Statistics are taking over my life: A Pinterest Break

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Did you know the dot above i's and j's is called a "tittle"... I can't even say it without laughing. Thank you Alex Trebek.

"Coffee" Date

If we had coffee today I would tell you…

Source: Uploaded by user via Garritt on Pinterest

That first off, it would be a soda or a milk shake... because I have neither in my house and I hate everything about coffee!

I would have taken the lint roller to free myself of the Pomeranian fur that fills my hair brush every morning from sharing my pillow with Macey and the bed with Charlie.

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Most likely my mind would be slightly panicking over the statistics grad course I'm taking and how I have slacked off for a week and now have to play catch up.

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It would be somewhere air conditioned and I would probably have my hair up in a messy pony tail looking something like Drop Dead Fred with the sweaty frizzies because for some reason his face comes to mind every time I sweat and get crazy flyaway hair!

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I'd tell you how I stink at housekeeping and have dishes piled up because there are ten million other things I would rather be doing than the dishes or housework.

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Tomorrow though I plan to work on catching up in my grad course, putting clear coat on the refinished kitchen table, and tackling some of those dishes.

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The house is in disarray and there's randomness everywhere, but that's just another reason to escape for a "coffee" date right? Ha!

Sometimes I fear that I am failing as a grown up because of my house. The siding that's missing off of the shed, the overgrown weed bushes sticking through the fence, my hatred of using the weed eater, the constant pet hair EVERYWHERE, the animal smell I combat on a daily basis, the piling dishes and laundry, the kitchen that is the random landing place of anything and everything that enters the house, and don't even open the door to the craft room!

But since we are on a "coffee" date I'm sure we would both laugh and you would also share that you don't keep an immaculate house either! And that my occasional memory slip up of paying a bill a couple days late happens to everyone at some point.

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By now I probably would have sucked down one soda and would be working on the second half of another. Or if it is a milkshake I'll be drinking water or making slurpy noises because of all of the chocolate ice creamy goodness!

I'm doing a late link up to Rags to Riches after seeing Little Miss Momma's post!

(Click linked names to follow :) )

Needle Felting Obsession

Okay... the needle felted creature obsession started with this...

He's adorable and only $7 from Alisha Harms' etsy shop! (click to check out her cuties! And all other creators and bloggers and linked up to the sources as well!)

I had the pleasure of seeing her products in person at the INDIEana Handicraft Exchange... I so should have snatched up a little owl then, but I was overwhelmed with all of the sights to see and failed!

Now I am coveting this little guy and wanting to snatch him up very very soon!

Okay... then I got an email from Miss Heather @ Just Lovely Things and figured since she said she was surfing the net on her phone she must be on Pinterest...

Apparently, I missed this post on her blog:

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(mini Arthur courtesy of Dani @ Good Natured- she makes beautiful pottery pieces too!)

I can't even tell you how hard I laughed! So then I had to search "Felted Pomeranian" on etsy...

Hold on to your hats because I have seriously been giggling and flipping out ever since!

KathycCollection $120.00

Gourmet Felted $250.00

Okay... let's be realistic. I'm a teacher. I will never be able to justify spending $250.00 or even $120.00 on a felted Pomeranian. So... if you don't follow me on facebook, let me fill you in.

I have spent the last hour calculating how much time and the probability of success if I were to drive to the nearest sheep filled yard, jump the fence with my hair brush, and chase down a sheep to get me some wool to try my hand at needle felting...

Can you imagine? I'm pretty sure it would be reminiscent of Babe the pig trying to run and ending up just talking to the sheep to get what he needed...

Source: via Amy on Pinterest

Maybe I can try my friend's Persian...

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Or there's always the two Pomeranians...

(I think the little one may be on to me...)

Fun things that start with "F"

1. Farmer's Market

Butterfly Bush $5... buckled up for safety: priceless

Bouquet in jar $3, Homemade chocolate chip cookies $3

2. Friendship

Gone with the Wind hat

Kinda liked this one... cept I have a big head and it's like five inches of NOTHING on top of my head!

My Bestie Sarah from Love, Love, Love

3. Flea Market

My Drive

Numb From Dental Work... Drinking From a Straw = FAIL

Flea Market of Choice

Lavender $2.25 each for two plants... from Farmer's Market

Red and White Pan $1 from Flea Market

Vintage Tin and Circus/Letter/Number Stamps $3

Vintage Cookie Press (like new!!!) $4

Right now I'm in the middle of moving my classroom to another room (UGH!). Monday is another dental appointment and Wednesday Sarah, her sister and mom, and I are going to Shipshewana...

