Antique Doll Bed Pillows, etc.

My mil had a gorgeous wood doll bed, which was passed on to her daughter, and now will belong to her great-grand daughters. My sil asked me if I could make a removable pad cover, pillows, and pillow covers. She also asked if I could embroider the girl's names on the pillowcases. One pillow will go at one end of the doll bed and the other on the opposite end. I thought that I would share some pictures with you.

Red Skeleton Pledge of Allegiance

Holiday Safety Tips

HOLIDAY SAFETY TIPS … DON’T BE AN EASY TARGET!




With the holiday season upon us and the shopping frenzy in full swing, the Altadena Sheriff’s Station would like everyone to take extra precautions while out shopping, and also around your home or business during this festive time of year. Suspicious activity should always be reported immediately, whether you are at home or away, and people are strongly encouraged to practice the following safety tips that may prevent you from becoming a victim:

While shopping:

¨ Place all gifts and packages in your trunk or out of sight
¨ Be aware of your surroundings at all times and walk with confidence
¨ Park in well-lighted areas
¨ Avoid shopping alone; there is safety in numbers
¨ Try to use credit or debit cards for purchases to avoid carrying large amounts of cash
¨ Keep your car doors locked and windows closed
¨ If you carry a purse or bag, carry it up close to your body
¨ Have your car key in your hand prior to getting to your vehicle
¨ Always report suspicious activity immediately to on-site security or the police department

Suggestions in and around your home:

¨ Keep gifts in areas that cannot be seen from doorways or windows
¨ Install motion sensor lighting in a location that it cannot be easily tampered with
¨ Keep bushes and shrubbery trimmed down and thinned out to eliminate places for thieves to hide
¨ If traveling, postpone your mail and newspaper deliveries so your home doesn’t look deserted
¨ Do not store gifts in vehicles or unsecured areas
¨ Always report suspicious activity immediately to your local sheriff’s station or police department

If you operate a business, some of these tips may be helpful:

¨ Lock unused doors as long as you are not in violation of the Fire Code
¨ Keep only necessary cash in the register and vary the schedule and route for your bank deposits each day
¨ Make sure your cash register is clearly visible to passers-by
¨ Advertise your security alarm system with signs in visible locations
¨ Develop a mutual aid system among stores on your block or close to you

Time Out And A Time To Reflect

I know that I don't have many visitors to my blog, and I honestly don't know why. Lately, I haven't been able to post or go to other blogs. Life is hectic and very busy. For now, I am taking a break and thinking on how I can change and improve things.

Blogging for me will begin again after the new year, unless I have something exciting happen. I am worn out for now. So, if you read this blog, I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Solar Eagle

My son was part of an Earth Art Event in downtown Los Angeles. They spent the morning laying out thin solar panels and copper strips to form an outline of the solar eagle. Here below are some images from the event. It was a challenge due to the winds. Everything had to be down before the satellite and the helicopter flew over to take the picture. The helicopter started filming for 45 minutes.

















Courtesy DigitalGlobe

Here We Go Again-Refrigerator Woes

In case you didn't know it,late last month, our refrigerator stopped cooling down. There was water all over the floor and the refrigerator was over 50 degrees. With a good repair, a new part (took a week to get), the refrigerator was on its way to being back to normal.

But wait! Two weeks of pleasant temperatures, frozen ice, and a cool refrigerator had quickly come to an end. It is odd because it was exactly two weeks after getting a new compressor that the refrigerator decided to do the exact same thing. With a new phone call and a quick analysis, everything was fixed once again. This time it was a clogged tube-the tube that carried the refrigerant. Everything is fine once again.

But wait! This relief lasted only two days. We think that everything was fine so we start to put groceries back in the refrigerator, but soon discover that the refrigerator is warm once again. This time, the temperature fluctuates from 34.1 up to 55 degrees. With a phone call, the same tech is back at the house. This time the refrigerator is back down to a normal temperature and stays that way. Well, the tech can't fix something that isn't broken. So, dh brings home the groceries from their storage place, only to discover that the process has started all over again. We kept a log just as the tech wanted us to, which indicated the temperatures and the noise level. The temperature slowly rises up to 57.1 degrees then it begins once again at the bottom and climbs again.

So....today they will hear from us once again. This isn't good with a holiday coming around the corner. We are using a small refrigerator. You know one of those mini refrigerators that you can barely fit anything in. Sigh......

The thing that we liked about the refrigerator is that there are four sections that are individually controlled. The bottom left drawer can be used as a freezer or as a refrigerator.

Annual Turkey Tussle Football Game

To truly understand the meaning of the Turkey Tussle, this is a must see video.



