My Letter...

My letter, the letter "J", the alpha of my name. An important letter by no means...so why not make it a statement of art and my personality? As I thumb through my favorite magazines and read my favorite blogs, I see that many other creative souls are also proud of their letter too. 

It started as a wooden unpainted letter from Hobby Lobby (my favorite store in the whole world). I painted the edges (and the back of it) in red, glued some pretty scrapbook paper pieces, added ephemera,  paper flowers, ribbon, lace and frames that hold my favorite baby pictures of me. At the top I also added a removable tag with my birthday...October 1, 1970. Yep...37.

My letter "J" rests upon a beautiful wrought iron easel bought for me by my Mom's best friend, Rose. 5 years ago, my mom passed away and Rose has 'adopted' me. So, I call her my best friend. Her strength (the easel) holds me up (my letter "J")... Awesome thought huh?

Then, I did some soul searching about who I really am at this moment in my life. According to the two men in my life, (my husband and my son), I really do believe that...

"I am Queen Jodie"

And, my two lifelong goals that I strive for is hope and happiness. I do believe that with these two strengths, one can go very very far!

What is your letter? What does it really mean?

Purple, Green and Yellow...

 

 

My weekend has been all baby...

Baby shower preparing that is. My little brother and his wife (both 30) are expecting their first child on September 3rd! We have the shower scheduled for Saturday, July 19th. Sooo, since I am the big sister who spoils him the most, I am hosting a baby shower/family reunion with the help of my two sisters, my wonderful little 15 yr old niece, and my awesome sister-in-law. Our family is  huge and so spread out through the states. It's really sad that the only time we get together is for a funeral! So why not bring them together for something happy?!

The expecting couple chose not to know the sex of the baby and leave it to be a surprise, only to make things very difficult on my end regarding the decorations. So I did what I do best...I improvised! No pink, no blue. Do you know how hard it is to find baby stuff that is neutral? Now, bear with me, I cannot show or tell you all the details because I want it all to be a surprise but I will give you a little sneak peak and let your (& their) imagination run wild. 

We made this and that, and oh, this CUTE little thing, and you should see what we made for the guests!

Gosh, I didn't realize how hard it keeping a secret on a blog...trust me, it's hard.

Good morning!

Well friends, this is my first official post to my blog. Before I start, I want to thank a special friend who gave me some great tips to get me going...that would be Suzanne Duda of Pink Roses . Whether she knows it or not, we have been friends for almost a year, but I have only chatted with her twice (via email) in the past week.

My "always wanted to start a blog story" goes like this...

...get a cup of coffee and relax, I'm going to start from the beginning.

I think I would call myself a "composer" of all things because I love to create things from scratch and watch it all come together. I just love vintage items that I can find for little or nothing at flea markets, garage sales, or even better... hand-me-downs. I love to  re-purpose the items and fit them into my simple life or give as gifts. (Most of the time,  I re-purpose it, and give it right back to the person who gave it to me) and they are like..."Oh my, where did you buy this? Girl, I have to get some before they run out..." Then I tell them that I made it with the items that were previously 'unloved' by them and headed for the trash...they look at it again in disbelief. That is where my satisfaction comes to play! As a scrapper, I've learned to throw nothing away! However, I am not a pack rat.

I will just stick to the comforting name of being a "composer". 

Okay, back to my story. With all of this said, I have almost every subscription of Somerset...I have Memories, Studio, Sew, & Belle Armoire Jewelry. And...I am like a shark at my favorite book store Barnes & Noble when Life, Home, Inspirations, Wedding, Holiday & Celebrations and Gallery come out. I am there!  I can sit for hours and hours looking and admiring the work of these great artists. What an honor for their work to be published and shared with others who have the same interests...

Well, that is where Suzanne comes in...remember? Are you confused yet? Don't be, it's simple. My first post is dedicated to her for helping me get started on my blog.  You see, I have been reading Suzanne's blog for the past nine months or so.  I have watched her family take vacations to the beach, enjoyed her beautiful hand-made postcards she sends faithfully to her daughter in college, shared in her excitement of her flea market finds, watched her son graduate from high school and anticipate his new home at college, and now... she is being published in my favorite magazine! Somerset Life! I have never posted a comment to her blog before (nor any of the ones that I read). However, I felt compelled this time to congratulate her and share her excitement for such a  great accomplishment. And, I am glad I did. I have met a wonderful person. She emailed me after she read my comment telling me that I made her day. I made her day? She is such an inspiration to me everyday and she didn't even know it! I told her I wanted to start a blog...she gave me some tips and here I am!

Hi Suzanne!

I'll end this post today believing that Inspiration is one of the best gifts a person can share...