It's an Amish flea market and I promise there will be lots of pics to follow!

Life.

I have a beautiful friend.

She has been fighting cancer for over two years now.

She has been given months and weeks to live on a couple occasions now.

But she surpasses all odds and keeps going.

She keeps smiling.

Now they say there's really nothing more they can do, but keep her comfortable.

Yesterday she underwent surgery to remove fluid from around her heart and in her lungs.

They didn't know if she'd make it through surgery.

She did.

She smiled again.

She's still spunky.

They are letting her rest for a week or so and then will try chemo again.

She has a family.

A son in high school, one in college, an older daughter, two grandchildren.

We all love her dearly.

Today I couldn't stop thinking about her.

I was driving to school to move classrooms and I couldn't shake her from my thoughts.

Today has been rough for me in a lot of ways.

Tonight though I sit here and I'm thinking of her again.

I'm so thankful for the family I have now as a result of the first school I taught at seven years ago now.

I am so thankful for everything and everyone in my life.

And I hope you will keep my friend and everyone else in need in your prayers.

...

God hears "Amen" wherever we are and I love you. -Dixie Chicks

Flowers and Exhaustion

I have pictures I need to take and upload to write a blog post about my latest adventures in thrifting and farmers marketing... but for now I'm exhausted from spending three and a half hours moving classrooms at school and sweating like a hog. So I will work on those pics later... for now you can enjoy pics of my flowers I took yesterday while playing with my camera. :)

P.S. Please ignore the dead growth in different areas... it's really dry here right now and I basically now have straw instead of grass... The pink flowers are midnight primose, the one rose is called peace something.. it blooms yellow and then turns pink from the edges. The red rose is a red long stem rose bush... each stem has one single red rose.

So Far This Summer...

Here are some random crafts around the house that I did over the last year but never posted:

I wanted badly to make a wine cork craft (all of these corks are from a friend as I do not drink anything with alcohol in it).  I also LOVED and OBSESSED over these metal word tags from JoAnn's which is also where I got the pins they are hanging from.  I just took a frame from the flea market, then covered a piece of foam board with burlap, secured that to the back, glued the corks on that, stuck in the pins, and then because I couldn't find ribbon I liked I used a strip of fabric to make the bow.

Tinkerbell is in the picture above... so I decided to give you a glimpse of my real life: 

I am currently using the craft/card table in the kitchen while finishing my refinishing of the kitchen table (over a year in progress)... and Charlie thinks he's a cat too...

Also made this stepping stone- LOVE it!

This idea I came across on a blog somewhere... just glue buttons to paper to make a rainbow and framed it.

This is just a cute little floral arrangement I made for like $6 from Dollar Tree in a vintage bowl from the flea market.

So far this summer...

I went to the city Farmer's Market...

(bought two starts of lavender :) )

 Our art district downtown: Massachusetts Avenue aka Mass Ave...

(I bought a 3 legged ceramic lucky pig at a Fair Trade Store and had a delicious burger from a local restaurant)

One project off of my summer to do list!

A letter frame to hang on my front door!

Initially I had painted this letter to look like faux wood, but didn't like it... usually when I don't like something it either gets covered in glitter or buttons... this one got buttons :).  The circle peeking over the one arm of the K is my peep hole in the door- there are two of them?  One for adults and one for short kids maybe?  Anyway... I love it and eventually plan to paint my door red so the aqua will super pop!

So far my first week of summer break has involved:

1. two grad tests
2. a drunk driver rear ending me- later was caught by police after causing another major accident across the street from where I was standing waiting for police to come
3. babysitting for my brother (3 and 5 year old girls and an almost 8 year old boy)
4. my first trip to the dentist in several years- not good results... makes me feel completely incompetent and like I've failed- working on dealing with these feelings as I get dental work done, goodbye savings account
5. putting a small dent in some yard work
6. watching one movie
7. going to the INDIEana Handicraft Exchange and Talbot Street Art Fair
8. Advertising with Nichelle at Vintage Wanna Bee
9. Meeting new principal at school
10. Realizing I own a hundred summer dresses and need to do thirty dresses in thirty days or something of the sort on the blog....

Done with my randomness!  Hope you are enjoying your summer!

If you get a chance check out Sheila at Blissfully Shabby , she is super sweet and I'm loving her projects!