NEAR THE BOYS MOUTH...he's dangerous...if he thinks food is coming his way! hee hee...

here's auntie kaleigh holding him...you can see that she got some more color added into her tatoo...



and here is miss maddysen with her new baby LILY...who will be sleeping in the new bed that i refinished! Lily talks and moves and KNOWS her blanket, teddy bear and bottle...and asks for them...heehee..



she is such a little mommy!


well i hope everyone is enjoying the holidays and staying safe and warm!!! big hugz until next time!

and the winner is..........................drumroll....

we actually let maxx pick this time so we folded all the papers and put them in a pile and maxx picked up two then dropped one and promptly stuck the one left in his hand into his mouth...

after getting it back...and unfolding the damp piece of paper...we found...........


MIJA'S NAME!!!

CONGRATS...

I'LL BE IN TOUCH!

HUGZ

plain and simple

leave a comment for this post. I am putting together a mystery suprize for someone... I will have miss maddysen pick a name in the morning tommmorrow!

good luck

MAY THE SPIRIT OF THE HOLIDAYS BRING YOU PEACE AND JOY!

VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

HUGZ AND LOVE

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!!

the kitties didn't survive....they crumbled...so PLAN B!

sweet theresa sent me the ballet sheet from paperwhimsy and there it was just sitting there...and you know how much maddy loves dance!!! VOILA!

down to the wire...and the bed is finished...well as finished as it will be for right now....i still want to find some crystal drawer handles..small ones ish and add them to the four posts of the bed...but i will let maddy help pick some out....also open to other ideas too!

here is the bed all painted and pink...and glittery...i put the alphabet on the bedrail as when maddy was a baby...the guys always said that they didn't know any lullabys...to sing to her...(excuses)..well we began singing the alphabet...so there could be no excuses! we figured that she would learn the alphabet early (which she did!!!) the only draw back would be that once in school she may fall asleep! hee hee

i used some textured wall paper for the inset and some vintage tulle for the bed "skirt"
i also glittered the headboard and the crown on the footboard! i made a mattress and covered it with some of the silky fun fur and minky on the reverse... and made a flat pillow to match...so here is the transformed bed... the original is down a few posts...









gotta run...and finish the deviled eggs and ranch potatoes!

BIG HUGZ AND LOVE
BARB

i can hear the Christmas bells!

getting closer and closer! We had our Burkard family Christmas gathering today...I think the family is getting bigger each moment! One of my nieces is expecting again...but she is the only one thus far...

I did this scrapbook page for maddy to show her new Christmas outfit for the season!
It's funny to look back on the different outfits from years gone by...as we do new pages often!

...Maddy got to wear her new dress with leggings and and and...she got a sweet necklace, bracelet and earrings as an early giftie...emblazened with a rhinestone glittery M...on each...



i can also now post a pic of an art purse i made for one of my nieces...she saw my turquoise and brown bag and had asked me to make one for her...so i suprized her today...and had santa call her up with the children...to receive a gift...all the while she was saying...i'm going to "get" the person who did this...lol...little did she know...lol...




on the backside i took pictures of her four children and inserted them into clear acryllic buttons...





the other day maxx got to meet RONALD MCDONALD! ron was suprized that maxx wasn't afraid of him...since clowns get a bad wrap...lol i think deep down maxx was thinking "you have got to be kidding..." or "geepers...look at all that hair...could i borrow some?"




STAY TUNED!!!! Christmas day i'll be having a give away...until the next post..take care and big

HUGZ

miss maddysen's new do...

maddy received a new look today! she went to the salon where auntie kaleigh works and told her what look she would like...she has been reading the american girl books and is quite taken with Kit...she loves the clothes that kit wears...and wanted a hairstyle similar to hers...so may i present....



miss maddysen BEFORE AND AFTER! she loves her new hair! she was patting it's poofiness all night and how now she could wear matching clips or a side bow in her hair...

have a wonderful evening!

hugz

SUCH A DAY...

i began today with high expectations of getting done more than i did! I had two purses to finish...and i got 1 3/4 done....this one is for Kaleigh's best friend as a suprize for xmas...the girls went to see RENT in chicago...when they were in highschool...and the struck this pose for a photo from the play...i just kind of altered it a bit...





I am almost done with the second purse...so photos tommorrow...gotta let the buttons dry...you will understand this better when you see it!

today i finished feeding maxx his lunch, set him down on the floor and went to get a cloth to clean him up...wellllll he was soooo quiet...usually he's yelling "MA....MA....MA...." when noone is around...so i walked back into the room...oh my...did i boo boo...



