tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17361584786894579492024-03-18T21:32:57.891-07:00Seasonality:Embracing Change Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.comBlogger3015125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-50477699198913049072020-10-25T08:44:00.000-07:002020-10-25T08:44:29.482-07:00SENDING OFF A PIECE OF MY HEART<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBFTXKOwu40Ip99VtL7CvoKN_kcGw-3DHcMlmkVHygIJu3FxgrrLiyoYcP0bM-ijdckx_QZwYp4G2qvHiEFmGi2_MPK72Rxh2lY0q4YiOAdySIOtRw9sH1_mGTTtt4IoBsQmkPI5PzQ2k/s3648/IMG_7646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBFTXKOwu40Ip99VtL7CvoKN_kcGw-3DHcMlmkVHygIJu3FxgrrLiyoYcP0bM-ijdckx_QZwYp4G2qvHiEFmGi2_MPK72Rxh2lY0q4YiOAdySIOtRw9sH1_mGTTtt4IoBsQmkPI5PzQ2k/w300-h400/IMG_7646.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div><br /></div>October 15 was an epic day. First we went to vote, where we were lucky enough to walk straight up to our voting booths, with no line at all. Then we went to the post office, where my <b>Mindfully Synchronistic Pandemic Art Journal </b>began its journey to the California headquarters of <a href="https://go.stampington.com/art-journaling-magazine"><b>Art Journaling</b> Magazine</a>, where it could sit for weeks, if not months, before I find out if they are even interested in it. I'm glad I didn't chicken out, for I was torn between wanting her to have a chance at being published, and wanting to keep her here with me. She has been my primary focus and occupation for so many months now, I wasn't sure I would know what to do with myself!<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK4fVs0E4NTPDw-90JA5X58YtivCtOUwEMq0DIdZap9IkCizaYzb6wNbl9Ax4XUv5EQsPrZqtFEQX12QPpkxXUMoxp8GS9G5f9U0dddSIgrTxuEskI5tqkQuKEFeNCqiEo1Tuknk2WFYA/s3648/IMG_7650.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK4fVs0E4NTPDw-90JA5X58YtivCtOUwEMq0DIdZap9IkCizaYzb6wNbl9Ax4XUv5EQsPrZqtFEQX12QPpkxXUMoxp8GS9G5f9U0dddSIgrTxuEskI5tqkQuKEFeNCqiEo1Tuknk2WFYA/w480-h640/IMG_7650.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtu79JDkj_LhwJncqGsUeJy1VzkUqa1Q98yQwlJ5zhyKuq1PCoPwHzl70Okn2zbn1MQdSLE7l7l3XjIIG43eVnI-gLiLaOVRVgxRrGIE4LFATtZfWK3CZhsXQHWNuh4WMCcsrhxey-Zw/s3648/IMG_7658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtu79JDkj_LhwJncqGsUeJy1VzkUqa1Q98yQwlJ5zhyKuq1PCoPwHzl70Okn2zbn1MQdSLE7l7l3XjIIG43eVnI-gLiLaOVRVgxRrGIE4LFATtZfWK3CZhsXQHWNuh4WMCcsrhxey-Zw/w480-h640/IMG_7658.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjozo-ap9hldJVjH0uu1FHgxQjlF4T6GCobAc7P99G23oNZ-xiAuhlW3j4tVWrMYitZsvwmO600piMBht3pX9aJUQWVQAGpC3obFjm3pE772c1D7ppMV0DllkUyc68uWwHGDcQjyMlkCWU/s3648/IMG_7666.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjozo-ap9hldJVjH0uu1FHgxQjlF4T6GCobAc7P99G23oNZ-xiAuhlW3j4tVWrMYitZsvwmO600piMBht3pX9aJUQWVQAGpC3obFjm3pE772c1D7ppMV0DllkUyc68uWwHGDcQjyMlkCWU/w480-h640/IMG_7666.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc3fQVYZlvp8693FABALjPnpp7epZEipxsMnpkrTuzrj9sqYwfDbLysVUs-QBB0PooaaKlo83rs-pXG5lycaXBYbKg5BrW2xETWAEam-amTqVnTeCfX-91MvlTMjNGGYL1uArkhOZGAgs/s3648/IMG_7669.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc3fQVYZlvp8693FABALjPnpp7epZEipxsMnpkrTuzrj9sqYwfDbLysVUs-QBB0PooaaKlo83rs-pXG5lycaXBYbKg5BrW2xETWAEam-amTqVnTeCfX-91MvlTMjNGGYL1uArkhOZGAgs/w480-h640/IMG_7669.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div>This agenda page asked, if you could take a year off work, with pay, how would you spend it, and where would you go? My answer...<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglB2Y6dBoZAp50MEWp84-u93tH4warZW7qbmy00uMqFj0Ia6kM4VT01GUL89KKEWVBRGco2tTgbwR_u79VM0-D6-oq8ikCYPYSmUIwTn5FCm3K2PRKr9LAYC3J4Nwkrcc3lCgPWrBxXfA/s3648/IMG_7673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglB2Y6dBoZAp50MEWp84-u93tH4warZW7qbmy00uMqFj0Ia6kM4VT01GUL89KKEWVBRGco2tTgbwR_u79VM0-D6-oq8ikCYPYSmUIwTn5FCm3K2PRKr9LAYC3J4Nwkrcc3lCgPWrBxXfA/w480-h640/IMG_7673.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>I guess I needn't have worried, because once I got around to clearing all the Pandemic Journal detritus off my art table, I rediscovered the half-finished Big Bend art journal I started more than a year ago!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNrkXaLPzbhToxess9qrPeN3bfpx4kSQP6B5f6obmX2TUV4r9MkxhMHgIsT76l3K_VwBEbuqVNbXJEQg1Zh2769t0bkEjnMdfIFk8Q33nv5YnP0XHZ9k-YTgs3QPCdjrd9xfcZpGBwGWU/s3648/IMG_7680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="3648" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNrkXaLPzbhToxess9qrPeN3bfpx4kSQP6B5f6obmX2TUV4r9MkxhMHgIsT76l3K_VwBEbuqVNbXJEQg1Zh2769t0bkEjnMdfIFk8Q33nv5YnP0XHZ9k-YTgs3QPCdjrd9xfcZpGBwGWU/w640-h480/IMG_7680.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFHPH9IJ02rJlh4TTihQ-AYSfDryCjFz8hlePekV6H_gHiNIhx0PgnAf5diFj-_wDcIbhP7ewcLoT0I5edtpYNL_rxR3f3gNi_eLPihIby7bv2cGKg8MpJk-sMYV8HSTMzEcOvlW3JJfw/s3648/IMG_7681.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="3648" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFHPH9IJ02rJlh4TTihQ-AYSfDryCjFz8hlePekV6H_gHiNIhx0PgnAf5diFj-_wDcIbhP7ewcLoT0I5edtpYNL_rxR3f3gNi_eLPihIby7bv2cGKg8MpJk-sMYV8HSTMzEcOvlW3JJfw/w640-h480/IMG_7681.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJkkU1jh5Zyre3_12UbtBjCgT9yN6sFVFJdQYMKnDipXMB8PlyHpNAs0x9Lwwmib78s1WfFrJ3Qr4-SreWvcXwtKZMszuN56nroWwIdDR-gX0WwFHd5JLN_LnrT0JnlePMFu8IUNJst0/s3648/IMG_7679.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="3648" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgJkkU1jh5Zyre3_12UbtBjCgT9yN6sFVFJdQYMKnDipXMB8PlyHpNAs0x9Lwwmib78s1WfFrJ3Qr4-SreWvcXwtKZMszuN56nroWwIdDR-gX0WwFHd5JLN_LnrT0JnlePMFu8IUNJst0/w640-h480/IMG_7679.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>It was my first time making a "one-sheet" journal, and there was some frustration involved -- not the least of which is figuring out how to make a cover for it, and what it should look like.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2L3VtjOZucK41tZ5F6exN0AIAWPxXkkwO8y6NBmckjsgahlLqfRIRtK3bDXlQPbQdrsLkRL-zwrnoqH6Rb5YLGvnIBAmiXirp3cDrLGYP32JvUl3v54TjJRVx5f0yPwQf6CroJT1gNjc/s3648/IMG_7678.