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Tuesday ~ April 3rd
Photo courtesy of National Geographic
I survived April Fool's Day without any jokes played on me & I didn't play any jokes on anyone else either. I used to love April Fool's Day, but my jokes were never that funny, like that time when I was still living at home & told my mom I was pregnant or that other time I told her I was caught stealing at work & was fired ~ come to think of it, those were awful "jokes", but I was going for the shock value... sorry mom.
Anyway, it was a fun weekend. We went to the museum on Friday & they have this cool exhibit on right now of some interesting artifacts that have been stashed away for years. They had out some beautiful & exotic birds, including an amazing array of hummingbirds & a huge bird of paradise that I'm sure is extinct by now. They also had out some gorgeous, iridescent beetles; strange organs & a two-headed calf all in these giant jars filled with liquid; a gun that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once owned; a few artifacts from Ancient Egypt & some other odds & sods. I loved the way it was displayed too ~ like walking into an eccentric, British chap's 18th century mansion jammed with curios.
Saturday we went for dim sum & that night we had an impromptu karaoke night break out at our place. Jason Greeley (who was the fourth runner up on Canadian Idol 2004) is good friends with Chris' uncle so they came over & it was incredible to hear Jason sing ~ what a treat!
Sunday we went to the races with Chris' family. His brother-in-law's dad is a jockey & raced that day, which was so exciting for our nephews & niece (us too). Afterwards, he came up & gave us a few pointers, but I still managed to loose $15 in total that day. It was money well spent!
I've grabbed a name for the contest ~ congratulations to Christina Vandervlist! New contest now up here. |
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Wednesday ~ April 4th
I'm sure having fun with these butter yellow, purple & pink colors! They're so cheery & spring-like, which I need to surround myself around right now because it's snowing outside... again. These beads are actually part of a project I'm working on for a friend. I'm making enough beads for my mom to make 3 bracelets. Of course they'll be lots of extras so hopefully later this month I'll have some goodies available.
By the way, I heard on the news that we've had snow on the ground here in Edmonton for something like 160 days straight!
Kitties make everything better ~ check it out:
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Thursday ~ April 5th
Photo courtesy of Judy Hamilton
I finally packed away the pink, purple, yellow & orange glass & pulled out a different shade of purple, some teal & gold! I tried some experimental beads last night & checking them this morning, I like what I see so I'll spend the next few torch sessions playing with these colors, photos to come...
Tomorrow night, Chris & I are hosting a dinner with our "Gourmet Club". I'll show you the menu after tomorrow as it's a secret (tee-hee). Chris' band comes over tonight to jam so he'll be busy, but I'm going to go shopping for those last minute groceries. I want to get as much done tonight as possible so tomorrow is smooth sailing.
Hope you're having a wonderful Thursday ~ thanks for stopping by! |
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Friday ~ April 6th
I was looking for a tablecloth at my mom's for our dinner tonight & came across some old artwork in one of the drawers. I think I copied out this poem in grade 4 (there was a poem for each month of the year). Can you tell I'm the daughter of an artist or what? Look at the realistic depiction of the bunnies & the chicks, it's as if they could pop off the page & come to life ~ & I had no idea that April came into the land "toptoeing" but I guess it does. |
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Sunday ~ April 8th
The Easter Bunny came! He brought me my favorite cherry beer & a cool mug to drink it in, chocolate, the 4th season of the Simpsons, gardening items & a stuffed bunny wearing a leather coat with a peace sign zipper pull ~ he's so cool! |
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Monday ~ April 9th
Here's the menu we created for the dinner club on Friday. I was very pleased with the salad & the lamb & the Pavlova was a hit & pretty easy to make too! The dinner had a few bumps along the way (i.e. accidentally smashing a champagne glass & burning the toast of the bruschetta), but all in all it went o.k.
The rest of the weekend was fabulous. I slept for 12 hours last night, I can't remember the last time I slept so long, but I must have needed it. Today I feel very refreshed & ready to get on with the week ahead. Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend! |
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Wednesday ~ April 11th
Photo courtesy of Judy Hamilton
You might be asking, where's the beads? Sorry girls, I've only torched once since last Thursday. There's been a lot of other things on the go around here, including landscape planning & my tendonitis has been getting the best of me. I'm looking into rearranging my work space to solve that problem. For now it's a bit of a bead desert.
I can show you this amazing photo though. My mom just got back from Victoria where she took a ton of photos. I love this one, in particular, of a female mallard. I think she looks like a duck angel ~ her wings are gorgeous!
Also cool, this jewelry from Studio Numen ~ the castle rings rock!
And I put another clue up for the contest this month. |
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Thursday ~ April 12th
Tamye's bracelets are complete & I like the way the turned out. Nothing else going on around here at the moment. I'm taking it easy as I've been down with the stomach flu, which came on yesterday & is still lingering, but I am feeling a lot better today. I've been drinking green tea & I went to yoga this morning despite my better judgment ~ but it actually made me feel better.
It's beautiful out again! Chris & I hope to tackle a little yard work this weekend. Chris is anxious to get the chainsaw going on all our poor old lilacs that we need to turf. It's so hard to let them go, but I know a good gardener is a ruthless one, so it's probably best to get rid of them before they burst with flowers & I have a change of heart ~ *sigh*. |
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Friday ~ April 13th
"If we imagine ourselves as being every bit as huge, deep, mysterious, and awe-inspiring as the night sky, we might begin to appreciate how complicated we are as individuals, and how much of who we are is unknown not only to others but to ourselves." ~ Thomas Moore |
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Sunday ~ April 15th
Robin ~ photo courtesy of Judy Hamilton
The robins have been back for over a week now, probably much longer than that, but we actually saw several of them last weekend. We've been enjoying sitting in the hot tub at dusk & listening to them sing, they have the sweetest song.
