You Can Call Me Gwen

...six, five, four, three...

 

I am still counting down the last ten inchies of my inchie year.

And I've been looking over the 355 inchies which are already in my files, remembering all the good things in my life which they represent, and feeling blessed all over again.

I hate to think these are the last...

SIX...

We've been undergoing some training on the new computer system at work (in preparation for going 'paperless').

And, because we're in this together, we had 'sign-up-and-bring-something' lunches every day last week.

I'm on a sugar fast (again!), but I had a quart of whipping cream in the refrigerator which I did not want to see go to waste, so on Wednesday I made a pie to go with it.

Not just any old pie.

Pioneer Woman's French Silk Pie.

 

 

 

They tell me it was fabulous.

I didn't have any.

So, can I have, like, 1500 life points for not so much as licking the spoon?

I earned them.

-------

FIVE...

I am not sure why I started baking things almost the same minute I started fasting from sugar, but that's what I did.

Maybe I'm testing all my willpower right up front.

Wednesday night I made 2 1/2 dozen white cupcakes (using up the leftover sour cream in the refrigerator).

Thursday afternoon I went to play in Able Baker Dana's kitchen.

She likes to mess around with all the fancy cake-decorating stuff.

We clipped some mini marshmallows and pressed their cut edges in colored sugar to make some flower-topped cupcakes.

 

 

 

After we'd both made a half dozen of these, we got bored with them.

 

 

 

 

Dana really wanted to experiment with 'tangling' cupcakes (remember Zentangles?).

I had a Goldilocks experience with it.

At first, the tip on my icing bag was too small.

Although it meant the details could be finer, it really cramped my hand trying to pipe out the icing.

 

 

 

I hadn't packed my big camera and I'm sorry these cupcakes look blue and orangey.

They were actually a beautiful violet color (and red).

I loved the violet.

 

 
 

 

When my hand really started to hurt, we changed to another size tip.

But it was too big for making intricate designs.

 

 

 

Unlike Goldilocks, I never did find the tip that was 'just right', because Dana's little alarm went off before I had time.

When I realized it was almost time for Dana to pick up her kiddos from school and we'd made a  mess of her kitchen, I just squeezed out my remaing icing on my remaining cupcake so I could help with clean-up.

 

 

 

And that's how we got spaghetti cupcakes.

It's okay though.

Miss Mary Mack was here when I got home, and I sent a dozen cupcakes back to college with her.

College kids are usually willing to eat anything that's homemade.

Friday morning on my way to D'Art group, I dropped off the remaining cupcakes at work.

That's the way I got rid of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Dana wasn't so lucky.

She still had her evil bunny cupcake sitting on the counter when I left.

 

 

 

I wonder if her kids had nightmares that night.

 

 

 

I just dreamed about licking the icing knife.

-------

FOUR...

Friday was a very full day.

There were many weighty conversations, with many different people.

There were many places I had to be, which meant a lot of driving.

There was a bit of time pressure.

And I felt a lot of stress.

But...

 

 

 

...I was wearing my red lipstick.

So that was good.

-------

THREE...

Saturday morning, although I knew we were leaving at 12:30 for an overnight trip, I felt it was absolutely critical to my sanity to go into my studio and cut paper.

I had a little project in mind which I thought I might be able to finish before we had to leave.

Miss Helping Hands and I fell in love with the Charlie and Lola children's television series several years ago and, subsequently, the Prince bought me several of the storybooks as gifts.

Miss Helping Hands and I often refer to Lola when we are struggling with big grown-up responsibilities, and since Miss Helping Hands is in a transitional (read: challenging) stage of her life, I thought it would be fun to 'copy' one of our favorite pages from one of our favorite Charlie and Lola books for her.

The story is about Lola going to school for the first time.

She's scared...and aren't we all sometimes?

She's feels she's too small (young, inexperienced, weak)...and don't we all feel that way sometimes?

Here is the page of the book I wanted to copy for Miss Helping Hands.

 

 

 

I traced off their figures to make patterns.

I cut their faces from white paper and used chalk and colored pencil to color them.

 

 

 

Pretty soon I had some funny looking little pieces of Charlie and Lola in front of me.

 

 

 

I got their figures all finished before it was time to pack up and leave, but I didn't have the graph paper I wanted to use as a background (though I did have a snap-in type frame in the studio closet).

Since the purpose of our road trip was to see Miss Helping Hands performing with the orchestra in her last Masterworks Concert, and since we planned to stay overnight, I figured I'd just finish the project in the hotel room at some point.

