F is for Faerie Garden!

And a fabulous F day to you and yours!  Tis the time to once again work on my faerie garden.  I started it last year and the best of intentions, but I tend to be stubbornly simple and basic and adamantly non-consumerist (is that a word?) when it comes to stuff like my garden, my flowers, my home projects.......oh let's face it, everything.  i'm tend to be one of the true crunchies.  I prefer to make do or re-use and i will avoid buying anything if at all possible.  I also don't spend a ton of money to make it look like I don't, no organic (that's a gimmick), ect.  Wait, where was i going.....oh yeah,the faerie garden.  So, last year, we looked at the set-ups they had at nurseries, but i'm not spending that kind of money on my inner 12-year old, considering, my inner 12-year actually spent a great deal of time in her grandfather's garage using up whatever scraps of materials i could find, so, anyway (i promise i'll get there) last year the boys and i built houses out of real sticks we found in the backyard and Popsicle sticks.  they looked cool.  i had great plants that added that special touch, but guess what?  I live where there is this nasty thing called a winter.....snow, ice, rain, wind.....so, needless to say, in cleaning up the flower garden this year, i picked up a bunch of Popsicle sticks and twigs, totally demolished.  This year i'm looking for different strategies.  Any thoughts? maybe I could find a birdhouse at a thrift store and build on it.....hmmmmm.

Last year's houses:

E is for Easter (and Peep Dueling)

I'm a day early because I don't know what this week might hold for me.  So, Easter!  We have this little-known tradition in our family.  It's called Peep Dueling.  "Peep dueling?" you ask?  Yes.  Take 2 peeps, face them to each other, put a toothpick in each of their wings, and stick them in the microwave.  They get really big and then when the cycle is done (about 30 seconds), they deflate and whichever one stabs the other, wins.  Call us crazy, but do it with love! :)







(don't mind the conversation in the background)

Red Wins!!

D is for Destination

I'm having a lot of trouble figuring out what to write tonight.  D is just not happening for me right now.  Usually, when I blog, I already know where I want to go before I start writing.  Only, tonight, I don't seem to have much of a destination.  Truth is, I'm exhausted.  We had a crazy busy day and we kicked some spring booty!  My friend came over with her truck, we finally cleaned out a bunch of stuff from the back yard, then colored her Easter eggs, then got plants, planted some flowers in my faerie garden, cleaned out the garage, and got my gutter (which fell off during the snow storms) re-hung.  Also, managed to negotiate a contract with a decent place to get a lot of work done around the house.  All in all, I'm feeling a little closer to my intended 2015 destination of simplified and calm.  Anyone else have an awesome Saturday?

C is for Candy wrapper Creativity

Boom!  2 C's in the title!  So, what seems like forever ago, we asked friends and family to save up food wrappers from popular junk food.  Once we got enough together, we were going to make something with them, only I forgot to read the WHOLE project and then needed to order both iron-on vinyl AND zippers.  Then, i needed to wedge in some time to figure it out.  Guess what?  It finally happened.  I have so far made 2 bags.  First one was the intended project........turned out to be too hard......so the second one is the new intended project.  Eventually, I'll manage to make the rest of them.

 First, I laid the wrappers together, tetris style and used a little tape to hold them in place

 then followed the directions with the vinyl and ironed them.

this is what a sheet of them looks like together.

 this was the first bag.  supposed to be a triangular pencil bag,  those end pieces are freaking hard.

 so, i went with flat the next go around.

much easier!

I got the idea and followed the basic directions found on this blog: Sweet Tooth Pouch

B is for Basic

So, I had all these wonderful plans for decorating Easter eggs this year!  As usual, I researched a bunch of possibilities.  In the past we've done the white crayon technique, the melted crayon drippings, and I've made angry birds.  This year i contemplated those totally glitter ones from Martha Stewart.  My son had to have stuffed eggs for preschool and we got he pack of glitter ones from walmart and for some reason they just stuck in my head as the most gorgeous things ever, but alas...nah.  You know, glitter = craft herpes.  So, then last night I settled on 3 different creations.  6 of each for each kid.  We were going to do 6 ninja turtles, 6 minions, and 6 ladybugs.  Cute, right?  Then my eldest, not thrilled with the idea of minions (because my younger son is a turtle fanatic) came up with the brilliant idea of using half of the 18 eggs to make planets!  I actually tried to figure out how this would be accomplished.  But then when i realized how much time and patience I didn't have this year because I would rather be doing other stuff (imagine that) we came back to basic.  Not too bad if i do say so myself.  And, between boiling water, and waiting for the color to set, 20 minutes tops.  Woot Woot!