I'm off to tackle my rock garden ~ weed out a pesky sedum plant that has run amok & taken over every free inch. Tonight we're having my brother, Bruce over for Sunday roast. I've got it in the slow cooker now, so the house should fill up with that beautiful roast smell soon.
Next week I hope to be far more productive. I don't foresee any delays or obstacles between me & my torch for the week so I should have some things to show soon. |
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Wednesday ~ April 18th
Above, I finished last month's prize for Christina & I also added a new riddle clue for this month's contest here.
Since it takes a lot longer than 2 hours to make the prize beads ~ just the prep alone takes more than 2 hours ~ I decided to run with these colors for awhile. I had a lot of fun making her beads & I figure some of you might be interested in this style. I'll work with these colors for the rest of the week & see what comes of it. I had a great day at the torch yesterday ~ it's renewed my creative spirit for the moment.
Every once in awhile, Cute Overload has the best picture of an animal. I meant to give a link to you yesterday so that you could check out this adorable bunny in a pile of cotton balls, but I didn't get a chance so incase you missed it (it's far down on their web page now), here it is:
This just might be the cutest thing I've EVER seen. |
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Friday ~ April 20th
Photo courtesy of Judy Hamilton
Another great photo from my mom's trip to Victoria ~ we won't be seeing these around here any time soon because another batch of snow hit the ground yesterday... oh bother.
Though it's definitely not a good weekend for yard work, it is a great weekend for bead making & luckily I have a class with Larry Scott this Saturday & Sunday! I'll have a photo recap sometime next week.
By the way, it's HAPPY KITTIES MOMMY'S DAY! What's that ~ you don't know the holiday? Last year, my aunt, mom & I were having dinner & both my aunt & I mused over the idea of a day of recognition for people that have cats (not kids). So my mom, being a good sport, offered to take us for a tea leaf reading & lunch some time this year. Today is the day! Should be fun, too bad we can't bring our kitties (ha!).
Here's a little time killer for you hard workers burning down the Friday clock ~ Famousr (my highest score was 47). Have a great weekend! |
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Monday ~ April 23rd
The Unofficial Earth Day Flag
I wanted to get a post in yesterday but with class all day I just didn't get a chance ~ so Happy Belated Earth Day. Here's a few cool links:
Jane Goodall has an inspiring video worth watching. Afterwards, check out they're "coffee tours", in which they send you a different type of coffee each month!
My favorite organization, WWF has some sweet Mother's Day gifts here ~ great idea to get your kids involved in conservation!
More smart conservation tips here that encourage a healthier, more sustainable life.
And some beautiful pictures of our home.
Speaking of pictures, I have some from class. I just have to go through them. I'll post them by tomorrow. Have a wonderful day! |
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Tuesday ~ April 24th
Larry Scott's Beads
Click on the photo above to see pictures from my class with Larry Scott. |
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Wednesday ~ April 25th
Beads, beads, beads!
I have beads ready to go up for an auction & these guys above are off to my mom's so that she can make some jewelry so I hope to have a little sale here some time next month. If you're not on the jewelry notification list & would like to be, email me.
The Swill Kings (Chris' band) & The Murder City Sparrows are playing tomorrow night at The Billiard Club on Whyte Ave. It's going to be a great time! Come down if you can. |
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Thursday ~ April 26th
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Saturday ~ April 28th
Help Name these kitties!
Our friends, Tricia & Mike just got these two little female kitties & they don't know what to name them. I totally sympathize. After I got Maggie, I decided that she needed a companion kitty, so I went out & got Nu. I had Nu for the longest time & couldn't come up with a name for her so in the meantime, I was calling her the "new" cat. That name ended up sticking, however I changed the spelling as to not make it so obvious how unimaginative I was.
Anyway, I thought it would be fun to ask you all out there what you think these two sweeties should be named. If she chooses any of the names suggested here, I will send that person(s) a focal bead as a prize!
A little inside information ~ Tricia is an archaeologist & loves to travel. Mike is a sports fan & manages a fitness club. I don't know if that really helps, but you never know. Please email me with your suggestions.
And while we're on the subject of cats ~ have you seen Nora ~ the piano playing cat? Even better, Nora ~ the sequel.
Oh & this might be the laziest cat in the world. |
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Sunday ~ April 29th
Spiral Aloe ~ Photograph by David McDonald
I scanned this picture from the beautiful book, The Jewel Box Garden by Thomas Hobbs. It's a coffee table book with more pictures than words, mostly of spectacular gardens with lots of innovative designs & fabulous close-up detail. It's pure eye candy. The words inside the book are thoughtful & poignant & often as beautiful as the pictures themselves. In one section Hobbs writes:
"One of the mysteries of my life is repeated every day. I drive to and from work and cannot help but notice block after block of very average-income homes that appear hopelessly un-gardeny. It is almost a case of one-upmanship to be the most unplanted, least cared for but absolutely occupied. To me, it is a drive through the Valley of Death. Expensive cars, new basketball hoops, satellite television receivers and white plastic patio furniture are everywhere. I ask myself, "What do these people care about, anyway?" Occasionally I'll spot a stranded tree peony, blooming its heart out, stoned on ugly. Or a maypole-type clothes-line bedecked with absolutely fried plastic hanging baskets. The botanical equivalent of a car crash..."Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could describe your garden as a "jewel box full of beautiful plant treasures?" It is entirely possible." |
