May Long Weekend...

It will be 24 degrees here today, sunny and warm, hopefully it will be that way all weekend. But as usual on this long weekend, rain is in the forcast for Monday.

Jeremy and Julie are having a great time in Orlando although he was up at 4:00am with one of his kidlets not feeling well. They are off to the Animal Kingdom today.

Vintage Postcards by Cavallini & Co.

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In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours. ~Mark Twain

100th blog entry 2007

This has been so much fun, keeping up this page even though we are not travelling at the moment. I have been using some of the things I have been collecting over the years on my scrapbook pages like buttons, pages from old books and dictionaries and vintage ric rack.

Jeremy and Julie made it safely to Orlando with their group of 70+ kids and adults, and he has posted his photos, and it looks like fun. http://sites.sd43.bc.ca/secondary/riverside/jbrown/default.aspx

Off to work I go for the next 3 days, and I know it will be "smoking" busy as everyone will want to be in the Okanagan for the May long weekend...

It is a 2 quote kinda day:

We all have had big changes in our lives that are more or less second chances. ~Harrison Ford

The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn. ~David Russell

Happiness.....

Just being alive & healthy to enjoy each sunrise and sunset is happiness enough to me.

People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost. ~H. Jackson Brown

Scrapbook Page

This is why you need to take photos, so you have lots to scrap with and make new scrapbook pages for the albums that are filling up with memories.

Jeremy and Julie leave today for Orlando, they are both taking students (Jeremy and his group 47 and Julie and her chaperon 24) for a week of science. Last year they had such an interesting time, they are going again. I say, good for you guys, have a safe and wonderful time learning and doing what you love.

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The school is the last expenditure upon which America should be willing to economize. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Jim's ride.....

Jim got this golf cart when he retired 2 1/2 years ago, and it has gotten many upgrades. Mag wheels, checker plate trim, exhaust, and he is the envy on our golf course. It provides allot of fun and transportation for us around our development. Pebbles and Cookie love it, as they think of it as their convertible.

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Golf is not just an exercise; it's an adventure, a romance... a Shakespeare play in which disaster and comedy are intertwined. ~Harold Segall

Happy Mother's Day....

To all of you, Happy Mother's Day. For the ones of us that are Mom's, Grandmom's, aunts, sisters and to the ones that have lost their Mom's, loving wishes, and I hope you have a happy day.

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When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child. ~Sophia Loren,

Dagmar's ride...

This is a happy me, in my Mustang convertible with room for Jimmy and the dogs. Here in the Okanogan, you can have your "Top" down on lots of sunny days.

Thanks to Shirley for taking this photo. That is her little "Smart" car behind mine.

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"Dreams are answers to questions we haven't yet figured out how to ask."

Happy 13th Birthday Cookie...

Today, May 11th, is Cookie May's 13th birthday. What a sweet and mild mannered dog she is. She is enjoying her retirement years doing what she loves to do best, sleep in the sun, watch the birds, and wait for her mealtimes. In her senior years she has become quite a water dog and goes into the water on every occasion. So to our lovely old gal, we pray that you have many more healthy, happy years with us.

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I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me they are the role model for being alive. ~Gilda Radner

New treasures....

Thanks to all the folks that have been trying to help me with my new header. I am having fun and learning at the same time. My thanks to Bonnie, Chrissy and Christa for their help and inspiration. I will get it done right soon....

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Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try! ~. Dr. Seuss,

Coming soon....

I have been trying to get a new blog header, but so far been unsuccessful at this. I am not giving up, and here is what I hope it will look like when I figure it out....Have a great Wednesday.

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If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit

Winery Tour...

Shirley and I had a fun Saturday after noon, having lunch and tasting some wine. Since I was the DD, I sipped a little and let Shirley enjoy the experience. As I work at this wonderful winery called Mission Hill Family Estate, we got to try some of the lovely choices at the tasting bar. This winery and other ones in the valley is sone of the reasons that make the Okanogan such a great place to live. Shirley went back to Vancouver with nearly a case of good wine in the trunk of her little Smart car. Good times.

Excess on occasion is exhilirating. It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a habit. ~W. Somerset Maugham, The Summing Up, 1938

Courtyard Fountain...