Which I did, but just minutes before we left for the concert, so I forgot to take a photo.

This is (a not very good) one with the mat sitting on it, before I glued the kids in place.

 

 

 

 

It's sitting on Miss Helping Hands' dresser now.

While we were on the road home, I received a text message from her which read "I love my Lola pic : )".

As for me...

 

 
 

 

...I love my shoots.

Ten, nine, eight, seven...

 

I began drawing inchies on March 1, 2010; which means I am down to the last ten inchies of my inchie year.

I remember the day I decided to conquer that big pad of 'expensive' water color paper, by cutting it into inch-size pieces and drawing one inch every day.

It is remarkable to me that I have used all but a 4" x 7" scrap of that paper.

You helped me show it who is the boss.

Thank you.

For a number of reasons, I am still undecided about whether or not to continue the inchie journaling.

Perhaps I'll just see what happens on March 1, 2011.

Meanwhile, we'll be counting down the last ten inchies of this year's journey.

TEN...

I've told you before that spring makes me a nervous wreck.

Adding all that life out there to the life in here (and the life inside my head) makes me feel sort of panicky...like I won't be able to think, or work, or breath fast enough to keep up.

So, I'm one of those people who appreciates the fact that Oklahoma doesn't make up its mind very well, weatherwise, and serves up a blizzard one week and 75 degree temperatures the next.

This way, when the weather gets all spring-y and sends me on a manic cleaning frenzy, I can count on it changing back to curl-up-with-a-quilt weather before I spontaneously combust.

But, I'll tell ya, I made those last warm days count.

Fans, light fixtures, and baseboards were cleaned, and furniture, walls, and ceilings were vacuumed.

Drawers were emptied, cupboards got new shelf paper, clothes were passed on, and paper was shredded.

Worn flannel sheets were made into dusting cloths and frayed towels were made into cleaning rags.

Mending piles and ironing piles were cut down to size, and curtains and draperies were laundered and re-hung.

There were moments when I felt completely overwhelmed by this big old place.

There were moments when I felt completely overwhelmed by all my stuff, too.

When I get like that, I am sorely tempted to bag it all up and give it all away.

 

 

 

And then I remember that my friends like it better when I give it away after I've made something out of it.

 

 

 

Which I'll do right after I spring-clean those other six rooms.

------

NINE...

Because I wanted to buy (not borrow) this month's book club selection, last Sunday evening the Prince and I went to our local Border's book store.

It's the bookstore where we always shop...it's our place.

It's been the first stop on all the road trips which the girl shoots and I have taken with the Prince.

And it's going to close.

Forever.

I'm sad.

So I'll probably keep my little member's card on my keychain even after the store is gone.

 

 

 

I have already finished the book I purchased Sunday night.

It was un-puttable-downable.

I hope you will read the reviews for yourself, because I'm hard-pressed to know how to tell you about it.

It is an incredible tribute to the author's skill and grace that one can read her story without feeling overwhelmed by the neglect and privation she endured as a child.

If you read it, I think it will change the way you look at some things.

Let me know.

-------

EIGHT...

I'd love to tell you that the book which Miss Mary Mack was reading to me on Monday night was also un-puttable-downable.

But it (most decidedly) was not.

It was required reading for one of her college courses and, though it was interesting, it was rather difficult to follow.

Mary had to look up definitions for some of the words, and I had to have her re-read several passages before I could understand them.

We laughed when we changed the word 'antiquity' to Auntie Cutie.

 

 

 

We were together in my studio, like the old days.

And we laughed.

Like the good old days.

-------

SEVEN...

  We kept the grandshoots for a little while on Tuesday evening.

After his bath, Little Man and I emptied the jar of paper stars onto the hearth.

We played pretty quietly with them in the beginning, separating the 'babies' from the 'daddies' and talking about the colors.

Then we started scooping up handfuls of them and gently letting them fall.

 

 

 

Then I starting raining paper stars on Little Man's head.

He couldn't believe his good fortune.

"I get to play with these stars like this?"

 

 

 

I'd forgotten that many of these stars have prayers written on the inside.

 

 
 

I guess it feels good to have prayers raining down on your head.

 

 
 

 

It was wonderful to watch.

-------

Preparing for the Countdown

 

Before we start the countdown of the last ten inchies of my inchie-journaling year (I started March 1, 2010), I think I will empty the in-basket.