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="3648" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2L3VtjOZucK41tZ5F6exN0AIAWPxXkkwO8y6NBmckjsgahlLqfRIRtK3bDXlQPbQdrsLkRL-zwrnoqH6Rb5YLGvnIBAmiXirp3cDrLGYP32JvUl3v54TjJRVx5f0yPwQf6CroJT1gNjc/w640-h480/IMG_7678.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My "Inspiration Board" For Cover Ideas<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Who knows? If I ever manage to fill up all the empty spaces in it, and get it covered, I just might get around to starting on that Cuba and Portugal paraphernalia that has been gathering dust for so long. Of course, that would probably mean that we are still in lock-down, for me to have that much time for art, which would be really depressing...or would it? </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><p><img align="left" src="http://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0px;" /></p></div></div></div>Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-79087196478658010342020-08-04T07:36:00.000-07:002020-08-04T07:36:22.014-07:00THE JOURNAL THAT WAS MEANT TO BEThis is the journal that was meant to be...the one that started writing itself. Perhaps, when I explain how that came about, you'll understand why I had to go back to make these additions to its cover.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMku385F5C3pliEcZVtx-_XAUB9YFy0v48Zc73IfZI5FsDaJvLwUY1x-iHGgX1KDD4avXCpD-MAZ2PeIsrPLQYqdDIixo3687pMoe0pqA7IdglT3BK3323OYJF_NOJBAWT4zQkhxi4es/s3648/IMG_7607.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMku385F5C3pliEcZVtx-_XAUB9YFy0v48Zc73IfZI5FsDaJvLwUY1x-iHGgX1KDD4avXCpD-MAZ2PeIsrPLQYqdDIixo3687pMoe0pqA7IdglT3BK3323OYJF_NOJBAWT4zQkhxi4es/s640/IMG_7607.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div>You see, I've always kept agendas -- to keep track of where I need to be and when -- but my art journals were something else altogether. Last December, when the holidays were coming to an end, I still hadn't purchased my 2020 agenda. So, when I spotted this "Mindfulness Journal" on the magazine rack at Costco I just grabbed it, even though I'm not really into yoga and meditation stuff. I just needed a place to jot down the appointments I'd already made for the coming year.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqvI2BoJB5FCOSHEG4t3pjBzqDHV6TTuMUVTgiqVco3v2Y4rpWZpDaQYl5syIYxGhItuI-rkQmyxc13HpYWyqunVsVGuH5hUWpa5GjwSlUKTQNv6t81fuQ6wieEIB0TkLr4uF1mF4x1Q/s3648/IMG_7612.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqvI2BoJB5FCOSHEG4t3pjBzqDHV6TTuMUVTgiqVco3v2Y4rpWZpDaQYl5syIYxGhItuI-rkQmyxc13HpYWyqunVsVGuH5hUWpa5GjwSlUKTQNv6t81fuQ6wieEIB0TkLr4uF1mF4x1Q/s640/IMG_7612.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>A few weeks later I was doing my annual purge in the bedroodio, trying to make room on the shelves for the artsy Christmas gifts I'd received and space on the art table to actually do some work, when I came across a book I had been<i> soooo</i> excited to purchase, then somehow forgot all about. It was Gina Rossi Armfield's<a href="https://www.amazon.com/No-Excuses-Art-Journaling-Creativity/dp/1440325138"> No Excuses Art Journaling</a> book. It shows you how to use a desk diary or<i> agenda</i> as the basis for an art journal, to capture the moments in your days, and was just what I needed to get me out of my creative rut. How's that for synchronicity?</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl1YRqy-PsC9Fz6Gn9yQAG5B10RHMvnotx_rgrDYE0ZnZIz0k23E21ufZTGj31gPobJNK0FiqD-dmkNss-2XAmpUTaqrMnnnrpRgf3U9m39WU693EzxpQ9TmVmXq-tgMuGAVtT90aim_s/s3648/IMG_7613.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl1YRqy-PsC9Fz6Gn9yQAG5B10RHMvnotx_rgrDYE0ZnZIz0k23E21ufZTGj31gPobJNK0FiqD-dmkNss-2XAmpUTaqrMnnnrpRgf3U9m39WU693EzxpQ9TmVmXq-tgMuGAVtT90aim_s/s640/IMG_7613.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I started out dutifully following her weekly and monthly instructions, adding her insert pages and envelopes with colorful washi tape, and it actually did manage to get me in the groove. Before long, however, I no longer needed the prompts, and had segued into just doing my own thing, and loving it. Then...along came Covid-19! </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRqTFWXnvVooi95GBFt_PFQjwRJvOtE81_MbdnInfYQcd4MtOCvcD8tM1INog_Typ1SD4s7BCvTv1KRrozzc6x42nbcdj5X8Iz0AE3Fe8GgXlAubA84JmlUn5JRKvCDvLRUJlKgYyjpg/s3648/IMG_7614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRqTFWXnvVooi95GBFt_PFQjwRJvOtE81_MbdnInfYQcd4MtOCvcD8tM1INog_Typ1SD4s7BCvTv1KRrozzc6x42nbcdj5X8Iz0AE3Fe8GgXlAubA84JmlUn5JRKvCDvLRUJlKgYyjpg/s640/IMG_7614.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>On the inside cover page there was a quote from Rainer Maria Rilke that I didn't give much thought to when I first saw it. It said "And now we welcome the new year, full of things that have never been." How prophetic was that? Later, I made my own addition to the page, asking "You mean things like COVID - 19?" Still later, I started adding words and phrases like Social Distancing, Flatten the Curve, and Self-Quarantine. Before long the "Things That Have Never Been" were coming at us from every direction, from Antifa to Zoom, and the page was almost full!<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU5kjNDIgQPzcnsNrhtagppB4IhO-UQEfzobNjkECwMeu2BsY7kWUfdz1o_2TZ-uG-QVd1dEQ7kH4xzOAAj36vvx2fnkBZAhtoG9K1e2v4C8_jryEfk75KvahTc0ESIse-XhicRtrT0Tc/s3648/IMG_7610.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3648" data-original-width="2736" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU5kjNDIgQPzcnsNrhtagppB4IhO-UQEfzobNjkECwMeu2BsY7kWUfdz1o_2TZ-uG-QVd1dEQ7kH4xzOAAj36vvx2fnkBZAhtoG9K1e2v4C8_jryEfk75KvahTc0ESIse-XhicRtrT0Tc/s640/IMG_7610.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>So THAT, my friends, is how I ended up with a Mindfully Synchronistic Pandemic Art Journal, and the year isn't over yet. Let's hope I don't have to insert a whole 'nother page of "things that have never been"!</div><div><br /></div><div><p><img align="left" src="http://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0px;" /></p></div></div></div>Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-19468350674068369372020-06-24T08:33:00.000-07:002020-06-24T08:33:30.361-07:00SAME OL' SAME OL'Not much has changed since I talked to you last -- part of the reason I go so long between posts. We're still staying hunkered down here at home, other than a couple of doctors appointments and a couple of trips to the garden center by Dear Hubby. He's very good about wearing his mask, however. The only problem now is that it's getting a whole lot harder to stay upbeat about doing all this, and not getting to spend real time with our kiddles, when the rest of the world seems to be running amok! But, all the more reason to do it.<br />
