Six random things...

I've been "tagged" by the amazing lillyella.. [check out her etsy shop (here) or her blog (here)]
The deal is to post six random things about yourself... now this is harder than you might think!

first... here are the rules:

• Link to the person who tagged you
• Post the rules on your blog
• Write six random things about yourself
• Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them
• Let each person know they've been tagged

ok... six things...

1. the only thing I'm allergic to is adhesive tape
2. my great, great grandmother was the bastard child of royalty from Austria - she fled to America as a child with her nanny
3. I hate talking on the phone... always have, always will
4. I love to make jewelry, but I never wear any... I have multiple piercings in my ears but still never wear earrings... the only jewelry I've worn in the past 5 years was my wedding ring
5. I'm a huge procrastinator
6. I prefer to use pencils (mechanical pencils to be exact) and hate writing in pen. If I have to use a pen - I like blue ones... I don't like black ink.

ok... so the next part of "the rules" I'm tagging the following six people... can't wait to read these!

capitolagirl ... http://www.capitolagirl.com/

Jen .... http://twobusymommies.blogspot.com/

Magriet Moss ... http://babushkajewellery.blogspot.com/

D'Elle Juwelen .... D'Elle Juwelen

Kim ... http://circlesareforever.blogspot.com/

moore magnets ... http://mooremagnets.blogspot.com/

HAVE FUN WITH THIS!!

trick or treat!

ok... so last year my daughter bought me a sewing machine for my birthday... aha! now the truth comes out.... I'm to make my grandbug's halloween costumes for the next 12 years or so....

it's ok... I love it! Turns out, my daughter loved the fact that I always made her halloween costumes! - who would have known???

Anyway... little grandbug's daddy is a huge, HUGE Ohio State Buckeye fan... er.. fanatic!@

So he wanted little grandbug to be Brutus... the Ohio State mascot.

...here's the inspiration... ( one of like three of these he has)

and here's the finished costume....

what do ya' think???

introducing Yoda Flubber Duck

those of you who know me, know that I'm definitely a dog person.... always have been....

so what am I doing with this thing??? I don't even like cats!

A few months back my neighbors discover this little guy skulking about the basement of our apartment building. Well certainly he must belong to someone here, right? I mean, how else does he get into a secure apartment building?

He was skinny and scared. Both of my neighbors already have two cats so they asked me to keep him until we found the owner - ok... no problem - what's that going to be... a day? two days?

Well here it is like five months later... he's no longer scared and definitely not skinny... and I guess he's a keeper!

My friend, and neighbor named him Yoda - mainly because of his abnormally large ears... my little grandbug calls him "duck" (for some reason he calls everything 'duck')

.... and now he's gotten so fat my daughter refers to him as 'flubber" - so there you have it... he is officially Yoda Flubber Duck and I guess he's stickin' around!

he really is a little sweetheart... so affectionate... he might be growing on me a little :)

Broken heart....

I haven't blogged this week. I have been a little pre-occupied.

I've had a broken heart before... actually, many times... but it has always been "theoretically"... now it seems that the light of my life... my favorite little man, actually does have a "broken heart."

Ever since my husband (actually my ex husband) was killed in a car accident back in January, the main purpose of my existence has been my little grandbug... he is my light, my joy, my everything!!! He is just 16 months old and on Monday we found out that he will need open-heart surgery.

It seems that he was born with two holes in his beautiful little heart. One has actually repaired itself (the worst one)... but the second one is going to require surgery.

What he has is called a Atrioventricular Canal Defect and it will require them to actually cut open his chest... break his sternum... take out his heart.. empty it, apply the patch and return that beautiful little heart to this beautiful little man.

Quite daunting... I've spent this week questioning, and researching to find out everything we can.

They are going to wait until he gains some weight and is a little stronger before the surgery - probably not until the summer... but it has been very stressful, to say the least.

Please, keep him in your thoughts and prayers....comments from anyone who has had experience with this sort of thing would be greatly appreciated.

terrible twos - a year early?

oh my.... I can't even imagine what will happen when this child turns two! I love my little grandbug with all my heart and soul, don't get me wrong... but lately I am also sooooo glad to take him back home. I'm exhausted!!!

Now that he's started walking, he thinks it's just so cool to explore everything. I only had him for 6 hours today and my little apartment looks like a tornado just went through. First, upon waking from his nap, he was able to reach the A&D ointment.... hence a greasy mess.... ok, I changed his clothes and cleaned him up, no big deal.