It is a HUGE thing around here that two schools look forward to each year. It is the annual Turkey Tussle Football game between two rival high schools: John Muir High School and Pasadena High School. I attended my first Turkey Tussle football game when my youngest son played in the John Muir marching band. It has been a long time since I have been inside the football stadium at the Rose Bowl and I forgot how challenging it was for tall people to sit in the seats.

Last night was the game that all the current students and past students geared up for, when the winner would covet the victory bell for another year. It is an entire year where the winner has bragging rites of the other rival team. John Muir has been a winner over the Pasadena High School football team and this year was a landslide victory. We won 66-6.

Song by Amy Grant

I heard this song for the first time today. Great song by Amy Grant. I would put the video up on my blog, but I don't know how to do it, so that is why I linked it.

Project Linus-Great Organizaton

As many of you know, I do a lot of sewing. I especially make a lot of aprons, meaning that I usually have a lot of fabric scraps. I used to have a source of women who wanted me to send them the scraps, but the downside was that it cost to ship and usually they paid for the shipping. They were happy to pay for the shipping because of the large variety of quality fabrics that were shipped.

I found another source, since these ladies are up to their ears in scraps. The organization is called "Project Linus." I was fortunate to find a local chapter to donate the scraps and fabric yardage to. Arriving at the meeting place today, I was flabbergasted. In the large room there were so many sewing many sewing machines, and there were not only women sewing quilts, but women crocheting blankets. There must have been at least 100 women there sewing. I could be wrong on this since I am poor at calculating, but besides the large room, there was another room filled with women as well.

Since the Project Linus organization began in 1995, they have made over 3 million blankets for children in need. This is absolutely amazing to me. If you sew, crochet, or knit, I urge you to check out the Linus Project, and if you have spare time, maybe you can donate your time making blankets for such a worth cause.

Unwelcomed Home Invader

My husband and oldest son were just sitting watching television this evening. My husband said, "What is that crawling on the floor." When I first saw the ugly insect, I thought that it was a potato bug, but how did it get in the house? My son did some research on the Internet and that ugly insect that I thought that was a potato bug was actually called a Jerusalem Crickets Ugliest thing I ever saw. Of course our dog was very interested.


This isn't the actual Jerusalem Cricket that was in the house. My son wants to take a picture. Go Figure! We have lived in this home for 25 years and I never have seen anything like this before. I am still curious how it got inside our house. What we found out that it is native to the Western United States and that the early rains are drawing them out of their burrows. There have been a lot sightings since our recent rains.

CERT Training

For the last week, my husband and I have been in an Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training class. It was grueling with us giving up two Saturdays (8 hours each Saturday), and 3 nights of not watching our favorite shows on television, but it was worth it. We are now certified if needed for emergencies in our town. Last Saturday was the final. When I first heard FINAL, it brought me back to the good old school days. I wasn't really big on tests. I was nervous then as I was for this final.

We had 2 groups to begin with, where we worked on cribbing (raising a heavy object-platform off of a victim (no victims underneath or no dummies used), and then we had to pair up to put out a small fire. Putting out the fire was fun because I have always seen it on tv, but never had the opportunity to really put out a small fire.

The next part was the actual final. We had 3 groups of 6 people, but somehow during the last scenario, we had 9 people. The first scenario was a bus accident. There was an earthquake and the school bus hit a telephone pole and wound up in a trench. Of course there was no real trench for us, just an empty parking lot. I was assigned to the task of taking the injured victims off of the school but, but somehow, others just took over. Go figure. Anyways, one of the victims was a young girl. She was place on the yellow tarp, which called for monitoring. I was standing by the bus, and happened to look over at the treatment area. The girl got up and started walking towards the bus. The medical person didn't notice her walking away, so I just put my arm around her shoulder and led her back to the tarp. The next thing I noticed that the young man on the red tarp (immediate or more serious victims) had his eyes closed. When I got closer, he was repeating the same phrase over and over again, which was a sign of shock. I asked the questions that we were told, but he didn't respond (sign of shock), so I covered him up with what I could find.

I had asked my husband what his role was in the bus incident, and he said that he was search and rescue. There was a man place at the back of the bus. This man had a red tag on him and a brief description of what was wrong. While the others were treating the minor injuries (not to be done on the bus, but in the treatment area), the man;s airway became obstructed. My husband noticed the man and climbed over the other victims and followed the procedure for opening up the airway. He did this twice, and the man was taken out to the red tarp to be monitored. The instructor said, "You are not supposed to be out here. You are dead!" The man replied, "He (pointing to my husband) opened up my airway."