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I'm still sending pen pal cards to my little grandson.<br />
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And though I don't get many in return, I<i> always</i> get an immediate facetime call, with him jumping around and waving the card in the air, to tell me how excited he was to get it.<br />
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We're still doing puzzles too, and getting totally obsessed with them. Hard to believe, since we never did them <i>at all</i> prior to quarantine. This has been our favorite so far, since it brought back so many great memories.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barcelona</td></tr>
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This next one was pretty nostalgic as well, since my sister put herself through college working at Kip's Big Boy in Dallas, and we all spent a good bit of time there.<br />
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I'm still getting my monthly art lesson subscription from Lucy Brydon. This month we took all those tips we learned about glazing and layering leaves and put them to use making floral wreaths.<br />
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<i>Loved</i> this lesson. I am not good at particular and precise, and with these wreaths, it seems that the looser and messier you got, the better they turned out! Next up? Fun, funky little birdies.<br />
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The one thing I never tire of, however, while being stuck here at home, is the view from my windows.<br />
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Even when the little rascals sneak into my garden and nibble my plants!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-15667471180068748922020-06-01T07:17:00.000-07:002020-06-01T07:17:02.024-07:00KEEPIN' ON, KEEPING ONDespite our governor's edicts about opening up businesses and getting back to normal, Hubby and I are still staying home, other than curbside pick-up orders and a couple of doctor's appointments. Considering our age and health issues, and the fact that people just don't like to follow rules about mask wearing and safe distancing, common sense told me to stay in a while longer, to see if the death toll numbers flatten out, or continue to rise. But, believe me, it ain't easy!<br />
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Hubby and I seem to take turns having really bad days, where it feels like maybe humanity isn't worth saving, usually as a result of spending too much time on Facebook! But, there are lots of good things to be found there as well, so though I sometimes have to avoid it for a period, I haven't given it up completely. For one thing, that's where author friend <a href="http://katherinecenter.com/">Katherine Center</a>, whom I met at Lucky Star Art Camp, started sharing her "Three Good Things" posts. She believes that no matter how bad things get, if you look hard enough you can almost always find at least three good things in your life. And, if you seek out and focus on those things, you will start to feel better. So I started looking, and of course, found a whole lot more than just three!<br />
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Yes, I was kind of sad about not being able to go out for a nice Mother's Day brunch, but then this gorgeous, color-mad assortment of Harney & Sons teas, complete with honey straws, showed up on my doorstep, thanks to dear Austin and Areej. Know what else showed up there? Alexis! She didn't come in, but we got to talk through the door. Plus, she left me with some wonderful books...<br />
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and a piece of artwork our little Calvin made for me.<br />
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And yes, it was pretty sad that Calvin couldn't have a traditional birthday party to celebrate turning four, but he got at least three porch visits from family dropping off gifts, and got to make his very own birthday cake and do lots of other fun stuff his folks had planned for him, and he told them several times that he really<i> liked</i> no-people-birthday-parties! I'm thinking we may have yet another introvert in the family.<br />
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We are still sending pen pal letters back and forth, and based on his reactions to the two Transformer cards I sent him...<br />
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I decided to let Optimus and Bumblebee go stay at his house until quarantine is over, and he can start visiting Mimi's and Papa's toys again.<br />
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As I suspected, he was more excited about this than his actual gifts!<br />
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Although we really miss our Friday Date Days, with lunch out and a movie, we have discovered several very bingeable TV series, including one called<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3502248/"> Bosch </a>that had<i> lots</i> of seasons. Add a little popcorn and Junior Mints, and you've got a pretty darned good Date Day!<br />
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Artwise, I had a fun new monthly lesson from Lucy Brydon show up in my mailbox. This one was all about glazing with water colors -- or how to overlap sheer layers of paint so that one shows through the other.<br />