I forgot to include the photos of the beautiful roses I received from Prince Charming last Monday.

 

 

 

I love me some recklessly red roses.

 

 

They take my breath away...just like the Prince.

-------

I also forgot to show you some pictures from last Tuesday when we had the grandshoots (stop that groaning...I don't do it nearly as much as I'd like).

Little Man asks to take a bath every time he reads the No No Yes Yes book.

 

 

And he reads the "No No Yes Yes" book every time he is here.

Of course, we oblige by filling the tub and getting out our most modern bath toys.

 

 

(Every time I plopped this on his head he'd tell me, "It's not a hat!")

Last week, Baby Girl got some of the bath-time action.

I couldn't get over the sweetness of those babies and my sweet man.

 

 

 

While I was drying Little Man's hair, I got to thinking about my 'Panic Lists'.

When I am preparing for bed late at night, I will often be so tired that I am just sure I am going to forget something I am supposed to do the next day...or the day after...or the day after that.

I am usually standing in front of the sink when this happens.

So, I grab the white-board marker I keep on the backsplash ledge and I make my notes directly on the mirror.

The night Little Man was here, part of it looked like this:

 

 

Well, it actually looked a little bit tidier than this before I realized I'd never let Little Man enjoy the mark-on-the-mirror experience.

He was enthralled.

 

 

If he's not the world's next Picasso, it won't be my fault.

And if he writes on the walls at home with a real marker...well...I hope that won't be my fault, either.

Baby Girl isn't into markers.

Her sweet little hands just are big enough yet.

 

 

So I'll just hold them until they are.

-------

I had an entire day off last Wednesday.

The weather was mighty spring-y and the birdies were singing to beat the band, so guess what I did?

I did a lot of ironing.

I think I've mentioned that I am a cloth napkin junkie.

We use them.

All the time.

And I just let them pile up in my ironing basket until we start wiping our faces on our sleeves.

Then I starch and iron them all at once.

Sometimes there are stacks of 'seasonal' napkins in there...

 

 

 

...with the 'every day' napkins...

 

 

 

...and some 'luncheon' napkins.

 

 

 

This time there were 95 napkins.

 

 

I like to iron.

-------

Last Thursday after work I dropped in on Me Darlin' Mither and my Seester of Blue-Bar-of-Happiness fame.

I wish I'd thought to take a picture of the bright little quilt Seester sewing for her grandshoot.

She did send me home with some really great dish towels she'd made, and which I can actually bring myself to use (I can't bear for anything to happen to the embroidered set she gave me).

 

 

Love the colorful borders!

 

 

 

They are much thicker than regular flour sack towels (and she sells a set of four for $20...in case you want a great gift for yourself or your next wedding shower).

After my visit to Seester's little workshop, I took Me Darlin' Mither out for a taco and some quality conversation about technology.

We lamented the loss of handwritten paper letters, and worried over the future of the postal service.

We weighed the cost of having such a constant flow of news into our lives that there is not enough time and emotional energy to properly process it.

We pondered the effects of so much instant gratification.

We mourned the potential loss of books and libraries.

And when we were finished talking it all over...

 

 

...she had me search for something on my iPhone.

Sigh.

-------

On Friday my D'Art group had all five members present and accounted for.

That has not happened in a very long time.

It was wonderful.

And so was the first chapter of the book we are now studying together.

It is titled "Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking".

I had to loan my copy to another member, or I would share a quote or two.

If you struggle to do art, this might be a good book for you to read.

 

 

 

Or you could just come over here and we could struggle together.

 

From 13 to 73. Degrees, that is.

 

I'm rather glad I didn't have time to post these inchies until the entire week had passed.

This way, you'll get a feel for Oklahoma weather.

This particular seven days began with a snow storm and record-setting low temperatures (-32 in some parts of the state), and ended with such lovely weather (73 degrees!) that I was able to work (up a sweat) in the yard, and start clearing and turning the garden beds.

February 9 -

We had six more inches of (beautiful!) snow, and the unexpected pleasure of a visit from the Creative Genius and his Bride.

It was already hungry-thirty when the boys finally decided we should all go out for dinner, but just as we were leaving we got an SOS from Miss Mary Mack, so we stayed home long enough to cook some rice for her (poor little thing was unwell).

We dropped it by the university on our way to dinner, and by the time we found an open restaurant in our snow-stricken city (it doesn't take much), my blood sugar was so low I wasn't sure I would be able to be kind (I would have chewed my own arm off, but the fat content was too high).