While I was cleaning up the goopy mess in the bedroom... he headed for the bathroom...ok.... still not a big deal.... while I was cleaning that mess up... he headed for the kitchen cupboards.... hell, I just let him play pick-up-sticks for awhile before cleaning that mess.
then he discovered how to open a jar of peanut butter...... no pictures here - I didn't even want to touch my camera once I got that jar away!!
So.... a bath and another change of clothes...... while I was washing everything he touched he decided to climb into the cupboards again!.....then he was coming after my camera!!!! OH NO!! that's when I put the camera away and took him outside for the next two hours before taking him home.... now I realize why they build playgrounds... to keep people's houses intact!!

He's a really good little boy - a great disposition - always smiling and sweet as can be... but OMG!!!! I need wine.... I need sleep.... I need someone to come over and clean this mess up! (I didn't even take photos of the cookie crumb filled sofa, or the empty cupboards in the dining room) Why do I bother having a toy cupboard??? It's the only thing in my apartment that hasn't been touched.

... and the rains came....

Now I'm not sure of the actual numbers, but we've had so much rain here! I, of course, blame my neighbor - and partner in organic-gardening-crime... When we first started our little garden, she prayed for rain.....well someone is listening!!!
For those of you who saw my first post about our happy little garden.... I just thought I'd let you know- this is what has been happening...

poor baby garden... we had such high hopes for you!

green lettuce = good

1 red = good, 1 - on the verge

tomato plants - all on the verge

thyme, basil, sage = good

peppers - questionable

onions -so/so

cauliflower, cucumbers, other red lettuces, parsley, cilantro - total goners... :(

this is what the garden looked like sunday night at 8pm
My partner in crime spent her Saturday with a garden weasel... the soil looked great, all built up and fluffy...but then came the torrential downpour while she was finishing....

Sunday was beautiful. a little rain in the a.m. but all warm and sunny all day - and still we got this!

sucks.

I've been "Squidoo'd"

YAY! Not sure quite yet what "Squidoo" even is, but I know I'm excited to be on it!
here's the link....http://www.squidoo.com/monacodesigns

I have a new GrandDog!! Meet Tess...

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the "Meet your new best friend" event at the Cleveland Zoo ... well I couldn't go, but my daughter did and guess what! My grandbug has a new best friend! Her name is Tess and she's a Rottweiler mix (mixed with what we're not quite sure)

So I'll get to babysit both of them! YAY!

Community Organic Gardening!

My friend and neighbor, Leah, (you might remember her from here) and I are doing a garden at a local park in Lakewood through "LEAF":
http://www.leafcommunity.org/

it's great - all organic!!
we got a 10x10 plot through the whole season (and we can get the same plot next year too) for $25.00 - they water (ok - the water fountain/hose system hasn't been set up yet so...) but heck!

we started about two weeks ago, and we planted:
thyme, sage, basil, parsely, cilantro
romaine lettuce
red leaf lettuce
onions/scallions
cucumbers
white cauliflower
purple cauliflower
tomato plants (3 varieties; 2 plum, 1 pirifoam, 1 goliath)
bell peppers
jalapenos
serrano peppers

we're so excited!
talk about the best salsa and tomato sauces this fall!

it was so fun to measure and stake it out and turn dirt!
i have wanted a garden for so long!

it's our first year so we're kind of going light - we may get all crazy and do two plots next year!
it's literally a 5 min walk from our apartment and I just found us a wagon (on Freecycle) so we can walk our water over instead of driving - until they get us our water supply

we've met some really nice people
hooray for gardens!

Happy Birthday!

pardon me, in advance.... for being one of those grandmas....
Yep... I'm about to show you photos of my grandbug!! It was his very first birthday on Thursday!! YAY!

I can't even begin to explain how quickly this year has flown...

he got a sandbox to play in

and a firetruck to ride on!

and lots of cake!
Isn't he adorable????
ok... I'm done bragging for now......

The Cat in the Hat? Nope... the DOG in the hat....

Ok... so I knew this would happen. My daughter bought me a sewing machine for my birthday and now every time an occasion comes up everyone I know asks me to sew something! I'm not really complaining... I love to sew and I need the practice.

This latest request was a hoot though!