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Since<i> not one</i> of the many puzzles Hubby ordered online back in early April had ever shown up, we decided to get back in touch with our new favorite independent bookstore,<a href="https://www.patchoulijoesbooks.com/"> Patchouli Joe's</a>, up in Leander. Within a few days, this Gustav Klimt puzzle was on our doorstep.<br />
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I thought it was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. Turns out, it was also the most difficult! It had us so obsessed we couldn't do anything else -- until we got to the point where there was nothing but about 500 tiny identical white pieces left.<br />
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When we realized we just weren't having fun anymore, we gave ourselves permission to pack it up and move on. So now, we're working on this!<br />
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And then there was this sunset, every bit as brilliant as the color-mad puzzle above.<br />
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So, yeah. Seek and ye shall find -- possibly a whole lot more than you expected.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-90081214874816932492020-05-13T09:19:00.000-07:002020-05-13T11:40:55.829-07:00WORKING ONE'S WAY OUT OF A SLUMP<div style="text-align: justify;">
I don't know about you, but my journey through this Covid-19 experience has been full of hills and valleys. You can always tell I'm in a slump, feeling like maybe mankind isn't worth saving, if I haven't posted anything here at Seasonality in a while. Fortunately, I'm optimistic by nature, and always manage to crawl out of that valley before too long. Here are some of the things that helped me this time:</div>
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1) Sending And Receiving Snail Mail<br />
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This is the last card I sent to my pen pal Calvin. Last time my best buddy Paula was here, she brought a whole sackful of Transformers that had belonged to her grandson. Instead of giving them to him all at once, I decided to do two at a time. He got a firetruck and a police car on his last visit, and that's all he's talked about ever since! I set out Optimus Prime and Bumblebee for the next visit, but then along came Covid-19. Although drawing stuff like this is most certainly NOT my forte, I was told this post card made one little boy <i>extremely</i> happy. Bumblebee is in the works.<br />
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2) A Great Jigsaw Puzzle<br />
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My Hubby is not really a puzzle, cards or board game person, but when I saw an article on line, suggesting great audio book/jigsaw combinations, and one of the books was a Sci-Fi selection, I had to give it a try. Turns out, neither one of us is good at multitasking, and it was either do the puzzle, or listen to the book, so we opted for the puzzle -- and had a blast! We will save the audio book for our next car trip. The only problem with the puzzle was it completely absorbed us for two days, then left us feeling totally bereft. We already had several others on order, but they are taking way too long to get here. If quarantine is over when they arrive, they might never make it out of their boxes.<br />
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3) Starting A New Art Journal<br />
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Some of my favorite things I've ever painted were a couple of little girls. Unfortunately, they both ended up in other people's journals, when I participated in a "Circle Journal" project where our journals moved from one person to the next around the country, with each person adding something to them, until they finally maid it back home to us. Luckily, I at least thought to snap a photo of them before I sent them off.<br />
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Coming across them when doing a purge on my stash-basket reminded me of how much I enjoyed painting them. I also found magazine pages I had torn out and saved, showing the work of some favorite inner-child-artists.<br />
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Next thing I knew, I had a new art journal in the works!<br />
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4) The Everchanging Menu Of Wildflowers Popping Up In My Yard<br />
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So, what keeps you going these days?<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-19526560290105353152020-04-20T07:29:00.000-07:002020-04-20T07:29:41.531-07:00WEEK SIX OF JUST WE TWO<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spotted From Our Balcony Porch Just The Other Day</td></tr>
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<br />Well, I can't believe it. We're into our sixth week of sheltering here at home together, and we haven't even been <i>tempted</i> to strangle one another yet! In fact, I think we've actually grown closer, despite the fact that he made me get a new computer in the middle of all this. However, I just now noticed that several photos have disappeared from previous posts, for no reason at all, so the jury's still out on that. <br />
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We had a serious scare last week, when I got a message from my best friend saying her hubby woke up convinced he had a fever, even though their two very old thermometers both said he did not. Still, he couldn't risk passing anything to her, since she has a heart condition, so he had isolated himself in the bedroom, and she was leaving food at the door. She mentioned, however, that he had a lot of congestion, and had been doing a lot of work in the yard. Sure enough, it turned out to be really bad allergies, but it got us all to thinkin' -- about what it would be like to lose someone now, not even being able to be there with them as they pass, or to grieve with other loved ones surrounding you, and to have to continue on alone. It gives you a different perspective, doesn't it? Yes, Easter was a bit of a downer, not getting to be with my grandbabies, and with nary a Cadbury egg in site, but we have <i>soooo</i> much else to be grateful for!<br />