An amazing restoration took place after a few bites of hot food, and the ensuing conversation made me glad to be alive.

I love my shoots.

 

 

 

And I love their spouses.

-------

February 10 -

My next-door neighbor has several large crepe myrtle trees which are planted right next to her side of our common fence.

During the summer, when they are covered with pink and fuscia blossoms, those trees afford me such a beautiful view from the window over my kitchen sink that washing up dishes is a sweetened chore.

I've been so blessed by the beauty of those trees that I took a photograph right through the window last summer and used it as a postcard to write my thanks to my neighbor.

Thursday morning, as I was rinsing out my coffee cup before heading to work, I heard some beautiful bird-song and looked up to see a stunning male cardinal on the snow covered branches of the crepe myrtle.

 

 

 

I did not have my camera at hand.

If my neighbor reads this blog, she will know that I am, again, grateful to her.

I have already thanked God.

-------

February 11 -

I'll bet you think I've already told you about every single Valentine cone-making moment I had, don't you?

But you're wrong.

Friday it was my turn to bring a project to share with my D'Art group (something new we have added to our schedule).

Surprise!

We made cones!

Sweet Mary Lou chose silver, gave the Queen of Hearts a sparkling gown (love it!), and decided maybe the cone could double as a corsage:

 

 

 

My Native American friend, Whatwouldhappenif, drew her own ValenGirl (of course!) and put the boing on the wired hearts: 

 

 

 

 

The lovely Miss B (of Zentangle fame) smartly placed the heart from an old charm bracelet at the center of her bow, and put the boing on a silver pipe cleaner:

 

 

 

 

Oh, but it was good to do artsy things with my artsy friends!

I couldn't remember (at the last moment) whether we were still planning to exchange Valentines, so to be on the safe side (not having actually made any other Valentines this year), I pulled from my file some Valentines I'd made in years gone by.

Way back when stamps were thirty-seven cents each, this is what the LOVE stamp looked like:

 

 

 

I liked it so much that I designed my Valentines after it that year.

There were two or three left in my stash.

 

 

 

I still like them.

And my D'Art group friends liked them, too.

 

 
 

At least they acted like they did.

-------

February 12 -

Miss Helping Hands was home for the weekend and we did some of what we like to do most.

We danced around (each other) in the kitchen.

We made dill bread (her first time) (you should try that recipe, and then toast some of the bread you make, and then spread some cream cheese and some jalapeno jelly on the bread you toasted, and then eat it, and then wonder why you didn't do that a long time ago) and all those Conversation Heart sugar cookies I told you about in my last post.

 

 

 

I like Miss Helping Hands.

She is a Q T.

-------

February 13 -

For two weeks I have been thinking about making some "e-changes".

I see how easy it is for the pull of the 'virtual' world to distract me from giving my love and energy to those who are actually with me, and the work I can actually do.

Sunday morning I finally made a firm decision to 'pull some plugs'.

I knew it would be a very good thing for me to do, but I also knew it would not be a very easy thing for me to do.

How good it was to hear the preacher say  "Let's make this simple. The answer to the question 'Who is my neighbor?' (in reference to the commandment 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself') is this: Your neighbor is the person you are with. Help the one you're with."

 

 

 

E-with?

-------

February 14 -

I woke up to a dozen red roses and some beautifully written sentiments.

 

 

 

But, more importantly, I woke up to the Prince.

-------

February 15 -

I spent the morning on the job, and I stayed after my work was done to spend a jovial hour in the break room sharing my leftovers with my friend, Flashmore.

Her laughter does me a world of good, and all the tension had left my shoulders before I got home.

It was a gorgeous afternoon (an unbelievable change from last week) and I couldn't stop thinking about my flower and herb beds.

Unfortunately, I couldn't stop thinking about the chocolate silk pie (which was left over from the fabulous dinner the Prince had made for me on Valentine's Day), either.

So I texted my friend Flashmore.

"Decisions. Decisions. Eat chocolate silk pie or work in the garden?"

And she texted me back.

"Do both. That way you won't feel too guilty."

 

 

 

So, guess what fueled this inchie?

E-words! 

Happy Valentine's Day, Dear Readers

 

I will be busy icing the last of the sugar cookies and delivering Valentines this morning, so I won't have time to write or to post inchies.

Until I can get back to business, here are photos of some of the 21 (I couldn't seem to stop) Valentine cones that have been produced around here in the last week or two.

 This one has a little love letter.

 

 

 

This was the last one I made.

