Sugarwings – Page 6 – Karla's Cottage

A road trip through the plains and mountains

By Karla Nathan / March 22, 2018

Our Wyoming trip to see family over St Pat's was just as nice as can be. Sugarwings reunited with her cousin, Sydnee. They "ship" their names, Leandra and Sydnee, to Syd-Lee, and are best buds. I was thrilled to find these green (ish) matching shirts at Target for them to wear-

Together we are better than Unicorns, Sprinkles, and Rainbows.

Perfect!

They cheerleaded on trampoline during a family football game (no, I did NOT play), crafted, treated us to green mani-pedis, and each used their copious make believe skills nonstop.

We also spent some time with Grandma Joan, in the assisted living center. And even better, she felt good enough to come over to the house for a dinner and a brunch!

I was torn over seeing this hanging prominently in her room. I painted it in '87, it is a scene from Arkansas. It was sweet that she'd saved it, but sad that it wasn't a better painting…. I should paint something new for her to replace it, I think my style now has improved. Visiting family can become a stroll down a lane of forgotten artwork, that can be a cringy tour of past ineptitudes.

If you own a painting of mine from ages ago- please, please, please don't feel like you have to display it or you'll hurt my feelings!!! I'm fine (thrilled) with you taking it down, throwing it away, burning it, or disposing it in the best way to prevent me from that gut wrenching feeling of

"OH NO, what was I thinking?"

Green isn't always my color, so I made a bracelet to wear for the holiday and avoiding a pinch. Then brought another for my sister-in-law as a thanks for hosting us. I brought more beads and some child sized memory wire for the Syd-Lees to make their own jewelry too.

The drive across Colorado and Wyoming was breathtaking, and we were extremely lucky that this was old snow, the storm had passed, roads were clear, but the view of remnants was lovely to see. I enjoyed the drive, as we listened to Bridge to Terabithia, and Stardust. A good book can make a trip fly by, and if you have a view like this, sometimes the trip can seem to go too quickly.

Sugarwings is an ideal travelling companion, she was in the car for hours on end and never once asked if we were there yet, or had a single complaint.

Of course, breaking up the drive with an overnight at Great Wolf didn't hurt.

And I had some fun at Great Wolf too. Swimming for a few hours makes up for sitting in the car that long.

Thank you to the Wyoming Nathans for a warm, welcoming, fun filled, visit! It's just too dang bad that our family is so far apart, it would be nice to see them more often.

Oh, and thank you to all who cleared out my wallpaper scrap packs and journals! All were mailed when I got back from our travels, and I hope to have more cut and listed to sell too. But for today, I'm happily knee deep in Easter Eggs with vintage millinery. I came out to the studio with a mindset to work on wallpaper packs, but you know how that goes. All of a sudden, I'm glittering eggs and gluing on ribbons and flowers. instead of cutting papers.

Photos soon!

Fun with Fairies at Make it with Michaels

Dew Drop, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / March 10, 2018

These two love to go to Michael's Kids Crafts class on Saturdays.

Funny, they have more art supplies at home than they will ever get to the bottom of, and have encroached so much upon my studio that sometimes they have more space out there than I do.

Still, they love going to Michaels and playing with different supplies.

I sure understand, I certainly don't turn down a chance to add to my stash of goodies to work with and am thrilled to get a craft day with good friends. There is something about working on a project while talking to other creative types that make it extra special.

On this day, the little girl across the table was practicing for her part in an upcoming play, and all the kids joined in on the songs she was singing.

Pretty

dang

cute.

A big blob of black

dogs, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / February 28, 2018

We adore this dog. I can't believe I almost didn't keep her when the other puppies were leaving for their new homes.

Even though we didn't realize she would end up quite this big back when she was the tiny runt of the litter.

She weighs about the same as Sugarwings now.

But luckily, she is a well mannered pup. We say she is an old soul, she acts more like a 5 year old dog than a baby. She learns fast, and listens well.

But she might need a haircut…

Sugar likes to curl up on the bench at the foot of the bed and when she does, it is hard to see where one end starts and the other begins.

The grand fairies styled her hair so that we can see her eyes. Well, kinda. There is a LOT of hair for those eyes to hide behind.