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For instance, I think one reason we seem to be so content in this unusual situation could be that a lot of outside stressors are removed when <i>everyone </i>is on lockdown, and you have a legitimate excuse <i>not</i> to do all those things you don't actually <i>want</i> to do. Then there's the fact that you become more and more aware of what is really important, and what just isn't, the longer your confinement lasts. I know I have! To still really<i> like</i> the person you've been with for more than 45 years, in such a "That's it, I'm outta here!" era? To have kids and grandkids who are all healthy and happy and actually missing us? That we are all fortunate enough to be doing ok financially, and won't be left destitute, as so many others will, losing not only their loved ones but also their jobs, businesses and health insurance? Yes, I'd say we are very, <i>very </i>fortunate. And, I think I am <i>most </i>grateful for the fact that all my friends and loved ones took this thing seriously, right from the very beginning, so hopefully none of them will get sick either.<br />
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Oh yeah, and one other thing I'm grateful for? Online art classes, and art supply stores! I have artist Lucy Brydon to thank for her little mini class on mushrooms, and can't wait to see what she has to offer next month!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-10675694164115395992020-04-17T07:33:00.000-07:002020-04-17T07:33:12.695-07:00SNEAKING OUT OF THE HOUSE<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So sorry for the long lag between posts. It was my Hubby's fault. Apparently my computer acted up one time too many, and the next thing I knew, he had ordered me a new one. Some people get excited about things like that. I do not. It's only taken about 40 years for him to catch on, but he's finally glommed on to the fact that I learn <i>differently</i> than he does. He always wanted to be sitting at the helm, typing away at lightening speed, calling instructions out to me over his shoulder. Not only could I not see what he was doing, but anything I heard was going in one ear and straight out the other. Then there was the fact that every time he transferred stuff from one computer to the other, I either lost months worth of recipes I had typed into the computer, or ended up with duplicates, then <i>triplicates</i>, of every photo I had ever imported. So, every time he announced that he had bought me a new phone or computer, I cried. This time it was different. He actually let<i> me</i> sit at the computer, and gave me time to take notes that I can refer back to when I have forgotten how to find or do something. I learn by <i>doing, </i>and by repetition. Give me two or three years and I'll have this down pat! And he'll be shopping for my next one...<br />
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Anyhoo, a week or so ago we had a pretty adventurous day, at least by Covid-19 standards. First I had my weekly meet-up with my Muses, via Zoom rather than coffee shop (Aaach, more new technology!). Then I actually got to go for a car ride, which led to a bit of synchronicity. <i>Squeee</i>! It started with daughter Lex sending us a message saying she had sewn some masks for us, and if we'd like to come get them, she could leave them out on the porch for us. Since we had a big box of diapers we needed to give her, we said "Heck yeah, a porch swap would be great!" I knew that Calvin would be pretty sad that we couldn't come in and play with him, and was wishing I had a little surprise I could take to him. So, I went to dig around in Mima's Magic Closet and found a fantastic book full of pre-decorated pages that you pull out and fold into paper airplanes. Perfect!<br />
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Lex and Calvin came to the window when we got there, and when I held up that book and pointed to him, you should have seen his face light up. In fact, he started to run to the door to throw it open, and Lex had to grab him fast, and remind him that we can't be together right now. That was hard. Really, really hard. But, on the bright side, as we were driving back home I reached into the sack to pull out a mask, and discovered a new letter from my little pen pal was in there as well!<br />
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Shortly after I discovered it, I got a text from Lex saying "Calvin really loves his paper airplane book!", so the two things got me to thinking -- about paper airplanes, and about what I should paint on the next card I send back to Calvin. That's when synchronicity struck. Suddenly a memory floated up, of a class I took online with Danielle Donaldson a while back, called Wild Blue Yonder, where we painted skies full of clouds and suns and birds and <i>paper airplanes! </i>I dug around in my stash when I got home and, sure enough, there was a little painting, just the right size to turn into a post card for my favorite pen pal. How lucky was that?<br />