I LEFT THE WIPE BOX OPEN....

he was sitting in a sea of white....
and then he looked up at me when he realized i was watching and snapping some pics...
like "WHO ME...I DIDN'T DO IT!"



so i'm scooping up the wipes...and the phone is ringing...(why does this happen...all at once?) It was Maddysen's school...she was sick and had to be picked up...then the phone beeped in...a second time...robbie was at my in-laws shoveling their driveway...and was ready to be picked up too...so alas...some of my things were pushed into tomorrow...and i'm beat....poor maddy is really sick...she got sick three times here at my house...her christmas party is tommorrow at school...and she's sooo upset that she can't be there...so we are thinking that if she's feeling a bit better maybe we will bring out the tea set and have a tiny Christmas tea party in the afternoon...with a bit of peppermint tea stirred with candy canes...

take care and

it was snowing snowballs!

the snow looked surreal! huge gianormous snow flakes....3-4" across...if you could catch the fluffy stuff!
All the schools were closed...as we were expecting the worst...it snowed and snowed but really no ice! they shoveled all day...as the footprints filled up faster than the shovels could push it away...I did get alot of art work done and begun for swaps that don't start until next year! as maddy would say (with a tiny twist from me) i got my Ahead in the game!

stay warm!

a special gift...

I found this sweet dolly bed at a flea market and have had it hidden away. I am going to repaint it and get a sweet quilt and mattress pillow for it ... for maddy for Christmas.



I simply love the kitty's on the head and foot of the bed and i know maddy will too...but i've been wrangling with how the heck i'm going to save them...well i decided that i will photo them and then print out the photo onto lazertran paper and replace the originals after i repaint the bed....





I bought some creamy pale pale pink paint...(she's getting a new baby girl dolly from santa) then i'll replace the kitty's with the new (old) prints...

I think she is going to love it! What do you think?

hugz

what you've been waiting for...

tick tick tick

the princess is ready to go....

tick tick tick

wait..."nonnie why do i have to pick just one...can't they all win?" oh all the questions of a 6 year old!



"nonnie, so what would happen if i just grabbed them all?..."

"nonnie, are they all my really aunties?"



AND THE WINNER IS...........................................................



big HUGZ and you are all winners in my book!

funky little collages...

that came to be...last week...listening to one of the girls complain they had nothing to wear and if i could just "whip something up for them"...so i started thinking what price eve had to pay just to get that special outfit...lol...I collaged some vintage sewing patterns and pages from a 1909 mccalls magazine...then i painted an eve figure...when there was nothing to wear...



then i couldn't stop at just one....



keep signing up to win that bracelet!

hugz

NUMBER 100 POST!!!!

Hard to believe that I have reached my number 100 post! (blowing whistle and donning party hat in honor!!!) Join me in this celebration! For the comments left on this post from now thru Saturday ending 12:00 noon CST. I will draw a name...er ah i mean Princess Maddysen, the official name drawer at our house, will draw a name from within her tiara and I will create a name bracelet for that person...(strands up to 4) for the winner! the pictured bracelet has two names for example. Good luck!


It is very cold here and actually feels like Christmas! It began today at 7 degrees...brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...shiver shiver! We were suppose to get 2-4" of fluffy white again but it was supposed to start at 4...still nothing...traffic flowing smoothly.
Everyone have a wonderful evening and remember to leave a comment!

HUGZ

found out...yesterday...

less than a month until Christmas...that they are sending 3000 guard troops back to iraq, afganistan etc...in 2009...as it looks right now...kevin may be leaving again...wishing they could have waited to break the news until after the holidays...

keep them all in your prayers...

hugz

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

TO MY ROBBIE! hard to believe he's already 19!!!! He was born at 3:45 in the morning...he was the biggest of all the kidlets..at 7lbs 4oz...just over a 3 hour labor...shortest of all four kids...but then shannon was my longest labor at 5 1/2 hours...

here is MY BABY at 9 months of age...(he wouldn't let me take a current pic...so i altered a favorite!



HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY!

HUGZ

worked a bit this last week

on a couple of altered books...the first one is for a FLOWER CHILDREN theme...
the book is created with a victorian style photo album!



the second one has a THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT theme...



I wrote above the house top:

their bony fingers scratched the black-green sky as they stretched to greet the moon

something i have to say about scary stuff...i'm not a big fan of the movies...lol

my thought for the day? if there is scary music playing at random in the area of the place you are in...DON'T GO IN THE BASEMENT!...

have a wonderful day! i'm thinking this is post no. 95...5 to go then a PRIZE!

HUGZ

LISTED

ON EBAY...A HUGE LOT OF VINTAGE ROSARIES AND RELIGIOUS MEDALS! WOULD BE PERFECT FOR RECREATION OF NEW VINTAGE MIXED MEDIA JEWELRY!...Going thru the studio and will be listing overflow this week! Look for cabinet photos, vintage goodies of all kinds!

ebay user id: 123*lavender*lollipop*lane

My 100th post will be soon! and i will be having a giveaway in it's honor! Will be something very special!

hugz