family

A Denver retreat

family, paintings, Travel
By /

We had a family get together in Denver at a relaxing resort.  While there, I spent some time painting.  Mostly in the room between times when we had plans.

But do you know what was even better?  It was when the sisters-in-law gathered poolside to craft and chat about what is going on in our lives.  We simply do not see each other nearly enough for as much as we enjoy being together.

The hotel had a spa and a golf course.  And I actually spent some time out on the greens!  Ha, NOT golfing, nope, never ever.  At sunset, when the players left, we used the course as our private walking trails.

That delightful spa got used too.  The three of us met there for treatments, then kicked back a couple hours in the lounge to sip tea and crunch on some snacks.

I cannot picture a more relaxing time.

Our visit was filled with love and laughter.  Stories, jokes, family updates, and delicious meals too.

Throw in a few minutes here and there to dabble around with my paint brush, and it was an ideal vacation.

Thanks for working your travel planning  magic, Terry.  You are the best.

A staycation with a mini getaway

family
By /

My boy and his sweetheart were here for most of two weeks to celebrate his dad’s birthday.


We’d talked about many ideas for a trip, but decided to hang out at home, going to lots of restaurants and getting out like we would if we’d traveled after all.

We used three of the days to drive down to the Ozarks, but the rest of the time, we were pretty laid back.

Downtown Lawrence was extra festive due to the Algerian World Cup guys staying in town.   Storefronts had welcoming window displays and banners.

We also picked up a couple of baby chicks, thinking we’d slip them under our broody hen, but she wasn’t having it.  Which was a disappointment for me.  On the other hand, it meant I had tiny babies to snuggle instead of the adopted mama doing all the work.  So that kinda worked out.

Of course, it I wouldn’t be a visit from my son if we didn’t have a major household repair to deal with.   I asked him to look at a small bad spot under  the eave of the roof,  just to find out the entire boards needed replaced. It was rotted out all around that section of the cottage. Thank goodness. He was here to fix it, it was pretty bad.

Thanks, Adam!   You saved the house yet again!  And we had a lovely time with the visit.

An Ozark float trip on the wrong river

family, Travel
By /

There were some glitches on our trip to the Current River, but moments like this-

And peaceful mornings enjoying the scenery more than made up for it.


Our first issue?  The rental home we got was cancelled, no communication, no notice, a few days before the adventure was set to begin.  We scurried to find an overpriced replacement that had some major issues (lights that wouldn’t stay on, doors that fell off track, washer unhooked, stove wouldn’t heat up, well you get the idea) but fantastic views and private beach.   I think what we paid for was location, not the home itself.

We also booked a six hour float on my son’s favorite river, the Current, up river from where we were staying.

But oops!  After a couple hours of my boy being confused about landmarks, he realized we’d been dropped onto the Jacks Fork instead.

Again, beautiful scenery.  But here is the issue.  This river runs mostly east/west, while the Current is the opposite.  Doesn’t sound like a problem until you figure in the shade which is non existent for much of the one we were on until our last stretch back to the truck.

So it was hotter than expected, and the six hours on the water seemed long at times.  But it was broken up with picnics and swims.

We also hiked over to some spring heads where the air is as crisp and clear as the mineral laden, blue water.  The water rushes from the ground ice cold and tempers the heat, plus they were nestled back into the shade.

All in all, it was a delight.

At the Cake Bake Shop

family, flowers, Food and Drink
By /

When I first saw photos of the Cake Bake Shoppe at Christmas time at Disneyworld, I knew I had to get there.

At the time, I did not know there was TWO more of them in Indiana, where the owner is based.

I’ve heard getting reservations at the theme park location is almost impossible, and I don’t see the possibility of any visits there in the near or even distant future.

So I was beyond my thrill limit when my Indiana family offered to go with me to this location in Carmel.

Delightful company, amazing food, and darling surroundings.

I’ve heard they redecorate seasonally, so of course, I’ll need to get back to see the new designs.  For spring, there were blue butterflies and twinkle lights everywhere.

We sat by the open window and I was infatuated with all the princesses of all ages   posing in front of the building.   Including this cutie.

When I go back (and I WILL!) I want to check out the neighboring stores.

Not just the one inside the restaurant.

It was tempting to buy all of the delicious foods and  pretty things.   And I really, really wanted the pink hoodie.  But I’m also really, really too cheap to pay that much.