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This week I started another art class online. This is a monthly subscription class, where I get new lessons each month, so it ought to keep me busy for the duration of this pandemic, and beyond. It's being taught by one of my favorite artists, Lucy Brydon, who lives in Scotland. I sometimes wonder which I love more, the way she teaches, or the way she <i>talks</i>! So, I'm off to paint mushrooms now. Catcha later!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-91584706251619294222020-04-04T07:58:00.000-07:002020-04-04T07:58:24.912-07:00KEEPING SPIRITS UPWell, guess I'm overdue for a blog post, huh? Being confined at home, it takes a bit longer to accumulate enough worth talking about and the photos to go with it! Guess I'll start with the bad news and get that out of the way. Our little town finally has its first confirmed case of Covid-19. I guess we are lucky to have held out this long, huh? Oh, and we finally watched a couple of episodes of Tiger King, just to see what everybody was talking about. A couple was more than enough, since it just reminded us how many crazy-stupid people there actually are in the world. Which is why this plague has spread across the U.S. like a wildfire out of control, even though we had plenty of warning and could have been <i>sooo much</i> better prepared, if only we'd acted quickly and decisively on what we learned from the countries who were hit first.<br />
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I let myself wallow over it all for a couple of days, but, being a bit of a Pollyanna by nature, I couldn't stay down for long. Before I knew it, I was thinking about all the <i>positive</i> things that have come out of this, and the way people here jumped right in and started helping one another, just as they did a few years back when we had that tragic flood. And, even though I miss seeing my friends and family in person, it hasn't kept us from staying connected. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention, right?<br />
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Apparently little Calvin is <i>loving</i> this whole pen pal thing I started. I finally got my first letter from him, accepting my invitation.<br />
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I immediately sat down and made this new card for him, inspired by the time he got a head start on his preschool teacher and dived straight into a big muddy puddle on the playground.<br />
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A couple of days later I got a video chat from him and daughter Lex. Calvin was super excited about the Peppa card, and wanted to assure me that he was going to send me another letter. He then turned to his mom and said "We should go do that. Right now!" She replied "We're talking to Mimi and Papa right now." But no, it <i>could not wait</i>.<br />
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My best friend Paula and I have spent most of our lives in separate cities, but ever since she forced me to learn to text, we've been talking to each other all day every day -- so much so that I often forget how long it's been since we've actually seen each other in person. We especially like talking at dinner time, about what we got from Blue Apron, or new ideas we've come up with, or what we could or couldn't get at the grocery store. She still can't get toilet paper, but the new Cooper's BBQ place that just went in near her house is offering a free TP roll with each food delivery. They are eating <i>lots</i> of BBQ!<br />
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As for the Muses, Hubby just added the Zoom program (which I had never even <i>heard</i> of pre-Covid) to both my phone and computer, and we are now able to pick right back up with our Tuesday morning coffee meet-ups, albeit virtually. The first one was a <i>doozy</i>. We had so much to catch up on!<br />
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As for that wallowing slump, it reminded me that I'm a person who needs purpose and routine in my days. So, I came up with a loose sort of schedule, just to insure that <i>every</i> day doesn't turn into a jammy day! And, one thing I made <i>certain</i> was on it, was a couple of hours of creative time each afternoon. It can be reading, writing, painting, working in my journal, making cards for Calvin, or anything else I can come up with. But, I must do <i>something</i>. Yesterday, it was an acrylic painting on a gelli print which I had inserted into my mindfulness agenda -- inspired by one of the many hummingbird carvings my dear mother-in-law Theda suddenly got the urge to make in her 60s and 70s, after a lifetime of being a painter.<br />
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Just goes to show, it's never too late to try something new!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-32349402965522666022020-03-28T06:26:00.000-07:002020-03-28T06:26:46.521-07:00SHELTER IN PLACE: FIVE GOOD THINGSWell, we've been "social distancing" for two weeks now, and just got word that we have been upgraded to "shelter in place." After reading the restrictions, I realized that it was pretty much what we were already doing. The only big difference is that they have closed down all the parks, so we won't be able to take walks on the Blue Hole Park trails. But that's okay. We've got into the habit of taking walks down to the end of our street and back -- mainly because we like checking on what our newest neighbors are up to. They caught our attention when they were first building their new home -- and a fantastic <i>tree house</i> at the same time. They are just about the only people in this neighborhood who have young kids. Next they built and planted an amazing vegetable garden, and now they are building a chicken coop! Kinda remind me of me, when we first moved out here, but with more skills!<br />
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The second good thing is that my garden is fixing to burst into bloom, which can't help but brighten one's days. First up every year is this Crossvine, which has spread from its little mannequin shaped base, onto the porch rails and across the fence!<br />
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Third up was a call I got from our little grandson, after I sent him this.<br />
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I knew he was probably a bit sad and confused about not being able to be around us right now, and I needed a way to stay connected with him, so I came up with this idea.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Sketch Of One He Built From Magnetiles Last Time He Was Here</td></tr>