Our oldest son could only attend a couple of the classes as he was getting ready to leave for a geology trip to Santa Cruz Island. He was the cook for the group.

Partly Clear, Partly Cloudy

No, I am not talking about the weather. It is raining here, and we are expecting rain all week long. My purchased one windshield wiper during the last rain. He was told that the left wiper was 24" and the right side is 21" We still haven't found a 21" wiper, so the driver side view through the windshield is clear, but the passenger side view is foggy or cloudy looking. We have had our Honda Odyssey for about 3 o4 4 years now, and never knew that the sizes were different.

Refrigerator Our Of Commission

We have had this refrigerator for almost 3 years now, and like it very much, but the troubles began. I noticed water on the floor, but thought that the water pipe was leaking in the back again. My oldest so noticed the water running out of the freezer (melted ice). OMG! How can something be wrong so soon. We used to buy extended warranties, but thought that it wasn't necessary this time.



So.....thank goodness there are 3 refrigerators at dh's workplace. We loaded up the perishables. The sad thing is that I just bought some chicken. I guess that if a refrigerator breaks that it would be on the day when you just loaded it up with fresh items. Updates to come

update: they ruined the refrigerator. Never found out what was wrong with the Samsung refrigerator.

That Some Kinda of Pizza

My son has me hooked on Big Mamma & Big Pappa's Pizza.



The first time he brought home a pizza, I was shocked. It was huge, but only to find out that there is another larger sizes(36"). They hand toss the dough. I watched the man do this with the 28 inch pizza dough. Amazing.

Apple Harvest Cake

I am going to make this Apple Cake




courtesy of my friend Bev from Bee Haven Acres

I can't wait to make and of course eat the cake. Thanks Bev.

New Cobbler Aprons At Country N' More

I have added a lot of new aprons at my online store. There are new Fall and Harvest theme, Christmas/Winter theme, country, and floral theme aprons. More new aprons to
come.

Cobbler aprons are made from pre-shrunk 100 percent cotton fabric.
You get two aprons in one.
Cobbler aprons fit waits up to 50 inches.
There are two large pockets on each side of the cobbler apron.
All edges are top=stitched.

http://www.countrynmore.com/cobbler-aprons-70/

Vintage Apron For Theater Production

I thought that I would share a picture of the apron that I made for a theater production up in northern California. It really did turn out cute and worth the struggle that I had with the bodice.

A Man And His Hot Sauce-Homemade That Is

My son likes his hot chile peppers and especially hot sauce. The hotter the peppers are and the hotter the hot sauce is the better it is. My son has been growing chile peppers for several years now, and has recently grown Carribean Red Chili Peppers. The plant is producing large amounts of Carribean Red chile peppers, which makes him very happy.





The Carribean Red Chile Red pepper 300,000 - 475,000 Scovilles. The Carribean red habanero is about twice as hot as a regular habanero. This extremely hot pepper, originally from the Yucatn peninsula in Mexico, is now also cultivated in the Carribean and around North America.


This is the recipe that he made up for his homemade hot sauce:

Homemade Hot sauce
makes one quart

3 cups coarsely chopped peppers (stems removed)
2 cups white vinegar
1 tablespoons salt

Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor; blend until smooth.

You can preserve your sauce by canning it in sterilized pint jars in a hot water bath for 35 minutes. For serving, pour into saved and cleaned bottles with a sprinkler top.

These are the same chili peppers that he used in a dish, that literally made me cough from breathing in the hot pepper smell.

Could Use Some ZZZZ....

The last time that I felt this miserable was almost a year ago, when I had walking pneumonia. This time is different, but miserable I am. It is so hard when my body wants some ZZZzzzz....





It is hard that when I need some ZZZzzz...every one around me is sound asleep.

What do you do when you feel miserable to pass the time? No use in trying to go to sleep again for now. Maybe, the chance will come that I can finally get some shut-eye.

I Have Met My Match

I have finally met my match. Sometimes, I don't mind a challenge, but this time the vintage apron pattern won. Looks can be deceiving. Before taking on the project of making this vintage apron for a theater production, I thought no problem. I was wrong. I feel like I am just learning to sew again. So frustrating.

I feel like I am back in junior high and that I am just beginning to learn to sew. Sigh.....

The apron is now ready to be fitted, so now it is just waiting and seeing. The apron is not completely finished, but I will finish it after it is brought back from the fitting.

Home Made Jelly From Our Wild Grapes

Part of the collection of grape jelly. The jelly tastes delicious. We used 1 gallon for grape juice to have in the mornings. We have given some to our neighbors, and of course my mom wants some on a regular basis. I guess it is hard to tell how many jars. Total tally 40 (8 oz. jars) and 2 Large jelly jars. We harvest 25 lbs. of grapes.