My mom's littlest dog (she has three... a St Bernard, a German Shephard, and this little Sheltie) was going to a doggie birthday... hmmmm... yep.. she needed a birthday hat. This is what I came up with (bear in mind I only had 2 days notice) Luckily I keep all my scraps from other projects.

the hat.....

the dog in the hat....

Happy Belated Easter!

I can't believe I've not posted in three days... my how time flies...

Look how big my little grandbug has gotten!! ---->>>>>

Wow! He's still too little for candy, but the Easter Bunny brought him lots of fun stuff!

This year I hosted Easter dinner... just seven of us... not much fuss, but it was fun! I made this fabulous glaze for the ham with bourbon, coca-cola, dijon mustard and honey hmm, hmm good!

My 'great-uncle' came - who I just adore... and it got me thinking... why do we call grandfathers "grand" and uncles "great?" hmmm... well, my 'great' uncle is actually now a great, great, great uncle... that made us all smile :) ...and I think it's just GRAND!

Also, why do we celebrate some 'eves' and not others? There is Christmas eve, and New Year's eve... but not Easter eve???

Anyone know why????

Whew... it's over...!

Ok... I guess I can come out from hiding now that "Single Awareness Day" (otherwise known as Valentine's Day) is over.....

I was lucky though... I got to spend it with my new sweetheart... in fact, he spent the night!! (wooo hoo!) A little diaper mishap, however, led to an emergency bath - in the sink! How cute is this?

I know I'm a little (a little?) biased.... but isn't he the cutest thing ever! He turned 9 months yesterday! I've been so lonely since my husband died... thank goodness for this little one. I'll always have a sweetheart now!

I'm a benevolent artist....

or at least according to http://personaldna.com/...

Benevolent Artist

What are you?? I'd love to hear!! Want to discover your true inner self too? Click here to take the test!!!

Something new!

I love to make jewelry... don't get me wrong... but for years I've wanted to work with metal. Maybe it's the years I worked in the metal finishing industry, but I love metal! I love the look and feel of the industrial world. At a recent show I met a fabulous local Cleveland sculptor, Jerry Schmidt, and he is teaching me how to weld, and grind, and create all sorts of wonderful things from metal!!! (here's a link to his site http://www.schmidtsculpture.com/)

Here's my first piece.... I'd LOVE to hear your comments... good AND bad (seriously! how will I ever learn if I don't get construstive criticism??)

Miss Scarlet in the Dining Room with the Candlestick?

NOPE! Kim, in the kitchen with a carving knife!! My posts will be a little sporadic for a while... Look what I did!

I was trying to make a pan of bar cookies and I burnt them... so then I was trying to pry them out of the very hardened and burnt pan when.... EOW! Stabbed myself! and actually bent the knife! Chipped the bone in my hand and everything! ...the worst part was pulling the knife back out! Got a few stitches and I have to go back to the doc's in a few days to see if I need surgery on the tendons... so much for making jewelry for a while! I'm SUCH a klutz in the kitchen... oh the stories my family could tell you! So for now, it's a little hard to type..... I'll be back though!

My Grandbug!!

I don't know why I call him "bug"... my daughter does too and we didn't even realize that we both did this until recently! She's concerned he'll think that's his real name because he seems to respond to "bug!"

Well I'm fortunate enough to live just 2.1 miles away - 20 minutes walking distance for me - to my adorable bug and I get to watch him at least once or twice a week. Last night we had a sleepover!! Yea! (although there was not much actual sleeping involved). I was able to snap a few photos so here they are!!!!

A little surprised by the camera here! >>

<<<<<<<

I was feeding him organic sweet potatoes... but he seemed to like the washcloth better!

By around 11 p.m. I was trying to tire him out and put him in his "johnny jump-up! He seemed quite happy about it at first...

but then he couldn't even hold his head up much (lol!) so I thought, "yea!" he's getting sleepy!!! (cause Grandma was exhausted by then!)

then finally around 12:30 a.m....... perfect, no?

Changes...

I believe in the healing powers of mother nature & her stones... Today I made this necklace... it's a fabulous stone called mookite (or mookaite) from Western Australia...

Mookaite's main purpose is to promote the acceptance of chance, and to encourage the desire for variety and new experiences. They also believe it promotes inner calm while simultaneously promoting the desire for adventure.