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A couple of days after I mailed this handmade postcard to him, his mama facetimed me, and there was Calvin, waving his postcard around, saying "Yes Mimi! I want to be your pen pal!" I can't wait to see what he sends me in return!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1xXsDBXM8ogjnWEqDoMSZvzEtS9lcuebEtjYTHiNbkbmv1iJHv9hgxDKzXl97IRpDf9S5Jt-QN-yyEquhWb7enIxHhFexhaACp6pqHsABCi9RuEddqgK85FNg7y-uvDu5eZPLKyXWcJo/s1600/1AB6289C-A261-4042-8F03-E430F0F18020.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1xXsDBXM8ogjnWEqDoMSZvzEtS9lcuebEtjYTHiNbkbmv1iJHv9hgxDKzXl97IRpDf9S5Jt-QN-yyEquhWb7enIxHhFexhaACp6pqHsABCi9RuEddqgK85FNg7y-uvDu5eZPLKyXWcJo/s640/1AB6289C-A261-4042-8F03-E430F0F18020.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting on my nightstand, to be read each night.</td></tr>
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Fourth on my Good Things list is that Mandy Rowden -- an Austin singer-songwriter and the leader of all things musical at Lucky Star Art Camp each year -- decided to spend her unexpected downtime reading <i>The Artist's Way</i> by Julia Cameron, and working through the lessons in it. She invited other Lucky Star gals to join her on this journey, and set up a Facebook page where we could leave comments and have discussions. I jumped at the opportunity since that book was a real life-changer for me when I first read it many years ago, and I'd been longing to get back into the habit of doing those "morning brain-drain pages" that are so crucial to creativity. This was just the kick in the pants I needed!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixg7-pxZiqmcK7TkuUhDCSQV8AtCMfvmrr2RvfQCO5a_D3Voi3SRU23e8LW2ngX20uEyInRf8suA6ohjtg1qBGJA1OApS8Ybvd6l6YIAOSPUJdtX41SjsQeONOJuu4VgJIxjISinI9cOM/s1600/A2C7E249-C6A2-4B1D-AEA1-5266311AFF81.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixg7-pxZiqmcK7TkuUhDCSQV8AtCMfvmrr2RvfQCO5a_D3Voi3SRU23e8LW2ngX20uEyInRf8suA6ohjtg1qBGJA1OApS8Ybvd6l6YIAOSPUJdtX41SjsQeONOJuu4VgJIxjISinI9cOM/s640/A2C7E249-C6A2-4B1D-AEA1-5266311AFF81.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for me to scribble my "morning pages" in, first thing when I wake up.</td></tr>
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Last, but not least, I did a bit of work in my mindfulness-art-journal-agenda- thingy, based on prompts from <i>No Excuses Art Journaling</i>, by Gina Rossi Armfield.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyOTefqy68HIbB6AGSZSJYrHlHk_RhhX_mnI3t_2EhH61wu5mY6mhp4i7rtXrok11-NWIVBZcHFVbmdDgvnhmLhajSeruyutG61I6bynKxlTc1hK8i9zX80T5NBPMz9m5Ehyphenhyphen1xFk3ZTYM/s1600/3585C769-8CED-4D3E-AAD8-72DE4663133F_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyOTefqy68HIbB6AGSZSJYrHlHk_RhhX_mnI3t_2EhH61wu5mY6mhp4i7rtXrok11-NWIVBZcHFVbmdDgvnhmLhajSeruyutG61I6bynKxlTc1hK8i9zX80T5NBPMz9m5Ehyphenhyphen1xFk3ZTYM/s640/3585C769-8CED-4D3E-AAD8-72DE4663133F_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Couple of "Card Peeks"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmjLoBSB7Qy6ozi2Ojp_i45cRtnpVhuszCddUAiXt4eY3myMwZ9odgYnyxoVyshXfySykahkUIp54seP4dWId5QQoZnpEfjafAkn8np3o2IFNNp3txWw2UCS3CXoyCaEKZf1h8Oj0wUs/s1600/E90F7CB8-79EB-422A-BBA8-E325EADE7269_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmjLoBSB7Qy6ozi2Ojp_i45cRtnpVhuszCddUAiXt4eY3myMwZ9odgYnyxoVyshXfySykahkUIp54seP4dWId5QQoZnpEfjafAkn8np3o2IFNNp3txWw2UCS3CXoyCaEKZf1h8Oj0wUs/s640/E90F7CB8-79EB-422A-BBA8-E325EADE7269_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Favorite Quote Used For Lettering Practice</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx98tSlEGVbKtT8BS0GL1kPjZJKNg_YiajQ19KW6DTZeCvakE9x_BleZqL3F9nEg5mvpxCH2DjDDdCTjJGUo-vI7y2L8PmDNPQfZM1FYllXWLPEtjmzkHvij8nZxXk42CqtaDfF8Llj1Q/s1600/F125AFC7-4449-4B73-B312-69E38B840FDC.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx98tSlEGVbKtT8BS0GL1kPjZJKNg_YiajQ19KW6DTZeCvakE9x_BleZqL3F9nEg5mvpxCH2DjDDdCTjJGUo-vI7y2L8PmDNPQfZM1FYllXWLPEtjmzkHvij8nZxXk42CqtaDfF8Llj1Q/s640/F125AFC7-4449-4B73-B312-69E38B840FDC.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And A Couple Of Quotes That Came In My "Mindfulness" Agenda</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh83V4f4eZd68k5MxAlmpOKrHOLAtvBdLci6haJug0MgcSJgYH-ckmNwX4CbghxpBjZLrxqBmVtz_IBXM_oKzfEmcl_d-gk2Too69dYqXfNhz-WH48ExKB3z-SKKl3fTWeE4j-2k6lp-rs/s1600/AF8764A4-8D04-480A-8773-AA95C2D63668_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh83V4f4eZd68k5MxAlmpOKrHOLAtvBdLci6haJug0MgcSJgYH-ckmNwX4CbghxpBjZLrxqBmVtz_IBXM_oKzfEmcl_d-gk2Too69dYqXfNhz-WH48ExKB3z-SKKl3fTWeE4j-2k6lp-rs/s640/AF8764A4-8D04-480A-8773-AA95C2D63668_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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As my little sketch above says, considering what's going on in the world right now, things here could be a whole lot worse! Hope it's the same for you.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-48306291366751260502020-03-19T09:04:00.000-07:002020-03-19T09:04:31.219-07:00LIFE AS WE KNOW ITTwo weeks ago our biggest problem was this dang squirrel, who demolished an entire outdoor carpet last year, and a mop this spring. I'm guessing she may be a mama squirrel, building a nest or something? Surely she can't be digesting all this stuff!<br />
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Just a little over a week ago our best friends were here visiting, daughter Lex was planning to bring her kids over for a few days while her hubby volunteered at SXSW, and my sister and her hubby were planning to come for a visit right after that, so they could finally meet Miss Rowan.<br />