Full Bounty of Grapes

My son and I planted tw0 California Red Grape plants in our backyard over a year ago now. This is the first time that we harvested the grapes off of the bushes. All in all, we harvested about 17 pounds of grapes. My son found 5 more pounds of grapes. Time to make jelly, since the grapes are small and have seeds.













Well, I finally was able to take a couple pictures, although it is hard to tell much there are. Lets say that I have a HUGE bowl full and a slightly smaller bowl full. I am going to work on the jelly today.

In God's Hand

My youngest son leaves for school today. If you didn't know, my youngest son was accepted at a college here in California, but one that is far enough that he needed a place to live close to school. We found a place for him to rent, which is about 3 blocks from the school. We had found another place, but this place was better.

I will no longer wait up at night when he goes out with friends before I can feel comfortable going to sleep at night. He is now in God's hands, just like he has always been.

Having A Good Laugh

Well, my husband, oldest son, and I went to our friend's house for the outside movie, etc.night out. It is honestly amazing. It is like a drive-in, although instead of using cars, we sit outside in comfy chairs. The movie screen has been replaced by a large white melamine board attached to a forklift (used in their business), and complete with surround sound. We watched a Pink Floyd Concert DVD, Jeff Bunham It is absolutely hysterical. Jeff has several characters and they each have a character of their own.
We also watched a very funny movie. I haven't had this much fun in a long time. It is good to get out with friends and just have a good laugh.

In Need Of Repair

I like my sewing machine, but I really do put it through a lot, especially with all the sewing that I do. Well, it is time for a rest and for a visit to the repairman. I was told that it may take as long as 15 days. Sigh....The repairman said that the only other repair shop in the area filed for bankruptcy and closed down. I have another machine, but it is old and I have never used it before. I think that we become comfortable with the familiar, so it is hard to use something else.

I have been away from blog land because of all the sewing lately, so if you happen to stop by, thank you for that.

Oppososte Sides Of The Wall

We live on a cul-de-sac street which has a block wall that divides us from the neighbors on the other side. Originally when they were building our homes, the contractors began tearing down the wall, but the neighbors on the other side of the wall fought it tooth and nail, and I am glad that they did. It is quiet, because the usually cars that drive on our street are visiting our neighbors or it is our neighbors.

What is odd, is that some of the people on the other side will have groceries in their hands and instead of taking the nearby street to reach their hone, they jump the wall at the end of our street.

Actually, our side of the wall is much quieter than that of the other side. It is like night and day. We have been neighbors, some of us for 26 years, while others it ranges from 10-20 plus years. While we have quiet neighbors, there is one particular neighbor on the other side (we think that there are several individuals living there), where they will rev their engines at all hours of the night.

Lately, our side has been a lot noisier than usual, but it isn't because of our neighbors, but that of the actions taken on the other side. Over the past week, we have heard helicopters searching for individuals and have learned that there were have been shootings by rival gang members. Unfortunately, the individuals have not been caught, and it seems like is an almost daily activity or weekly activity. This is disturbing to me because I like our area because it is usually so peaceful.

Creatures In Unusual Places, Etc.

Today, I found out that my husband discovered a opossum in a box on our patio. In the 26 years that we have lived in this house, the opossums have stayed in our neighbor's tree. My husband came inside the house yelling. "I banged on the screen door, but no one came out."



This isn't the actual opossum, but thought that I would add it anyways.

My youngest son was accepted to Cal State Fullerton. There are no dorms available at the college, so he needed to find a place to rent. I am glad that at least I was part of the conversation when he was contacted by a retired couple. It sounds great, but as usual, I will remain home (not of my choosing). My husband will be going with our son to check out the place. The only thing that I can think of is that it is a bonding day between father and son. My husband works too hard, so I see my sons more than he does. I am thankful that I was able to be home since they were infants. My husband didn't have that opportunity.

If they ask where is your mom, I would love to hear that response. I could just tag along, but then I feel like I am "tagging along", and disrupting whatever plans they may have. Sigh.....It will be quiet around here this year.

Winner of the Country Gift Book Give-Away

Wow! It is already to announce the winner of the terrific give-away.

The winner is Annie (njaw09)

Annie, congratulations on winning. Please e-mail me so that I can send you the book.

I hope that I can see the e-mail. I have been having trouble with my e-mail account.

Over The Rainbow & White Water Rafting

My son didn't take his camera, but his professor took the first picture. It looks like the rainbow is in the palm of my son's hand. The picture is so cool! My son also went white water rafting for the first time along the Colorado River.