  1. I did buy sweet, pastel cake sprinkles.  Two little bottles are in this big bag.  One was for my Sissy, the other for Sugarwings, in their favorite colors.

    I’m already looking forward to my next trip.

Guncle time part three

antiques/junking, cottage, dogs, family, guncles, Hand painted, vintage paper/collage art
By /

Besides lots of good food and wine, how was the guncles visit?   Never long enough, for one thing.  We hit the jackpot on junking trips, one full day at Sparks Flea Mkt, two garage sale mornings, and one afternoon estate sale.

This window is from the flea.  I bought it for resale, but, uhm, oops, it somehow got hung in my hearth room.

Molly might not look like she approves, but she is just typically scared of getting her photo taken.  Or maybe she is upset about warning the guys that they shouldn’t be hanging it up, it should go into the inventory stash in the garage?  Oh well, if even the guard dog can’t stop the process, I guess that window belongs there.

Fate.  Beautiful, colorful, fate.  Isn’t that stained glass  ideal there!?

Time flew by, with all the shopping, cooking, eating, laughing, and lots of small chores the guys helped Rich with since I cannot use my right arm for much as it recovers from surgery. (Like hanging my spectacular, new window!)

Randy and I were left with limited time in the studio.  He worked on his handmade cards, and I also made a few, along with some door prizes for my upcoming class reunion.  These hand painted bookmarks will be packaged up with jewelry I am crafting, to make three gifts.

All of us found treasures in Sparks, and I’m hoping this becomes a tradition, and the guncles come back next season too.

Randy made friends there, as always.

Sadly, the cards I made during studio time were not happy ones.  Recently, too many people I care about have lost loved ones.  So I was creating sympathy cards to get into the mail.

There were also many quick trips to the hardware or grocery stores.  While on one run, I snagged Kansas sunflowers for the table for Kevin’s birthday dinner.  I looked everywhere for a cut flower bouquet, but ending up buying a pot full.

The plant has already started to bloom again, and will be a summer-long reminder of the lovely time we had together.  I miss you, guncles!

Fab food

family, Food and Drink, Travel, Uncategorized
By /

Did I mention how good the food was in Maui?

The best was at Mama’s Fish House.

My sister-in-law, Terry, is an expert traveler and planner. She booked our reservations months in advance so we could have this special meal in this extraordinary setting.

We had an ideal mix of cozy family dinners made by Terry, by sunset on the balcony and fresh seafood meals at the beach.  One special treat was an appetizer of a goat cheese flight at Surfing Goat Farm.

Dinner and a show, we got to watch little kids playing.

We never turned down a dessert either.


Everything was fresh and delicious.

Maui memories

family, flowers, Food and Drink, Travel
By /

Maui was a delight.

From the little things

To the majestic ones.

The food

The nature inspired artwork


And the nature itself

Friendships

Grand vistas

Sunsets


Spending time with people we love 

And with each other.

Just the best

family, Food and Drink, jewelry
By /

While my boy was here, we did some beading.  I did not get photos of all the necklaces he crafted, there are a few more.  Then the last day, we had a crimper failure, every one we finished that night, slipped apart.

At first there was heart ache and doubt- did we do the whole week’s worth of creations wrong and each would become a series of beads escaping across the room when worn?

Then, we tried the tool on the crimping beads separately from a necklace and watching closely how they closed.  It looks like we simply wore that tool out and the crimping beads were no longer closing correctly.  They came out twisted and smashed.

There is some worry about when this began.  Were the previously made ones getting progressively worse as we went along, or  did it happen all at once?  There was one moment when the tool locked up pretty hard, maybe that was it?

I advised Adam not to wear one of the pieces on his flight today, that maybe he should only wear them around his house until he knows they won’t break, and keep a bag in his pocket to gather up beads just in case.  He also filled bags with the bits and pieces of the ones he created that the closures failed on, so he could buy a crimping tool and recreate them at home later.

A lot of my time went into making bracelets to sell at Good Juju.  I put together a couple necklaces, my last one is where we discovered our catastrophe with the tool.  Luckily, it fell apart in my hands as I was finishing it, so I didn’t have to crawl under the table looking for gemstones.  I put some tape on the ends of the wire, will go buy myself another crimper, and repair it later.   But I’ll be fixing it alone, Adam will be back in North Carolina.

I’m going to miss my babies when they leave.

Not just me, the furry side of our family will be thinking about Dewdrop when she is gone.

They got lots of attention from her

You know what else I’ll miss?  My jeans.  I doubt if they will fit now.