 

 

 

I liked it a lot.

So I kept it.

I loved this one, too, but I don't  even remember where she went.

 

 

 

This one is going to be mailed late, so her little banner says "you are loved" instead of "happy valentine's day".

 

 

 

I worked with browns and golds (out of my comfort zone) on this one because I wanted to use some of Seester's other chicken feathers.

 

 

 

 The lighting is off on this one, so the colors don't show up well.

 

 

 

But, yep, that's a black ribbon.

It worked.

Really.

Here is another bad photograph (of a cone that went to Wisconsin).

 

 

 

This one "spoke to" my good neighbor, and is now living with her.

 

 
 

I did stop messing around with paper long enough to go into the kitchen when Miss Helping Hands was home on Saturday.

We made heart shaped sugar cookies, flavored with vanilla and a bit of orange zest, and iced them to look like conversation hearts.

 

 

 

A little treat bag and some red ribbon...

 

 

 

...and Miss Helping Hands, the Resident Advisor, has sweet little gifts to give her girls today.

And today, because one doesn't forget the love of one's life, the Prince recieved this little card from moi.

 

 

 

I'm sure he's proud of me for making it all by myself.

I even curled the little love letter I slipped into the typewriter.

 

 

 

I can't show you the poem I wrote for the inside because, well, it's quite personal.

But...

I can tell you that it starts with "Roses are red" and ends with "Will you be mine?"

I hope he says yes.

And I hope that you have a lovely day today.

Here are the words of God on which I meditate every Valentine's day:

"...I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with unfailing kindness." Jeremiah 31:3

Royal Mail

 

It's taken six weeks and five emails to the UK from the Prince, but I finally received some 'royal mail' on Tuesday.

 

 
 

I know it's silly, but I think I enjoyed looking at that 'ROYAL POST' sticker on the envelope even more than the contents of the envelope.

Inside the envelope was this magazine:

 

 

 

And inside this magazine was a 'Masterclass' article on Inchies which included this:

 

 

 

 

Strangely enough, the envelope also contained this:

 

 

 

(The fine print says I don't qualify to participate because I don't live in the UK. Maybe I'll move.)

You know, watching how anxiously the Prince waited for this magazine -  and comparing my own level of anticipation to his - I realized that these things always seem much more impressive when they happen to other people, than when they happen to your little old self.

Somehow, knowing your own limitations and weaknesses puts a different perspective on them.

I have decided that is a good thing.

And I think getting Royal Mail is a good thing, too.

 

 

 

But. having a Prince who is willing to go through royal pains to get it for you, well...

...that is just the best thing of all.

Making Hearts and Hearts Made Glad

 

 

Goodness!

Prince Charming is outside shoveling snow off the driveway and sidewalk again and here I am; just now posting the inchies I created during the last snow storm!

Last Wednesday he shoveled us out after two days of being housebound.

 

 

 

Drat! We enjoyed being home together.

-------

We were able to return to work on Thursday without too much slipping and sliding on the roads.

The parking lot at work was a different matter altogether, and my car lost it's grip and slid into the curb before I got it into a parking stall.

I lost my grip on the pavement, too, coming across the same parking lot after work.

I sent my keys and purse flying through the air as I grabbed the car bumper - hoping to stay upright.

(It worked; and for that I am very grateful.)

We made it safely home to find a "Save the Date" card in the mailbox; another of our 'adopted' shoots has found a bride.

We were both moved to tears by the words which he'd written on the back of the card.

How wonderful to love and be loved!

The words were so encouraging, and came at so perfect a time, that I copied down the entire message on the inchie for the day.

 

 

 

It wasn't very easy, but the words were very important.

-------

My D'Art group meeting for Friday was cancelled for reasons other than the weather, so I had some unexpected studio playtime with Able Baker Dana.

She got kind of fired up about Valentine cones, and...

 

 

 

...omigersh!

We made a really big, fun mess!

I played around a bit with some of my old rubber stamps; I was wondering if we could use some of them in place of the Queen of Hearts paper doll.

 

 

It's kind of addictive once you start gussying up these little things.

It's hard to know when to stop.

 

 

I finally decided maybe you don't have to stop.

 

 

 

Able Baker Dana didn't want to stop, either.

Although she finished these two sweet Valentines when we were together,...

 

 

 

(Wish you could see how that paper cone sparkles!)

 

 

 

...and she was very happy when she left,...

 

 

 

...I think she's at home...