A trip that will last a life time, and a trip he will always remember, including both the good and bad events.

New Found Relatives

Friends, I didn't want to post leaving on a trip, but now I am back. We were in HOT Kentucky for about 3 fun filled days, meeting relatives we only heard about a few years ago. I love the gorgeous country side in Kentucky. I can see why those who live in the country love it so much.

We had a fantastic time visiting and meeting the relatives who came to
Kentucky. It definitely was a trip of a lifetime and one that we are
glad that we are able to make. Everyone is so warm and caring and my
cousins Beth and Sandy are hysterical. Sandy could be a stand up
comedian. Everything she says is funny as the quips and words
naturally flows off her tongue. I wished though that all lived
closer, so that we could visit more often. My father was in an
orphanage. He went to the Catholic orphanage when he was around 3
years old. There were 6 other siblings. My dad, his sisters Louise
and Isabelle are the only surviving siblings. I met my Aunt Isabelle,
who also had a large family (8 children) and my Aunt Louise. The
local news station did a news story on the first reunion between my
dad and his sister Louise, and then again when the two sisters met.
My dad met his older sister Isabelle during this trip as well. I also
found out that I have 21 new cousins and counting, but only met 4 of
my cousins.



The second flight leaving from Chicago to LAX was LONG (did I say
long-lol), but we were treated to lightning shows from above and the
view was fabulous. Here are some of the pictures I took.

So Long California Redwood Tree

I am sad to say that the California Redwood tree that my oldest son nurtured since it was a little seedling seen its day. I guess that it didn't like being transplanted. We usually have success when transplanting plants, but then this tree was over 10 feet tall and was in the way of our lemon and pear tree. I hope that the little growth (new growth at the base of the tree) will take hold and survive. Time will tell.

A Once In A Lifetime Opportunity

My oldest son has been fortunate to be in the geology program at our local public college. These professors are so awesome and very encouraging. The program for biology and geology is the best. My son missed the opportunity last year to go on the trip to the Colorado Plateaus, and this year he almost missed out as well, if it had not been for a student backing out of the trip. My son gets to go on a two trip for his summer class.

I wonder if he will see any images as this:




Bryce Canyon is so beautiful, but it will be HOT!

I do know that he will be hiking in Bryce Canyon, something that my dh and I did about 26 years ago. I wished that my son would take his camera, but I understand why he doesn't.




Keep Safe and Have Fun!

P.S. It is now early Monday morning and I have had about 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I am up I guess because I don't want to over sleep. My son wants me to get him up at 5:30 am, which is very unusual. He is all packed which is also unusual. He will have a lot of memories and adventures awaiting him during these two weeks.

Vintage Smock Apron

A few years ago, I was asked by a friend if I could make his wife some new aprons using her old mother's vintage smock apron. I was up for the challenge. The aprons have since faded, from all the washing. I was told that my friend wore her aprons all the time. Well, it was time for some new aprons, so it I was again up for the challenge. I had taken notes-thank goodness and some pictures, which were not all that great, but I did finish one of the aprons. I took the apron over to my friend's house last night and she broke down in tears. She has the sweetest husband.

Anyways, my friend's mother's apron was old and worn out and it bore wood stains, since my friend wore that apron while helping her husband stain cabinets in his cabinet business. I thought that I would post the original apron, and the one that I just made. The apron looks better on my friend that it does on my dress form.

Fabric Store Is Officially Open

Well, our online fabric store has been open since Mother's Day. I have been wanting to sell my fabrics, with many of the fabrics that are out of print. I have been asked time and time again if I sell or would sell my fabrics that I used for custom aprons.

My sons gave me the best Mother's Day present ever, and this was it. Of course as my sons were growing up, they had and actually still have clashed. They have their moments when they get along, but they are complete opposites. As they were growing up, I would say that the best Mother's Day gift that they could give me was a day without them arguing. It has been a blessing for that one day a year. I had always wished that they would eventually or actually get along in a timely manner.

Just Being A Mom

A few weeks ago, we learned that our youngest son was invited to his friend's (ex-girlfriend's) birthday party in Las Vegas. Originally, the girl's parents were going to drive several young adults including my son to Las Vegas. My son had to make some arrangements with work and school, but one of his professors would not let my son take his exam early unless it was an emergency.