We never outgrow Crown Center and Kaleidoscope

Dew Drop, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / February 22, 2018

I've been taking Sugarwings to Crown Center for 8 years now.

Our first time she was barely past being a toddler. They have the coolest, most artistic, interactive play area and it changes themes periodically. We've seen the Fairytale village three times, have been to a recycling workshop, visited Oz, and many, many more. adventures that Hallmark has sponsored there.

Right now, it is set up as "Funville," a career fair.

You can work in an ER…

Be a surfer…

A baker…

Be on a TV news show…

Or teach…

There are also opportunities to be a fireman, astronaut, president, rodeo bull rider, or a bumble bee bear.

A bumble bee bear?

Hmmm. Don't really get this one.

You could even crawl into a tunnel and mine for gems. Or be a magician and pull a rabbit out of a hat. Both are not top professions in today's world, but real jobs none the less.

Bumble Bee Bear, though. Seriously?

There is a lot to do and see at Crown Center, including Sealife and Legoland, as well as the free activities like the Funville career center we went to and Kaleidoscope.

Hallmark owns it and I can't say enough about how much we appreciate what they do for the kids that come here.

Never ending art supplies, colorful, exciting rooms to explore, and as much creating as you can jam pack into 45 minutes of fun.

We try to go a couple of times a year. I don't know why we don't go more often. It is great on cold, blustery days when we are tired of being cooped up.

And ideal for birthday parties too. There is even free parking. We go to see plays at the Coterie Theater for kids, eat at the Crayola cafe, draw and color in the Crayola shop, and basically make a big day out of it.

I know I don't outgrow the experience. I sure hope that the grandfairies will still go with me for at least a few more years.

Some holiday fun

celebrations, Dew Drop, dogs, family, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / December 24, 2017

My goal for December is to round up all of the Christmas fun I can find, wrangle, or create. I do not say no to an invitation, and I try to do a lot of inviting to others too.

Luckily, I have a couple of partners in my quest for holly jolly joy.

We gathered up all the sisses and a buddy for a night out to see Beauty and the Beast at Theatre Lawrence.

And we have non stop craft-a-thons by the Christmas tree or in the cardboard cottage.

And of course, delicious cocoa parties that come afterwards.

The rule around here is "First one up turns on all of the tree lights", so the house always feels festive.

After the holidays end, and the decor comes down, I think it is the lights that I miss the most of all the decorations. Sometimes, I leave some white lights over the windows thru January as a transition to help me survive the end the celebrating.

For now, I'm still revelling in the joy of it all.
And in the cookies. Maybe the only thing better than white twinkle lights throughout the house is decorating and eating sugar cookies.

Especially in good company!

Hi there, Mr. Claus!

celebrations, Dew Drop, family, holiday decor, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / December 22, 2017

We love to visit Santa and have a fabulous brunch at The Nicklaus Club at Lionsgate.

And not just because the napkins are folded like trees.

It is a fun excuse to get dressed up and spend some time with family and that jolly old elf, himself.

This year, the grand fairies made gifts for him, and he liked them so much, he offered the kiddos jobs at the North Pole as elves. I told them that I'd miss them a lot, but it sounded like a good opportunity.

We've been visiting him for years.

Since Dewdrop was just tiny.

Oh, they grow sooooooo fast, don't they?

And the holiday season is gone in a flash.

I'm enjoying every single blessed moment of it! And I hope that you are too.

Ghosts and Giggles

Dew Drop, family, holiday decor, Sugarwings, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / November 1, 2017

The company my husband works for owns a club in KC, which hosts an annual Halloween party for kids, that I love even more than the kiddos do.

Corny and cute, and full of Halloween fun, it's just adorable.

We decorated pumpkins, watched a magic show, ate ghoulish food, got some balloon animals, and went through a haunted house in the locker room. Well, through most of the haunted house, we backed out about half way through when we encountered a WEREWOLF!

Although, I did try to explain to the little ones that the employees of the club dressed up as the characters, and the werewolf was probably someone who drove the beverage cart and was actually a BEERWOLF.

But that was still a little too spooky, so we backed out and headed to the buffet to dine on fa-boo-lous foods.

