My Fly Boy!

My son was in his Senior year of high school when 9/11 happened.  By January he had made the decision to join the Air Force.  I cried a lot!   If you read my very first post you'll see how my craft room came to be in his old bedroom.  I missed him so much in his first four years of Active Duty when he was stationed in Tacoma, Washington; but even that was easier than his current assignment:  Pearl Harbor, Hawaii!  Washington is a two hour time difference, I could call him or I could wait until the time was right, Hawaii has a five hour time difference and a trip 'home' is a lot more expensive than flying from Seattle.  

Off we go into the wild blue yonder

Flying high into the sky!  

I picked up this 1940s sheet music for the Army Air Corps theme song and put Mr. Wonderful to work framing it up for me. A thrift store frame and then my creative husband layered vintage sheet music and printed up pictures of our son's ribbons (from his Air Force awards on his uniform) and used them as a banner across the top!

My Fly Boy, ( I mean Technical Sgt.) will be home on leave enjoying the best of the heat and humidity we can offer him for the next 10 days.  We will also celebrate his 29th birthday!  I'm so happy to have a reason to cook the foods he loves and talk to my son 'live and in color". 

 There's no place like home!

Merry Mary!

As a saver of all things cute, I was compelled to keep the pictures on every Mary Engelbreit calendar I ever had,  This included three years of the large wall size, one desk calendar and two page-a day tear off calendars!  Trimming out pictures and pieces of the larger graphic that Mary drew, I cut and glue stick the pieces according to what will fit on my 5 x 5 square.  Sandwich method of paper craft creating learned from Elizabeth: cardboard in the middle, scrapbook paper on each side.

The pictures I used for these tags remind me of my 'Imaginary Friends' in blogville.  Can you guess who they are?

For the tag on the left I used a vintage Christmas card for the view out the window; I cut pieces of brown corrugated cardboard for window frames. Mary's picture of the girl is glued flat and I used foamie pieces cut in 1/8" strips to raise up the books, pens and yarn basket..  The pet loving little boy was fun to cut and glue on 'grass' scrapbook paper.  I used portions of Mary's border to add above the boy's head and then cut the framed pooch out to raise up with pop dots on the border.

Minnesota has 11,000 lakes and within two blocks of my house there are two lakes; the heat this summer brings plenty of swimmers and waders!  The girls on the right are having a tea party.  My Little Grama poured coffee and 90% milk in my cup when I was four years old.  My version of a tea party with my  grandkids involves bone china doll dishes and a vintage one cup aluminum teapot.  Pretend sugar and cream are poured generously into the cups of  (real) water as we drink our tea kneeling around the ottoman! 

I embellished some 1" clothespins I found at the Dollar Store; I'll be hanging these darling little tags on yet another measuring tape line and thinking of my friends as I await the arrival of your Friendship pendants!  

A Glimpse

Do you love to peek into the background in other blogger's photos?  I love to catch a glimpse of their homes to see how that too, reflects their personality.  My love of vintage tatted doilies requires me to "SAVE" them from life in the thrift store.  Some Grama spent hours making that beautiful piece and they end up in a thrift store!  I can't make them but I am happy to take them home with me.

I live in the Upper Midwest, my home is in Minnesota.  My beloved Mr. Wonderful was born and raised in Iowa, I have transplanted him to a better life!   We went to the Wisconsin Dells on family vacations when I was a child, fond memories of riding 'the ducks' from WWII on Lake Delton.  Mr. Wonderful and I went to The Dells on our honeymoon in August of '78 and for our 30th anniversary a few years ago.  A slightly better budget this time but very few of the same sites; it's water park heaven now.

Knowing my love for vintage linens and red, white and blue, an appliqued dish towel was part of a wonderful package from my friend Chris at Perfectly Printed She made me an adorable little house that to me looks like a Post Office, she garnished it with stamps!  'See the other goodies she include?  Tell me, does any friend in my real life  know I like this kind of stuff?  Um, probably not.

Do you see the Little Golden Book to add to my collection?  Mr. Wonderful works for the Post Office and she knows my need for those little silver bound story books!  'Love it all Miss "Chris Craft"!

I found the dish drainer at the flea market,  Miss Kim at Musings from Kim K sent me my own dolly dishes to put in it!  I have wanted red metal dishes and here she was: Santa Claus!  The journal sitting in the background is a 'slam book' of sorts where I keep track of the trades and swaps I've been in.  I don't want to forget the wonderful gifts, fabulous ephemera and thoughtful tuck-ins that you have sent me.  I keep pieces of the wrapping paper, pretty tape or graphics that you add in the book!  The beautiful cover art was a card made by my pal Stephanie Gilded Junque; I saved the card and now it covers my journal. 

Remember the spring flea market with the giant rain storm?   I had this little chicken feeder I found for $3.00; here is the project that needed some tweaking.  My beloved built me a 'faux window' when I couldn't find one small enough for our little hip-roofed shed, the chicken feeder now holds Impatiens and Coleus. There's a glimpse of my decorating in the 'Early Attic' style I love.