 

 

 

...with her glue gun plugged in.

(PS Do you ever use hot glue without burning yourself? Inquiring minds want to know.)

-------

Friday night when Prince Charming got home from work, he made the exciting discovery that (not only did we have water dripping from two new ice-dam-related leaks in the kitchen ceiling) our water heater had sprung a leak and soaked the carpet in the closet under the stairwell (which shares a wall with the heater closet).

Sigh.

Our friendly plumber wasn't working on Saturday, so the Prince called an old friend who used to do a lot of this kind of work on the side.

He's a civil engineer by trade, but he is the gifted handyman who tiled our master bath/shower, installed our new garage door, and did the sheetrock work on our new kitchen ceiling (yep, the one which is now quite water-damaged).

What a blessing for us that he was willing to 'come out of retirement' to help the prince install a new water heater on Saturday!

 

 

 

I hid in my studio during the process.

My friend, Patti-is-Fun, and I had made a date to 'play Valentines'.

Guess what we made?

Surely you know!

Here are the beauties she created:

 

 

 

 

Notice the bandage on her finger.

She didn't have that when she arrived.

But, as I mentioned before, I use a lot of that surgical wire because I got it for free and...

...it draws blood if you get yourself at the poke end of it.

-------

We had the Creative Genius and his Bride, the Prince's seester, and Miss Mary Mack here under the guise of watching the Super Bowl on Sunday evening.

We did actually watch the first half of the game, but then we gave it up for a round of Yahtzee and junky food.

Seester pretty well dominated the game (how DOES she roll all those Yahtzees?), but we all got a share of the fun and food.

 

 

 

And there are still some Oreos here, if anyone wants one.

-------

Know what is sweeter than Oreos?

Sweeter than honey?

 

 

 

Good news.

And if you can get a Prince to read it to you, well...

...even better.

The Inchie Project - January 2011

 

I am listening to the steady drip, drip, drip of water from the kitchen ceiling.

Something magical happened to our roof during this winter storm, and the snow (which has miraculously managed to melt in these freezing temperatures) is finding it's way through to us somehow.

Sigh.

Here is an official good-bye to January.

It's share of winter, at least, is past.

 

 

And it was full of blessings.

"Doot, doot, doot,...

 

...looking out my back door."

I don't think CCR had this picture in mind when they were singing their happy little song (which, by the way, was playing when Cable Guy and his Bride came down the aisle after their, otherwise formal, wedding).

 

 

 

Eeeesh.

Asthma, followed by the flu, followed by a blizzard.

That's a lot of down time.

Here's what I've been doing with it (as well as cleaning out the bathroom cabinets and drawers which, more than likely, is equally pleasing only to me, myself, and I).

Here is what the couch cushion next to me looked like while we were 'watching' White Collar last night.

 

 

 

And later, it looked like this:

 

 

 

When I plan to make a bunch of one kind of thing, I like to do it assembly line style.

And since I've been rather under the weather, I've had a lot of time to sit and make 'fancies' for the Valentine assembly line.

I had a bunch of brass, heart-shaped brads...

 

 

 

...which I tried to use, but they left me cold.

I decided I'd try coating them with a little glue...

 

 

 

 

...and dipping them in zee lovely glittah.

 

 

 

 

Ohh la la!

So much purtier now!

 

 

 

 

Last time our book club met, Me Darlin' Mither wanted to contribute to the food table, so she bought some of those frozen mini quiche and had me bake them for her.

I knew there was a reason I saved the containers.

They are perfect for assembly line work. 

 

 

 

 

 (Hmmm. Only one pink arm. Hmmmm.)

By now you probably realize I am planning to make a lot more 'Valencones', similar to the ones we made in class at My Heart's Fancy.

I got this pink and brown one done and decided it still needed a little something.

 

 

 

 

I found a small scrap of metal 'paper' in my files and remembered a technique from 'long ago'.

 

 

 

I punched out a little heart shape and impressed some swirls and dots into it with an embossing tool.

 

 

 

It was just what the Queen needed!

 

 

 

 

 

Although the cones are mostly alike, it's kind of fun to mess around with things I have in my studio and try to give each one something unique.

A little bit of brown and white baker's twine here:

 

 

 

And a bit of ribbon here:

 

 

 

A flower 'doodad' which I rescued from some packaging here:

 

 

 

Most of them say...

 

 

 

 

...but the way the queen's arms are extended, I think I should make some that say "I love you this much".

 

 

 

The bottoms of the cones are different, too.