The new fountain is up and running, adding lovely sounds to the courtyard. Most of the big planters have been potted up and waiting for the warmer weather to arrive. Jim is in Calgary with his family, and my friend Shirley spent the last two days here at a Medical Conference. We had a wonderful visit, and got to sample some great wines.

The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another.

The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month. ~Henry Van Dyke

Happy Anniversary....

Shannon and Gord, May 4

Christa and Mike, May 5

A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, partnership, tolerance and tenacity. The order varies for any given year. ~Paul Sweeney

Heartfelt....

This was done with some vintage fabric, and quilting cotton-felt on a card and digital stitching to give it some texture. I just picked up 4 wallpaper books because it is such interesting paper to craft with and to get some new ideas. Will post them as I make them into new projects.

Doing orientation all this week, tasting all the new releases of wine at Mission Hill Winery, trying out wine and cheese pairing, and learning the new retail management system. Lots of new stuff to challenge the brain, and keep us fresh.

"For the happiest life, rigorously plan your days, but leave the nights open to chance." Mignon McLaughlin

Sunday wishes.....

"Life is like a coin, you can spend it anyway you like, but you can only spend it once."

Lillian Dickson

Life Moments...

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away"

Wouldn't it be lovely to think about 5 things in your life that took your breath away, and to have a heart that is filled with gratitude for those occasions?

This project was started at a class this spring in Arizona, but just completed yesterday when I decided how to finish it.

I hope that you have had some moments in your life that took your breath away.....

Birds....

A sure sign of Spring when you start making scrapbook pages about birds.

Christa and I were both working on projects, e-mailing photos back and forth so we could see what the other was working on.

This one is all machine sewn, distressed, hand tinted and has real feathers for visual effect.

Now I just have to find the right photo to complete this page.

A bird does not sing because it has an answer, it sings becasue it has a song. Chinese Proverb

My love..my son

Last night after work, I came home and decided to start a couple of pages of the photos that I took in Vancouver, and here is the first one of Jeremy and I. It is always fun to see how it will look finished. Sometimes it is difficult to know when to stop embellishing, so here is the final product.

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss

Jeremy ..... Vancouver days 3 & 4

We had a couple great days together, doing Mom and son stuff. Jeremy took me for an early Mother's Day lunch up Indian Arm in Deep Cove.

I got to meet a few of his teacher colleagues at "Riverside Secondary School" where he teaches, and it was great fun to hear them tease him. Julie had been away at Whistler, but came home before I drove back to Westbank and I was able to have a quick visit with her. 6 months is much too long to see your only child, even though he is full grown. Thank you Jeremy for the couple of lovely days spent together. Thanks Catherine for the photo of Jeremy and I.

There's nothing that can help you understand your beliefs more than trying to explain them to an inquisitive child. ~Frank A. Clark

Vancouver, Day 2

This is one of my dear friends, Shirley. Here we are at the Granville Market at False Creek after having lunch at Rubina's Grill.

She is the most fit gal I know, and will be flying to Pakistan at the end of June plans to trek to Broad Peak Base camp and hopefully onto K2 Base Camp -then cross the Gondogoro La - a pass at 5600 metres -from the Concordia Glacier to the Hushe valley it will depend on weather and acclimatization). Hiking from July 1-25. Good luck and safe journey.The web site is www.themountaincompany.co.uk.

How hard to realize that every camp of men or beast has this glorious starry firmament for a roof! In such places standing alone on the mountain-top it is easy to realize that whatever special nests we make - leaves and moss like the marmots and birds, or tents or piled stone - we all dwell in a house of one room - the world with the firmament for its roof - and are sailing the celestial spaces without leaving any track. ~John Muir

Vancouver, Day 1

Here I am with my friend Shannon on their 21st floor balcony overlooking False Creek. Their lovely home is perched high in the sky with the most wonderful views in all directions. Dinner on Wednesday night was at Vig's, the best Indian cuisine in Vancouver.

The trip to The Van Dusen Botanical Garden was a visual treat for all the senses. The weather sunny and warm, so I was able to drive around with the top down on my Mustang convertible. A very good day.

Thanks Shannon for your wonderful hospitality.

