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A Dog Named Christmas contest.  

Mad Hatter Party

We had our Mad Hatter Halloween party this weekend and it was a lot of fun. Went a little crazy on the decorations, but everything was done cheap. I covered the chairs with different colored fabric, put white sheets on the walls and ceiling and used black lights to make everything glow.

The bar - I used some Martha Stewart labels for the bottles. Tonic glows a strange blue under a black light, so I poured some in a container and made heart shaped ice cubes.

I used images from the new Alice in Wonderland movie coming out in March and painted details with black light paint. The frames I bought at a resale store and sprayed with black light paint too.

My friend Al came up with the idea of making a deck of cards, so we sprayed cardboard white, glued on paper hearts, and used stencils for the numbers. The entire room was covered in black plastic that we bought in rolls from the hardware store.

This is the tree my friend made - out of cardboard. He is so creative. This was at the front door with a strobe light on it, so it looked like it was moving.

Over kill? Yep, but we do that. It was a lot of fun and I wish there were more pictures, but taking them with the black light proved to be almost impossible. Hope you had a great Halloween. I miss being here & I am trying. I have to figure out where Edward is going next, I lost my paper that had the names.

 
 
 
 
 

Lost in 90 days

I don't know why I can't post here, I hope it changes soon. Lost starts soon, here is a clip to get you ready;

Look, I'm a zombie!

Grief

Not sure how to write this, or if I should write it, but it could help.

I used to try to not step on cracks so my parent's wouldn't die. I know, this also signals a sort of disorder, but I did it and it didn't work. We know they will die one day, but we really don't believe it. So, how does it feel? Each death is different, so the feelings are different. For me, my Dad's death was like a kick in the stomach. Unexpected. It brought me to my knees. Perhaps if he was older or if we weren't so close, the kick would have been lighter, but this really hurt. He was the one person who "got" me. We talked every day and I felt so alone when he was gone. I would try sending messages to my friends, but they were tired of hearing about it and I can't blame them, but this didn't help. I've never told anyone this, but I used to call his voice mail at work, just so I could hear his voice. If he was reading this, he would be rolling his eyes now, saying "drama!"

I'll spare you the details, but you get that phone call, the one from the police. I lived 5 minutes away, so I was there to see him being worked on. I knew it was over when one of the paramedics stopped squeezing the oxygen bag, but they still make you go to the hospital and sit in that "room." The bad news room, with dim lighting, and lots of tissues. I went into the room with the curtain and hugged him and made a scene. I made other people cry, but all I could think of was how grateful I was his body was still warm. The funeral planning takes over and then the relatives arrive. What's odd about this time is how calm you are. People think you are fine, but I think your body just takes over and you go through the motions. It's 2-3 months after where you really break down.

I broke down; cried at work, in the car, in the aisle at Hallmark during Father's Day, in the bathtub, and I wrote my friends long, tormented emails. I consider my grief for him interrupted because 4 months later, my Mom was diagnosed with lung cancer and died in a month. I won't go into that today, but it's what makes this experience more horrible. Each anniversary is easier, but it's like a scar that never heals. I can't move on or erase what he meant to me, and I think grief books try to break it down into a plan; first you do this and then step 2, and soon all will be right. Well, it's not right. I feel incredibly lonely. I resent my husband's family, and feel they gang up on me. I've been through a year of grief therapy with a former hospice nurse, and spent months in a hospice grief group - all helped, but you are never the same. What angers me the most, is that I lost the feeling of security most people have. You don't know what it is to lose this until it's gone, but I don't believe nothing bad will happen; if someone is in the hospital, they will probably die. If we get in a car accident, death for someone. I know this is not "normal," but that is what I am left with. I do feel more compassion and an understanding for what life is about. I do forget and not appreciate things, but I think it has made me a better person overall. This may be my worst post ever, but I am not editing this because I wanted it to be free flowing thoughts. This is my day, thank you for listening.

Winners

I said Tuesday morning, but it is still Tuesday! The winner of Carefree Clothes for Girls is twomittens, and Felting for Baby Debbie. Congratulations! I will send you an email to get your address. Thanks again to Make Good Books for letting me preview these.

Carefree Clothes for Girls

 

The second book from Make Good Books; Carefree Clothes for Girls. After looking at this book, I wish I had girls. SImple and very cute.

 

I've enjoyed looking through these books. They are inspiring me to get back to crafting. I'm going to keep the giveaway for these books open until Monday and will announce a winner on Tuesday morning. Good luck and thanks again  Shambhala Publications for sending me these books. Good luck!

Felting for Baby

I wanted to share some of the projects in Felting for Baby from Make Good Books. They sent me this book and Carefree Clothes for Girls to preview; both make me wish I had girls or a baby to make something for. The Make Good Book series are Japanese craft books, but in English (the English part really helps).

 

Sweet gingerbread puppets!

 

 

Isn't this the cutest teddy bear?

 

This felt mat reminded me of the ones Di makes.

Tomorrow I will try to post some projects from Carefree Clothes for Girls. Each book has complete instructions in the back...in English - oh, I mentioned that already.

Thank you Shambhala Publications for letting me preview these books!

For those of you who still read this blog, I am giving both books away. Leave a comment and I will pick a winner for each book Friday.

Getting Back

 

I wanted to show you two things I made, but the other photo is on my other memory card and I am too lazy to go look for it. This is a mini Cheshire Cat nesting doll. My goal is to make a whole set.

I'm still looking at the two books I mentioned earlier. I am also trying to read the August book. Baby steps.

Life has thrown me off balance. I am trying to wade through the hundreds of handouts from school. I feel very unorganized and just learned what a "walking taco" is. This was one of the fine healthy choices for hot lunch this week. My son is obsessed with hot lunch and I fear it.

I hope you had a nice holiday weekend!

Make Good Books

 

Shambhala Publications of Make Good Books, contacted me and asked if I would be interested in previewing Carefree Clothes for Girls and Felting for Baby. Ah, Yes! So, over the weekend I am going to look through these and post some pictures and thoughts next week. Even better, since I do not have girls or know anyone having a baby soon, I will have a giveaway for these too. 

Now I must avoid taking quizzes about which alcohol is me on Facebook. 

Edward was spotted here; Sarah Eliza you are next, please send me your address.