I was a green haired witch, (the only adult not working there who was in costume, but hey, does that really matter?) and when I took a bite of the "witch's fingers" (french fries), I was accused of cannibalism by my tablemates.

There was a ton of candy to trick or treat from too. And little goodie bags filled with puzzles and coloring books.

I had the grandfairies for the weekend, so we made a day of the event by designing and making our own costumes from things found in the dress up closet. This vintage prom dress had some holes in it, which got flowers hot glued onto as patches, and we added straps with colorful ribbons and safety pins. A few more flowers were added to the wreath for her crown, it used to be a fairy garland that she'd worn to the Renfest..

I didn't think about the Day of the Dead theme being "cultural appropriation." That is a real problem in the world, but from all the people I've spoken to and the reading I've done, it can be a gray area in many cases.

My Hispanic buddy, Romeo, told me that he finds other ethnicities using Sugar Skulls offensive if it is done in a belittling or cartoonish manner. But if created in an appreciation of the beauty and heritage, he approves. And I can promise this wasn't chosen as a joke. As an artist, I was excited about producing my own version. And as a daughter who lost her mother, I was comforted by the culture of honoring the dead. A friend spoke to me about that after my mom died and I don't know if she ever realized how much her conversation meant to me.

Hopefully, I haven't offended anyone out there? If so, please know that wasn't my intention.

I hope you had a lovely Halloween, I know we did, although it was too cold to attend the annual Zombie Walk for me (and that was heartbreaking, but not so much that I'd brave the bad weather for it).

Now, time to deck the halls!!!!!!!!!!!

The ghouls are gone, bring on the bling!

First vet check, and trying to convince the doods to get in the crates

Dew Drop, dogs, family, puppies!, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / June 28, 2017

Getting the pups to the vet for their 6 week shots required a couple of side kicks to help me load them up.

These guys are not yorkie pups, that is for sure. When Twinkle had babies, all 9 could go in one carrier. These ginormous fur balls generously filled 2 crates with three in each. In many ways, golden doodles are easier to raise, they are hardier and more independent. Yorkies are such tiny, delicate babies that they require more hands on care. This litter, lives in the breezeway with the door open so they can take themselves out to potty. Twinkle's pups lived indoors, in a wading pool, and I picked up the itsy bitsy poops to keep the area clean. I still have to scoop up after the doods, but at least it is out in the yard. Those pups are great about not going anywhere near their nest, since they have a full run of the yard.

It has been a lot of work, though. The first hour of every day was spent cleaning up, changing bedding, disinfecting their area when they were younger. Now that they are older, I'm still out there every morning, cleaning up, but it is with a grabber, picking up piles from the yard. And I'm doing it over and over throughout the day to make sure they have a clean area to play in.

And each day, those dogs get larger.

And larger.

You can almost watch them grow.

But they are laid back for pups, pretty easy to take care of. When my assistants and I took them to the vet, they cooperated very well, none ran off or caused too much mischief.

The doc gave them all good health reports. None cried when it got a shot, either.

Sugarwings took notes during the appointment for us.

It was all pretty cute. A crowd gathered around at the office, smiling and laughing a the scene we made carrying in the passel of pups and getting them weighed.

Here is a little video of the girls loading them up for the trip. (Please excuse the messy garage.)

I hope you aren't sick of all the pup pics, just in case, here is one of some roses I am painting.

Golden summer skies and goldendoodles

Dew Drop, dogs, family, Garden, puppies!, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / June 22, 2017

Sugarwings keeps a ladder under the mulberry trees for the whole berry season, for easy access when she needs a snack.

What on earth is better for a kid than running in the clover fields with puppies and climbing trees to eat berries on a sunny, summer day?

The grand fairies and the babies raced across the field, collapsing onto the ground for wriggling hugs when they got worn out.

It really doesn't get any better than this.

Perfection!

PS- Happy birthday, Guncle Randy!

Dewdrop and the doggies

Dew Drop, dogs, family, puppies!, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / June 17, 2017

While Guncle Randy was here, pet butlering and then hanging out in the studio with me, we had a room full of pups, along with one grand fairy. She saw us taking photos of pups (and being a bit of a ham herself,) she scooted off to her dress up closet and wriggled into a gown that would be properly eye catching for a photo shoot.