 

 

 

 

This one is really special, because I bled all over this silk ribbon.

I wrapped it together using some surgical wire I saved from a toss-out at the clinic.

That stuff is sharp!

 

 

 

Just wanted to say I love me some brown and white houndstooth check paper!

 

 

 

I wish I could show you all the completed Valencones, but alas!

 

 

 

I can't get out to get the ribbon to finish them.

I'm back among the living.

 

I've had quite a week.

Care for a blow by blow?

Well, if you keep reading, you're going to get it anyway.

Here are the last nine inchies for January.

January 23

I already posted about the class I took at My Heart's Fancy.

It was impossible to draw on an inchie all the details of the beautiful Valentine cone we made.

 

 

 

So it's good that I'm keeping the real thing.

PS - I rinsed my paint brush in my coffee cup numerous times while I was painting this.

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January 24

I got up and had a good work out.

I thought my sporadic fitness regimen was to blame for my shortness of breath.

I was wrong.

"Allergy asthma" is the closest I've gotten to a diagnosis of the bronchial spasms which occasionally make taking a deep breath seem like a lofty goal.

Last Monday was a corker.

I was so wiped out after work that I did nothing but sit all evening.

It's hard to keep from panicking when you feel like you can't get enough oxygen, so I watched an old movie on TV and cut and colored Queen of Hearts paper dolls to try to keep from thinking about it.

 

 

 

I must say, it's  infinitely more pleasant to be cutting paper dolls while gasping for air, than it is to be doing the old "step, kick, lunge, and down".

Truly.

(PS When I do my step workout, I still laugh when I remember the shoots telling me how much they hated it when I used to work out at 5:30 a.m. One of them, who'd spent a summer helping the installation teams who worked for my Brudder's carpet business, said the "thud, thud" of my stepping had crept into his dreams as part of a frustrating scenario involving a 'knee-kick' carpet stretcher. I know I shouldn't laugh...but hey, it's my health we're talking about here.)

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January 25

I was still 'sucking air' when I woke on Tuesday, so I didn't go to work.

But I did call the doctor.

And he said he couldn't see me until Wednesday.

I did almost nothing all day, but I had the pleasant experience of a visit from one of my favorite young families on Tuesday evening.

 

 

 

Now, they don't really look like this, but you just try to do anything without oxygen and see how it works out for you (see what a handy excuse that is?).

Cable Guy's head isn't really quite that large, but it has been a 'shiny hubcap' since his days as a Marine, and he does refer to it as a grape (as in "I smacked him on the back of his grape").

So I just left it alone when his head came out looking like a grape.

It suits.

I feel a bit more contrite about the fact that Baby Girl seems to have only one eye in this little drawing.

Please try to remember how big an inchie actually is.

And just so you can remember Baby Girl as she actually is, here is a picture of her snuggled in her Poppa's arms.

 

 
 

All together now: Awwww.

Little Man is used to having his Pretty play soccer with him in the front room when he visits, but that's hard to do without breath, so we contented ourselves with quieter activities.

He has a favorite book here which is titled "No No Yes Yes".

We were reading through this book and Little Man was searching for his favorite pages.

He likes this one because we have an orange cat and we always read this page "No, no! Don't pull Jack's tail.  Yes, yes. Be gentle with Jack."

 

 

 

But, Little Man seemed to be looking for a certain page.

Aha!

 

 

 

"Baf? Baf?"

"You want to take a bath?"

Head nodding vigorously.

"Is that okay, Momma?"

We got the go-ahead.

"No, no! Don't pour the water on Pretty's floor. Yes, yes! Play with the water in the bathtub."

Life is good.

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January 26

I went to the doctor.

That may not seem like such a big deal to you, but I grew up thinking one shouldn't even take an aspirin unless a limb has been severed.

Last time I made an appointment to see the doctor about an ailment, I made the startling discovery(when I showed up to keep said appointment) that his office building was quite deserted.

When I called to tell them where I was, and that I intended to keep my appointment as soon as I could find them, the receptionist told me they'd moved "several years ago".

I strongly resist seeing medical doctors, and I even more strongly resist taking medicine.

Sometimes, though, it's a matter of obedience and faith.

 

 

 

Or life and breath.

(PS I work in medical clinic. What irony.)

January 26

We won't talk about the utter viciousness of the flu bug which bit me as I was dressing for work, or the nightmares I had while I was weak from it.

We'll just say that even during the worst of it I was coherent enough to be able to truly thank God for popsicles and ice chips.