"They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself." ... Andy Warhol

Change can be quite scary and exciting at the same time... I've been going through a lot of changes lately... a divorce, new apartment, making new friends, new grandson, and a new Etsy store (my online shop). I have known for some time that changes needed to be made in my life, but the question had always been: “How do I muster up the courage to make the changes that I so desperately want to make?” Not making changes has always been easier for me... even when I was in a quite painful situation - at least there is comfort in the familiar and I just stuck it out.. hoping for change - but not creating any significant changes myself.

What happens if we don’t heed the wisdom in our hearts that may be telling us it’s time for a change?
We risk getting stuck in a life-long rut and living a “status quo” life, which may remain the same without any change for years, and, worse yet, a life in which, we may never realize our fullest happiness and potential.

Ok... so I made a change... a BIG one and I'm terrified.... Sometimes I sit and wonder what it is that I'm afraid of, and other times I wonder what it is I'm not afraid of. What is running away? Changing? Not changing? Should I have stayed??? I'm 45... been married three times... When does that statute of limitations run out when you can really change your life?

I have no answers yet... but I'm working on it!

Creating Yourself...

A quote I have, sitting on my desk, haunts me....
"Life isn't about finding yourself... Life is about creating yourself..."
So.... I have decided to live by a Golden Rule to do three nice things for myself each day. To create a fabulous new me..... My intention was to give myself a "gold star" for each thing I did for myself each day.... I began to use this 'gold star' system to give myself kudos for a two-mile walk, for meditating, for connecting with a friend, etc.
It only took 11 days, however, for my stars to shine dimly next to entries like: flossed, paid bills, ate vegetables.

Why is it that we don't take the time to be good to ourselves and then wonder why others aren't good to us?? If we don't believe we deserve goodness, then why would others believe it?

I recently attended an Alanon meeting where I heard the definition of insanity - doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Well, it's official - I'm insane.

I'm on a sort of toxic roller coaster relationship ride and have been for three, four years now. Like one of those old coasters built out of wood in the sixties. Maintenance has been sporadic and left for far too long, but the ride is familiar, and with familiarity comes comfort and the memory that it used to be a good ride, despite what it might be now.

How is it that we can sort through our memories and only retain the good ones regarding relationships?

I remember being a child.... the beauty and innocence of a little girl who loves herself, unconditionally. Who knows what she wants and how she wants to be treated. When she wanted attention, she demanded it! When she needed time alone, she took it.
Where does this go???

Does it change when we refuse the brussel sprouts and we're made to eat them anyway? When we're told we have to color inside the lines?

Where is the transition to not feeling worthy of all that you want, all that you deserve... and become what others expect of you? When do the lines blur and we lose ourselves completely? At what point do we settle?

I'm going to create a NEW self... or perhaps an old self...... I want to return to a childlike mentality in all my relationships. If Billy throws dirt in my face, I want to stalk away with my pudgy arms folded, telling him I won't be his friend because he's mean - and then just STOP, cold turkey, being his friend! I'm going to hang out with the friends who help me up, and wipe the dirt from my sleeves... with the friends who laugh at my jokes and trades me ho-ho's for my granola bars....

I am going to spend more of my time and energy on creating myself... my authentic self...and not be so concerned about what others think. I'm going to become my own best friend and treasure the people I find along the way who love me just the way I am!

Tuesday is MUTT'S Day!!

July 31st - It's Mutt's Day! Mutts deserve their day in the spotlight, as much as a pure breed. If you own a mutt, or you are a mutt (reading this), then you know this day is for you.

This is a picture of my favorite mutt - Smedley - part (get this) Rottweiller, part Bassett Hound!! He's the BEST!

By definition a mutt, sometimes called a "Halfbreed", is a dog that is of mixed breed. They come from two to several breeds. Purebred owners, and sometimes the public in general, view them as lesser in many ways. Mutt owners know better. They value the diversity and uniqueness of their mutts. Sure, a mutt doesn't carry the expensive price tag that a purebred with papers has on its head. To the mutt owner, however, the mutt is invaluable. In addition, mutts don't walk around needing to prove anything. You won't see them strutting around any dog shows trying to prove they are the best.
To all mutts and and mutt owners, we hope you thoroughly enjoy Mutt's Day. Spend the day relaxing and doing all the things you and your dog like to do. Do so with both of your chins held high. For your mutt is worth a million bucks!