My son decided that he couldn't go, but that soon changed when his dad mentioned that our son could rent a car (his car wouldn't make the long drive). I being a mom was concerned about our 21 year old son driving to Las Vegas at night after his evening class. Of course, my son could tell that I would worry and assured me that he would be fine. Just to ease this old woman's mind, my son said that he would give me a call when he reached the rest stops and when he safely arrived at his destination. It is now 1:15 a.m. and I have received one call. Everything is fine. Of course, in my heart, I knew that he would be fine because there was someone far mightier than I watching over my son, but I am still a mom after all, but I should just trust that everything will work out. It is 2 am and my son is now in his hotel room. You see, I think that I know why the party is in Las Vegas. No, my son and his friends are not interested in gambling, but the parents are. Every year for as long as I can remember, they would drive to Las Vegas so that they could gamble.

My oldest son will be going on another weekend geology trip to the White Inyos. My son volunteered to go with a fellow student while the student reworks his mapping of the geology. The student lost his map during the last trip, so since a group was going to the White Inyos, the professor said that this student can get a second chance at the mapping. It was felt and I had to agree with this one, that there should be another person (like the buddy system suggested when hiking), in case something happens. It will be a night of little sleep, since the oldest wants me to help to wake him up at 5:45 am.

It will be a quiet weekend for sure around here.

Aren't These Shoes The Cutest?

I cam across this blog recently. Oh my, if only I was as talented. These shoes are the cutest. Be sure to scroll to the top of the blog page.

Question And Answer Period

A friend of mine from "Just Breathe," posted these questions, and so I decided to answer them.

1.How often do you change the sheets on your bed?
Not as often as someone I know. I knew a woman who washed her sheets every day.

2.Do you wash your hair everyday?
Sometimes twice a day during the hot weather.

3.Have you ever told a white lie to get out of doing things when people ask?
Gosh, I don't remember, but I might have at some point in my life.

4.Do you like to talk on the phone or send emails to communicate?
Actually, I do both, but I think that I send more e-mails because of my business. I do enjoy talking to the customers on the phone.

5.Matthew McConaughey or George Clooney?
That is a tough question. Both are cute.

6.I have know people who take a new towel each day after they shower. Are you one of those people?
Nope, not me.

7.Have you ever been on the news or had your picture in the newspaper?
I did have my picture in the newspaper back when I won an award in junior high school and then for my dh's and my engagement announcement and wedding.

8.Do you buy new cars or do you always buy a used car?
We only bought a new car once. Most of our cars are used.

9.Do you have a green thumb when it comes to house plants?
I thought that I did, but the way our house is, it is hard to have plants indoors.

10.Where would you like to live when you retire?
I would actually like to stay where I am.

Picturesque Clouds And Skies Above

My dh likes to take pictures of clouds and of sunsets. His memory card was full and I discovered many gorgeous pictures that he had taken. Some of the pictures were taken over a year ago and some pictures are of his mother when she was alive.


Today's pictures are two of my favorite shots taken by my husband.







The last picture, is my most favorite picture.


Well, I hope that each and everyone of you have a wonderful Tuesday.

Memories And Traditions

It has been 8 months since my mil passed away at the age of 93. Today, my dh and I went to Forest Lawn Cemetery to put flowers on his mother's and grandmother's grave. This is the first for my husband. He had accompanied his mother for years, but mostly my mil went on her own or had her helper assist her. Every Mother's Day, birthday, or Memorial Day, flowers were laid on the grave.

Today, we saw people of all different ethnic backgrounds. Some people were laying next to the site, while others were laying flowers, reminiscing, or performing religious rituals. The hillsides of this large place were filled with color. My husband carefully attended and created bouquets using the flowers from our yard and our son's native garden. I told my husband that his mom would be pleased at his creation and his attentiveness. He responded by saying, "Don't you think that she is pleased now?" Of course.

What A Predicament!

Well, I guess that this lizard wanted to be sure to get the flies. I have never seen a lizard caught between the screen and the metal security frame design on our sliding glass door.

>

Sleepless in California

When my husband and I were first considering moving up to where we live now, some 26 years ago, the homes were still yet un-built. We were told that there were a lot of parties in the neighborhood, and that it was a noisy neighborhood. So....my husband and I would drive up here and park outside the fenced in area in the evenings, but all we could here were crickets. That was fine with us because we enjoy the outdoors and crickets were a part of the outdoors.

Things are different regarding crickets. A few years ago, crickets moved in to our attic, and often we would see them in our house. These crickets we soon found out were called "house crickets," and they prefer the indoors. The male crickets would chirp their high pitch sounds all day long and night. A few days ago, a cricket moved in to our bedroom, so you can guess where I am going with this. I went to lay down to sleep the other night, and was very relaxed until.....the loud chirping began. It is hard to sleep with the high pitch sound echoing off the walls in the bedroom. These crickets are hard to catch at times and so the nights are filled with restless sleep. This is why it is 3:15 am and I am up typing this on the blog. Sometimes, this cricket will keep me up, while other times, it will allow me to go back to sleep. I hope that my husband finds this un-welcomed creature in our bedroom, so that we can sleep, I mean so that I can sleep soundly once again. Dh tends to be able to sleep through all the chirping.