We had over the top, magnificent meals every night.  A friend had given us a cooler full of t-bones, lamp chops, roasts, and more, all grass fed and raised on his farm.  Our dinners each featured a a delicious selection along with fresh veggies,  I made bread and cinnamon rolls multiple times.  Sugarwings perfected a recipe for coconut sugar brownies, and kept busy making them every couple of days.  Adam doesn’t eat cane sugar, so I did some experimenting with how I made cookies and rolls too.  Probably a more healthy choice, but hey, handfuls of cookies and plates full of meat every day still is a lot of food.

We had a BIG and utterly wonderful meal like that every single day.  Plus, Adam took charge and my participation was minimal.  Not only will I be missing the wonderful food, I’m losing the chef too.

He has a good life in the mountains, and I know he loves being there.  But it’s very far away from the plains of Kansas.

We were blessed to have this time with our family, and I treasure each moment.

Thoughts of Ryan were with me throughout.  I wore his pj pants, watched some of his favorite shows, and closely noted things he would have loved.  Losing him makes every moment with his brother even more precious.

It was a beautiful week.

Merry Merry

celebrations, family, Food and Drink
By /


My boy is in town with Dewdrop and Jacquelyn, and we’ve had some holiday adventures.  I was jealous about their ice skating fun, since I couldn’t join it, but I got lots of joy watching them. They were a delightful show.

Adam and his sweetie have some enviable  skills that deceptively make the sport look easy, but I was smart enough to know that my clumsy, concussion prone, bad shouldered, just recovering from two viruses, self, really should not attempt the ice rink.

The kiddos had a good time, but were ready to sip some tummy warming Starbucks with us and let their dad glide on without them for a while.

Not only are they graceful skaters, my boy and Jacquelyn are excellent cooks and have been treating us to spectacular meals each night too.

Our first day was iffy, we me still being under the weather, and our plans shifted a few times, trying to figure out the best way to go.  Instead of picking them up at the airport and spending the day, we sent Sugarwings as chauffeur and I rested til it was time to go so we were able to keep our evening plans.

And the show was so cute.  Silly, with less drama than most Cirque programs.  Just right to kick off our holiday week.

Each day we have been crafting late into the night!  I’m still a bit worn out and my creativity isn’t at its peak, but Adam’s pieces have been magnificent.  And we still have days to go, with time for more beading.  Along with cookie making, a ping pong tournament, and watching some holiday shows.  Plus, as an added bonus, Santa has delivered some 60 plus degree weather, so we will be getting in lots of dog walks.

I hope the week brings you joy, also.  Merry Christmas!

A much needed night out but I should’ve been more patient

family, Food and Drink
By /

After my busy week of First Friday at Good Juju, tearing down my booth for a redo, hosting two parties, and Christmas shopping, I caught a cold.

It was unpleasant, but not bad.

It was the kind of cold where I wanted to curl up and rest, but didn’t really have to, I could keep going, getting my work that I was behind on caught up.  I’d spent most of November suffering from a horrid case of hand, foot, and mouth disease, where all I could do was rest.  Too sick to consider anything else.

So I was way behind on most of my life.

I’d been staying away from the kiddo to prevent passing on the cold, and after all of those weeks of isolating from the family with the HFM disease then a week of this new ailment, I was plum sick of sickness and being alone.  So on an evening when I thought I might be getting over this pesky cold, Sugarwings and I decided to go out on the town together and hang out.

We had such fun!  23td Street Brewery is festive for the holiday, and I got hugs from the grand fairy.   But as the evening rolled on, I got a bit run down.  And while shopping, I realized the candles had no scent. I thought they were defective.

Then it dawned on me that I could have covid for the very first time.

Yep, that’s what it was.  My taste buds were fine and I loved the meal, but my nose was not doing its job.

And I’d jumped the gun by snuggling the grand a bit too soon.  Now my biggest worry is did I ruin Christmas by spreading this?  My son and his people are heading this way, I should be fine by the time they arrive, but it would be just awful if his child is sick while he is here.

I guess I’m lucky to have avoided Covid this long.  And very lucky that it was mild when I finally got it.  The spin I’m trying to put on this is about as believable as Sugar’s fake smile.

Right now, I’m pretty sad.  But fingers crossed that we will all be healthy together for the holidays.   I’m lucky my boy is on his way here, and that we can be together.  Even with masks.

Scroll to Top