Rain

Rain

I opened my eyes

And looked up at the rain,

And it dripped in my head

And flowed into my brain,

And all that I hear as I lie in my bed

Is the slishity-slosh of the rain in my head.

I step very softly,

I walk very slow,

I can’t do a handstand-

I might overflow,

So pardon the wild crazy thing I just said-

I’m just not the same since there’s rain in my head.

*From Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

A Real Green House & Monsoons

Annie the Wonder Dog... um Beagle/Jack Russell Terrier

We weren't kidding when we said we had the nicest weather all spring (and winter for that matter) this past week. The monsoons of April made it literally impossible to cut any of our 1/2 of grass. It was so tall in places that it came up to my knees and the dogs could stand up to their bellies in the lovely green stuff. Personally, I would have left it lush and beautiful. Who says we need perfectly manicured lawns? I love my weeds, covers, flowers, and beautiful green stuff. The color of spring green is absolutely my favorite. Besides, in the drought of summer my weedy lawn never needs to be watered to look green. Moving on....

We had to take advantage of the weather and work. Really push ourselves and it was a good thing we did. This weeks forecast is as bleak as the middle of winter only with rain and COLD. As a show of success we now have a real working green house!

These are leaving and my living room is returning to normal! Wee...

The big chickens get to free range. Look at those plants.

It is about 70 degrees in the green house. Outside about 55.

Awwww... doggie in the window.

Um... another one. Have you been keeping count?

See my new beds under the benches? Aged horse poop & top soil.

My green house is set up to transplant, plant, and generally take care of plants from this point forward. I am pumped. If the monsoons continue we will be ready...

To be continued... **Wink**

A Reason to Smile...

Even though I have a long Monday list to complete this morning...

and I still have to unpack from a weekend of toting 5 kids all over the place...

and taking all little siblings to their big brother's baseball game this evening...

and my baby has pink eye...

and the gash on my forehead hurts more today than it did on Saturday when I smashed it with the hatch on the minivan...

I have a big reason to smile...

A Ohio weather forecast with more sun than clouds and rain! Let me just say I am equally shocked and delighted. All of my above complaints pale in comparison to the weather this week. When it is sunny, I become super woman and so much gets crossed off my list and I still feel I can enjoy myself during the day. Nothing seems as chaotic, stressful, dirty, unorganized, messy or overwhelming as it really is when that sun is shining over me. It's crazy how just a bit of vitamin D can change my outlook!

I know that perhaps a day or two of sun is no big deal, but to Lauren and I, or anyone who lives in northeast Ohio, it is huge. I am pretty sure people who live where I live appreciate these dry bright days more than anyone else anywhere just because they are so rare. No, you will not see us letting a perfectly perfect sunshine-y day going to waste. So today after some sheets are washed and bags and baskets unpacked, we will be outside. I may or may not get to any yard projects but an afternoon on a trampoline with some of my favorite girls sounds just right... and I give you permission to do the same.

Flowers to Moms: Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

Circle Corsage Tshirt

Well, what do you think?

The idea is not original (duh) but I'm just here to remind you what you can do with thirty minutes, a pair of sharp scissors and a boring t-shirt. I think I will be bringing this transformation to my next Wednesday gathering with the girls where we take turns hosting projects. Seriously one of the highlights of my week. Starting and completing a project is so energizing and this one is so quick and satisfying they are going to feel great immediately after. Do you know that the more you create the more creative you become? Anyway...

Cut circles. Eye ball it. Hmm... a little bit bigger than this button sounds good to me.

Not perfect by any means but they don't have to be. I have also seen designs where the shape is a heart or star.

Sew them on. A couple a stitches in the middle of the circle does the job. Don't bother to knot and cut after each circle, just continue. I know all of you avid seamstresses are saying "of course" but this was seriously my "whoa" moment.

See, it's already taking shape. Don't put too much thought into it. I kept trying it on to see where I wanted the shape to go.

At the end, I decided to take it up around the shoulder onto the back. Too much?

Most other versions of this are a single color, so at least I'm a little bit different...

And here I am trying to get a picture of myself in this new shirt. There has got to be a tutorial on line for this kind of stuff.

Counting this one a success. Easily duplicated on pillows, or smaller versions on clips like these, and of course, more t shirts. I think using the lace and silk circles make this one a bit fancy. Maybe on the next one I'll used a screen printed t shirt for the circles. So many possibilities. Perhaps just a few in the center or neckline, on the side..