 

 

 

And for Prince Charming, who so tenderly served them to me.

(P.S. Ever get those 'riddle pops' with the questions on the stick and the answers under the popsicle? The third day in to this flu, I was finally well enough to read one or two of them. So...  Why did the sun never shine on the castle, Dear Readers?)

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January 28

I've watched how sweetly these college girlies of mine care for each other and their friends, roomies, and 'adopted 'seesters; bringing little stuffed animals, candy, flowers, or balloons to cheer each other up or on when difficulty or illness temporarily make the going rough.

And I've sometimes been jealous.

But I'm not anymore.

Miss Mary Mack brought me this...

 

 

 

...on Friday, when she found out I was ailing.

He had the string of a very cheery mylar balloon attached to one wing, and when you squeeze him he plays the theme from Charlie Brown.

It's the kind of music that just makes you feel happy when you hear it.

 

 

 

Just like a visit from your Baby Shoot makes you feel happy when you get it.

(PS I have already managed to make two black smudges on poor Woodstocks face with soot from a candle wick. Mary knows about this and she doesn't hold it against me.)

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January 29

I was still pretty much laying low and lounging in my jammies, but all three of the youngest shoots came to visit, and their visits happened to overlap for a few hours.

The Prince got out his LCR game, and they pulled the coffee table up to the couch so I could be included in the hooplah.

And hooplah it was.

The game comes with chips, but I've seen it played with quarters and I've seen it played with dollars, and I can tell you the level of hooplah goes up exponentially when the game is played with cash of any denomination.

Of course, playing with money would make it gambling, wouldn't it?

So, I'll leave it to your imaginations to decide what we used.

 

 

 

But don't let the inchie fool you.

(PS This is a 'winner take all' game, and I thought it was very nice that everyone wanted to keep playing more than they wanted to 'take all'. So everything was always divvied up again by the winner(s).  Until that last round, of course...)

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January 30

Cable Guy came by to pick up Miss Helping Hands and take her to his soccer game.

Afterwards, he and Little Man stopped in to have some dinner and a visit.

Since I was still in my jammies and struggling to eat anything other than popsicles and rice cakes, Little Man and I returned to our 'quiet things'.

Back to the No No Yes Yes book.

On a scale of one to ten, how happy do you think it made Edwina Scissorhands when the Little Man turned to this page and said "Scissors?"

 

 

As in, "Can I cut with the scissors now?"

Be still my beating heart!

I got out the sharp little scissors (which made his daddy very nervous) and some scrap paper, and pulled Little Man onto my lap (which made his daddy just a shade less nervous).

Little Man concentrates so hard at this task, and is so pleased when his snips actually make a piece of paper fall away.

 

 

 

I have such hopes.

(PS There were some better photos of the Little Man sitting in my lap and cutting, but they included parts of my head.  And those parts of my head included 'bed hair'; since I'd actually been in bed most of the day. "Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; vanity of vanities, all is vanity." Ecclesiastes 1:2  Look it up.)

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January 31

"You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Or 'til it's back.

What a blessing to be well.

Well enough to work.

 

 

 

I'm so grateful for my little job in the file room.

I get to be on my feet, instead of behind a desk.

Everything is in order; how I love order!

It's not a mindless job, but it is a stress-less job; it's impossible to take my work home with me, and I don't wake in the night with a start, wondering if I put 'Eston' before 'Easton'.

I wear scrubs; I don't have to waste time deciding what to wear.

I work with lovely, lovely people.

Lovely people.

(PS There is a specific color of scrub designated for each day of the week at the clinic where I work. That keeps us looking 'professionally uniform' without having to wear the same thing day after day. At least, that's the way it's supposed to work. But if you happen to have such a busy morning that you don't have time to eat... And if you happen to drive through some fast-food joint ten minutes before you are supposed to report for work at 1:00...And if you happen to eat the burrito you just purchased at that fast food joint while you are finishing your drive...And if you happen to eat it from the wrong end and half the contents drop onto the front of your scrub shirt, but you think "Gads! Well, I'll just have to go in and clean it up before I clock in"...And you happen to notice as you get out of your car that the other half of your burrito innards is smeared on your car seat...And if you then look down and see that the backside of your scrub pants are totally wiped with refried beans...well....then you go home and change... and later you wash your scrubs, but they are permanently and completely ruined...so you wear the only other color you have day after day after day after day....and you think "What's so professional about uniformity, anyway???")