UPDATE: Yeah, last night was the first peaceful night in 4 or 5 days. I just wanted to keep sleeping this morning. Woke up later than normal for me, but I need to get up. I am supposed to make a taco salad for hubby's work today. No cricket chirping made for a great night. I honestly don't know what became of the cricket who wanted to serenade all night.

A New Home

If you have followed my blog, then you would know about the California Coastal Redwood tree that my son has nourished since it was a seedling and since he was a young boy. The tree is over 10 feet tall, but it needed to be uprooted. We were looking for a new home for the tree, but didn't have any luck. I guess that people were thinking that the tree would get huge like the trees in the redwood forest, but this tree will not get that large.

Well, the tree is still in our possession, but it is in another location. I hope that it does well. The tree had some branches that turned brown because the tree was situated next to our patio. The roof got too hot for the branches. Anyways, below is a picture of the tree.

Yeah! Things Are Looking Up

My son has his cast off and now requires physical therapy for 6 weeks. Business is no longer a lull, and things are back to normal. I have been busy cutting and making aprons, plus more items for my online store. One of my customers is taking my oven door towels to Norway. It seems that the women there want oven door towels.

Life Is Busy

I may not get on and blog every day, and would if I could. Life keeps me busy these days, whether it is in my business, with my mother, or with my family life. We had rain here last night. I like it after it rains, because the air is so fresh and clean. We can see our local mountains just about every day, so the rain really doesn't affect that at all, unless there is snow. If you have seen my posts in the past, you will know that we don't see snow very often, so when there is snow on the local mountains, I will post the beautiful pictures.

One thing that happened in the last few weeks, is that our youngest son was out taking our dog Max for a run. Max decided to get in front of our son, which caused our son to fall. Of course Max was sure to get out of the way of his falling owner. The result of this fun afternoon run is a fractured bone in my son's wrist. Max on the other hand was fine. My son has discovered that it is a challenge to have a cast on one arm. Fortunately it is not the arm that he uses all the time, but still challenging nonetheless. So...it has become a count down-eleven days left I think until the cast comes off.

Yummy Blueberries and Oranges

About two months ago we planted an orange tree in our back yard. The tree is full of blossoms and there are signs of small oranges. In case you didn't know it, my son has a garden. I took a picture of just one of his planter containers full of fresh blueberries. Can't wait for the blueberries to be picked. My son has wine barrels filled with fresh herbs, beans, hot chili peppers, dill, etc. He has his grandfather's green thumb.







I hope that you have a terrific day. Happy Easter Everyone!

Spring Is In The Air

I thought that I would share more pictures of my oldest son's dry garden. The flowers are blooming, showing off their beauty.

My How Things Sure Have Grown

About 15 years ago or so, we received a free California Redwood seedling. My son planted the tree in our back yard and nurtured the tree, but now it needs a new home. The tree was around 5 inches tall, but now is over 20 feet tall. I took a picture of my oldest son with his tree. If you look closely enough, you can see the tree extending up high.





Update:

The redwood tree may have a new home. My son asked his professor and either she will take this tree or the college where my son attends. I will let you know.

I don't know for those of you remember me posting that my son and I planted a dry garden to replace the grass and weeds in my mom's front yard. Well, a few of the plants are now showing their beautiful colors, while one plant is ready to bloom.



My how things sure have grown.

More Tips

The two tips that I posted originally are very important. When calling you bank via telephone, they should ask for a pin number. If my mother had a pin number, it would have made it difficult for the crooks. As I mentioned before, the crooks stole the mail from my mom's mailbox. Recent research indicates the majority of identity theft is happening the old-fashion way, with information stolen from wallets, purses, trash, and unlocked mailboxes, not via ‘high-tech’ online cyber methods. This makes me want to point out these major points:

1) Do not leave mail in your mailbox for mail pick-up.
2) Not all secure mailboxes are secure. It is easier to show you a link where you can watch a video. I thought that it would be best to show you how a thief can open up a secure mailbox. I am not promoting the product.mailboss.
3. Shred important information using a cross-cut shredder. One common way thieves perpetuate identity theft is by stealing your personal information through dumpster diving, or sorting through your trash. A cheap paper shredder will simply slice documents into strips that can be pieced back together by enterprising thieves, revealing your personal information.