Friends are those rare people who ask how you are and then wait for the answer. ~Author Unknown

Clipboard & little books....

At home under the weather today, so between sleeping, resting

and trying not to get so run down again, I finished off some projects that have been sitting on my desk. I painted the clip on the clipboard, and sanded it back for a shabby look.

Found papers and stamps in my collection that finished off the little books that I love to make. I am hoping to get a good night's rest tonight so I can go on my way to Vancouver tomorrow.

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I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read and all the friends I want to see. ~John Burroughs

Jeremy and Julie

I will be so happy to get some new photos of Jeremy & Julie when I am in Vancouver. They are very good about me taking their photos, and I want to get some of them in their new home. This page is part of a yearly calendar that I do, and each month I try a new technique.

So much to learn, so little time.

So, Jeremy, see you soon. I miss you so very much.

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While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about.~Angela Schwindt

Sunny Sunday...

It's off to work I go, but at least the weather is getting warmer and it is sunny.

On Wednesday I leave for Vancouver to see Jeremy, and my girlfriends. I will have a chance to catch up on their lives and spend time with Jeremy. Julie will be up at Whistler, but hoping to see her before I come back home on Sunday. How I am looking forward to seeing my son.

" Our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become."

Work in progress....

There are always projects happening here

@ STUDIO {D}....love it when I have the time and all the peices are in place to play in my craft room. This scrapbook page is waiting for a photo and the little book (3x4) is just waiting to be filled with notes, quotes, & thoughts.

Thanks to all of you who have left comments, I really enjoy the fact that my photos, thoughts & crafting make someone other than myself happy. Thanks Jeremy for showing my blog to your colleagues, I was really very touched.

"True friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love"

Cindy....you go girl.

This is my friend Cindy, and our visit to the Winery (last fall), but today this post is about her coming into the 21st century, as she now has a computer, and a laptop no less.....Welcome to the e-mail age, Cindy, this will open up so many avenues for you. She is such a gifted ceramic artist, and I will be posting some of her work later on..

"We do not have to change friends if we understand friends change as we do."

Handmade cards....

These are a few samples of the cards that I finished making to send off to my sister Evelyne, who is having a fund raising event for Richard's nephew's son, Austin. He is ill and having to spend lots of time in the hospital in Calgary, AB. We have him in our prayers.

These are vintage postcards with buttons, ric rack and an old postal stamp.

Today's quote: "Create your day in advance, by thinking the way that you want it to go, you will create your life intentionally." From "The Secret"

Red Roses....

Thanks to Jim and the dogs, the Easter Bunny found his way to our home and brought me these roses while I was working. The petals feel like velvet and they smell so good. Thank you Jim, it was a lovely surprise.

There is just one life for each of us: our own. ~Euripides

Happy Easter....

Happy Easter.

A time to celebrate spring and to be thankful for all that we have, grateful for those we love, and for those who love us.

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. ~Thornton Wilder

Vintage Pillows....

Yesterday was a good day for me in my craft room. I made 3 pillows out of my vintage fabric collection.. The little lamb is hand embroiderd, it has the flower, chenille and linen as part of the body pillow I recoverd. These two are made out of chenille, lace and the fabric from an old table cloth. They now have a new home on our bed.

Old globes...

This is the spring look for the coffee table in our living room. Laurie and Shane sent us the book on golf courses in Colombia, SA. It has been looked at alot of times, and Jim was amazed at the number and quality of the courses there

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I found these two old globes at the Salvation Army, one dates to 1972, and the other 1964. Lavendar from my garden in an old McCoy pottery flower pot and rocks I collected from the Oregon Coast.

It is still very cold here for this time of the year, -9 yesterday and -3 this morning, but the good news is that by this weekend it should be 20. Spring is finally on it's way.

At work....

This is the beautiful "Mission Hill Family Estate Winery" where I work 3 days a week from April to mid Oct. It is a wonderful place to taste some of BC's best wines. We do several different tours a day, and tastings at the wine bar. The Terrace resturant that overlooks the lake is a fabulous place to have lunch or dinner. So this is your invitation to come to the Okanagan, and visit the wineries that are all around us here in this beautiful valley.