Hope your eggs-dying adventures are fantastic too!

A is for Anniversary!

And so the blog challenge begins again!  I do love this challenge since it gets me back into the habit of writing and that is so good for my brain!  I apologize if these first couple of posts are a little rough as i shake out the cobwebs and learn to put words together again into these complex, but darling little creations called sentences and paragraphs that don't have a thing to do with part numbers, labor hours, and meetings a.k.a. work crap.  Anyway, so, today is April 1 and we begin with the letter A.

For me, A is for Anniversary!  I suppose it should always be since the 2nd day of April is always going to be my anniversary and the 1st is always going to be an A, however, this year is especially special (wow, I'm sorry for that).  The hubby and I said our "I do's" 10 years ago tomorrow!  10 years as a Mrs.

Now, I do have to point out that I also still track our original anniversary since we've never broken up (nope, never) and we put a great deal of time and effort and butt-kicking and love into each other prior to heading up the aisle (October will be 16 years).  As of today, I only know of one other couple who gives consideration to that original date.  I wonder why?  hmmm.

any who...

Happy Anniversary to the love of my life, my best friend, to the only person who I may have considered strangling (on multiple occasions), the father of my 3 little works of art, and to the man who I look forward to growing old with (and watching go gray faster than me!)  Smooches!

Mary Baldwin Seminary......I mean College.....I mean University!

Apparently, I took another long hiatus from writing, but I really haven't had anything too passionate to write about until now.  My fellow Mary Baldwin Alum and I received news yesterday that the board of directors has decided to change the name of the school from Mary Baldwin College to Mary Baldwin University.  This was inevitable.  There are definitely mixed feelings, both unspoken and being screamed across the net.

About a week ago we received a heads-up of the vote and request to participate in a poll.  I voted Yes.  I'm, personally, all for the change.  As with any business (and bottom-line, it IS a business), you HAVE to grow or close.  Fact is, the school has already grown considerably, even in the SHORT 10 years since I was there.  Not just offering a liberal arts residential program for about 750-1000 girls, but an ever-growing Adult Degree Program, College of Education, Shakespearean and Performing Arts, and recently, the Murphy Deming College for Health Sciences.  Hey, gals, believe it or not, it's already a University!  

And, because I like to use them, here are some definitions:

College: an institution of higher learning, especially one providing a general or liberal arts education rather than technical or professional training.

University: an institution of learning of the highest level, having a college of liberal arts and a program of graduate studies together with several professional schools, such as theology, law, medicine, or engineering, and authorized to confer both undergraduate and graduate degrees.

As I prepared to write this post, I did a little research.  The school has changed names twice already.  Did it ruin the place?  Did the changes devastate the Alum of that time?  Did the school survive anyway?  I dare say, YES! 

     Augusta Female Seminary (Founded 1842) 

     Mary Baldwin Seminary (1895) - in honor of dearly loved principal 

     Mary Baldwin College (1923) when it became a four year institution

     Mary Baldwin University (2016) in recognition of growth already completed and in      progress.

What would you say to a Seminary grad in favor of College?  She might have argued as fervently against the change as you are fighting now, right?  But look at all the good it did and the institution it has become under "College".  You might even think "She" seems a little silly to fight against the College name, right?  think about it...................20 years from now, what will our daughters say to us as they lug their boxes up the stairs of Spencer (because that elevator NEVER really worked)?  Will they be heartbroken that they aren't going to a "College"?  Heck no!  Will they be proud to step onto the path of generations of strong beautiful world-changing women?  Umm, DUH!

So, my fellow alum and current students, fear not!  A name change is not going to change your memories, nor is it going to ruin anything for our daughters, nieces, and granddaughters.  They wouldn't have the same experience we had even if we kept everything the same as it was then.  Heck, my sister and her friends, 5 years later, didn't have the same experience I did.  Everything changes, so take a deep breath, step back, realize that unless we are willing to give up half our yearly incomes to support the current programs, then the school, in the hands of people who love it dearly, has to grow and change to fit the times and stay relevant.  Love what was and embrace what is to come!

Work HARD and PLAY HARD!!

Forever BALDWIN!