We have a friend who shredded important information, but the shredder shredded the paper in to long strips. After the incident with his grandma, my oldest son did a talk on identity theft in his speech class. My son shredded a document with our shredder and with our friend's shredder. My son was able to tape the long strips together and so had everything he needed, if he were thief. Now, we also purchased a shredder that claimed to cross-cut (after our good shredder had problems after many years of use), but the paper, although shredded in to smaller strips, it wasn't small enough for us, because the small shredded pieces still had information. I think that you can still test out shredders at some stores, but I guess it all depends on where you live. The main point is that you shouldn't throw out papers with important information. One thing is for sure, my mother made sure that important information was shredded before tossing it in to the trash.

Helpful Tips-Identity Theft

Just to give a brief history. My mother was a victim of identity theft twice by the same people. Fortunately, the individuals were caught. Unfortunately, the first time, the individuals took a plea bargain, only to commit identity theft against my mother the second time (4 months after being released from jail). The second time, one of the individuals only served 3 months.

I thought that I would help others by posting some things that I feel were important.

This week, I will post some of the things that you should know and what you can do with your bank.

1. Create a secret pin number that someone else can not figure out easily. Do not use the last 4 digits of your social security number for the password for your bank. The individuals were able to change my mom's address over the phone because they had her SS number.

2. Create an online account if possible, so that you can monitor your accounts. Since my mother didn't have a computer, nor did she want one, she didn't have an online account. The individuals created an online account, from which facilitated their fraudulent activities.

3. Go paperless. My mother's bank statements were stolen from her mailbox. My mother noticed that statements were missing, but had no idea it was because of theft from her mailbox. You are also helping out the environment as well.

NEW!
4). I just remembered another point about the bank. Banks send out blank checks. The name of what they are called escapes me at the moment. Anyways, my mother received blank checks from her credit card companies. My mom had used them before and that may be the reason why they continued to send the checks in the mail. The checks allowed my mother to write a check to pay for work done at her home, without using her credit card. The payee would cash the check, and my mother would see the charge on her Visa bill. The individuals had a field day with these checks, and one even paid her mom's bills using the checks. We were able to request for the credit card company to stop sending the blank checks in the mail. It takes several weeks or more before you will see the results.

I will have more tips coming in the future. Please pass these tips on to others. My mother was not the only one that was affected from these individuals. I was told that there were around 100 others. If you already do these tips, then I applaud you.

And the Winner Is.....

Congratulations to Cinnamongirl. You won the second blog contest and the gorgeous felted wool. I can't wait to see what you make with the wool.

More Snowy Mountain Scenes

We had another gorgeous view of our local mountains this morning. The recent storm not only brought a whole lot of rain, but snow to our nearby mountains.




We could hear the news helicopter this past weekend and wondered what was up in the Arroyo (Hahamonga). This basin was a roaring river of mud and debris. If you look back to a previous post of the reflection shot of the Arroyo, this is the same location. Larry Welk is the son of Lawrence Welk (my mother used to watch the Lawrence Welk show).

Undercover Boss

Tonight, I saw the premier of "Undercover Boss." If you haven't seen it you should. It really sheds light on the workers who work so hard, and how the boss touches base and learns how the decisions he/she makes affects the workers. Tonight,it was the boss of Waste Management.

Goals for 2010

I began my quest last year (2009) to go through my stash bins and use up fabric, get rid of things that I no longer use in my business like sweatshirts. I donated the sweatshirts, denim shirts, etc. to the Union Rescue Mission. I figured that it was better to help to keep others warm during the cold months than to stay tucked away in my bins. I am still on a mission this year to go through things. It will take a long time as now I have my mil's things that my sil didn't want to keep.

Some day, I will have my mother's things as well. We were a storage place for my dh's cousin, who was homeless at the time (5 years ago), but had a storage unit that he was paying on but couldn't afford. My dh's cousin finally is in a place and picked up his belongings.

Today, my youngest son turned 21. I now have a household filled with adults. When I have the chance, I want to scan photos of my son as he grew up over the years.

Station Fire

Well, the rain awoke me up this morning at 3:30 am. The newscaster said that we would have a break from the rain until the afternoon. So much for the break. We are fortunate though that we are not directly affected because we are not too close to the burn areas. It has been raining here since Sunday, and it is expected to continue raining until later this week. Now, I like the rain. It can be so calming, but I don't like driving in it. It seems that when it rains that people forget how to drive or maybe because it is so hard to see where you are going. Sometimes, though it feels like our house sits under a waterfall. It is as if someone has a giant bucket and is pouring the water on top of us.

I thought that I would share some of the pictures taken from the top of our street of the station fire that was the mass fire that burned 160,577 acres. The people who live near the fire damaged areas are the ones who are now experiencing mud slides and floods.