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We actually knew very little about this Novel Coronavirus at that time, so when SXSW decided to cancel everything, we thought they were just erring on the side of caution, and still weren't all that worried. Instead of just Lex and the kids coming over, the whole family came over last weekend. They still took Calvin to the children's play I had bought tickets for, and we went out to eat a couple of times, happy that the restaurants weren't packed for once. But by Sunday my sister had called to cancel their visit, and the morning news was sinking in. Hubby and I decided to stay home with Calvin, instead of going out to breakfast with Lex and Nate. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Magnetiles Are Awesome!</td></tr>
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The kids went home after breakfast, and the next morning we got a message saying Calvin woke up with a scratchy throat and a fever. Needless to say, we just about went nuts. They rushed him to the doctor, who tested him for strep (negative) and said there were absolutely no signs of anything respiratory going on, so he was almost positive it wasn't Corona. Almost.<br />
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By the next day his fever was gone, but schools and businesses everywhere were shutting down, and I haven't been out of the house since, except to take a walk in places where there were no people. We are taking it very, VERY seriously now, and I hope you are too.<br />
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On the plus side, this calming mindfulness journal I've been working in is turning out to be just what I needed!<br />
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Stay well, my friends! <br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-22509700657402765282020-03-11T06:31:00.000-07:002020-03-11T06:58:17.756-07:00SPRING BEGINNINGSIt started with a sleep-over, when it was finally warm enough to go out on the balcony and blow bubbles with Papa.<br />
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Then the first of our spring visitors showed up for a super fun family weekend.<br />
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Then there was a meet-up of the Tiny Dinner Club, where we got to sit outside and partake of this amazing charcuterie platter that our hosts' teen-aged daughter prepared for us.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jSp-5qj2MedRLvO0syLHtC4PThFnbEBlya1FHidQv-L8kJ_xwdzbupXCxuFHLUMSVD4y5Zw0cRzjjmnb9OMVsGM9vEtqjGt_aCCb8Sqb_ZIld6pQ1383tXNnj6E6qUIUdmqYrNi_VuI/s1600/B5DDDEDC-3E7D-4A45-889F-9A56198704BD_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jSp-5qj2MedRLvO0syLHtC4PThFnbEBlya1FHidQv-L8kJ_xwdzbupXCxuFHLUMSVD4y5Zw0cRzjjmnb9OMVsGM9vEtqjGt_aCCb8Sqb_ZIld6pQ1383tXNnj6E6qUIUdmqYrNi_VuI/s640/B5DDDEDC-3E7D-4A45-889F-9A56198704BD_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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And THEN, I finally had enough free time to sit down at my art table and <i>play!</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmjgOm7kipSezzWviECjrBOoh-W5jO62yD-PXZB4xrNIdBGSB60v0ZYcIj1U-gHxS5qqpMtbRom5XURU4vt6BODOttRqFQ-Nx0hmcfk1aJ9Xnp_kjd0wpWijzL4OqGXnFrjV3ll8Xfy-8/s1600/CBB677A7-C53A-4C69-BC79-7FEA8BAA904C.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmjgOm7kipSezzWviECjrBOoh-W5jO62yD-PXZB4xrNIdBGSB60v0ZYcIj1U-gHxS5qqpMtbRom5XURU4vt6BODOttRqFQ-Nx0hmcfk1aJ9Xnp_kjd0wpWijzL4OqGXnFrjV3ll8Xfy-8/s640/CBB677A7-C53A-4C69-BC79-7FEA8BAA904C.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
<i> </i> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPBcg1VpSjKzomPWENxHKcOBCl3rkXweHLqLP7n7Uuv_rcCT2N8FAuwaKHvgsyyRxwcPjEGjadkiEZr6m_C43jov1hMgRkP0p8pftWPr7plLtXaiKHL-RpCITA3OI-IEQE7dnSgQQso5E/s1600/F82F6835-7FDD-4268-BCB1-A5EEFE886A14_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPBcg1VpSjKzomPWENxHKcOBCl3rkXweHLqLP7n7Uuv_rcCT2N8FAuwaKHvgsyyRxwcPjEGjadkiEZr6m_C43jov1hMgRkP0p8pftWPr7plLtXaiKHL-RpCITA3OI-IEQE7dnSgQQso5E/s640/F82F6835-7FDD-4268-BCB1-A5EEFE886A14_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Spring Color Scheme</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwI-SG-WCGkTGRNN0cG3uIykOdbq36ml86FLm7DlTpLEwhwbCWfYqW3ORZiRT_EjZEJEjyGo9IY9XIoEY9dwoP7awQ7VGz3tzqtfjS1q_KOUHbt5i1ZOmCuROesWYQIM3mAxhOOF4HNbo/s1600/998C432E-8E4E-47FB-9646-08E657412D17.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwI-SG-WCGkTGRNN0cG3uIykOdbq36ml86FLm7DlTpLEwhwbCWfYqW3ORZiRT_EjZEJEjyGo9IY9XIoEY9dwoP7awQ7VGz3tzqtfjS1q_KOUHbt5i1ZOmCuROesWYQIM3mAxhOOF4HNbo/s640/998C432E-8E4E-47FB-9646-08E657412D17.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Collage</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5kI1kmvQGNlIbEEk1g0Xpyv1Xdv_GoQz6S08ccWVvI3wGRBUetVEQ5yeymzkwIpATrT2mrMbkYO16VqgZ3qehJn6IgsJYWFmoNyfrvZP57OFr8qAfGWD-ZNFEewPzQIAEL8iB6Lqfp5U/s1600/8ED73AD4-DFA0-460B-A17D-FC8AAB332AE5.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5kI1kmvQGNlIbEEk1g0Xpyv1Xdv_GoQz6S08ccWVvI3wGRBUetVEQ5yeymzkwIpATrT2mrMbkYO16VqgZ3qehJn6IgsJYWFmoNyfrvZP57OFr8qAfGWD-ZNFEewPzQIAEL8iB6Lqfp5U/s640/8ED73AD4-DFA0-460B-A17D-FC8AAB332AE5.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Few Butterfly Wing Sketches</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcw8AaP77kTg4ucUkEovnqqghtUpGr5uaRNz60pWzY6dfCvc2Zle0u2O0rsgqKTNE1UfyYqQh3r7GAzDT91b2Pl1oHa4RU0ga-EYtTfRDr88NuuNwDk2vveMwjBrMgYm3XDZgLfCDqb_g/s1600/B478E8C8-8C46-4632-AC8F-D3C630E93C20_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcw8AaP77kTg4ucUkEovnqqghtUpGr5uaRNz60pWzY6dfCvc2Zle0u2O0rsgqKTNE1UfyYqQh3r7GAzDT91b2Pl1oHa4RU0ga-EYtTfRDr88NuuNwDk2vveMwjBrMgYm3XDZgLfCDqb_g/s640/B478E8C8-8C46-4632-AC8F-D3C630E93C20_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My First Card Peek For The Month. (In case you didn't know, those reddish cork-shaped things appearing on the Prickly Pear Cacti right now are called Tunas)</td></tr>
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Am I happy about this new virus scare? No, of course not! Do we introverts mind being forced to stay at home and read good books and play with our art supplies all day? Weeellll, not so much... <br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-92045123449900621862020-02-26T08:05:00.000-08:002020-02-26T19:47:04.877-08:00AND SO IT CONTINUES...Long ago, when I had that very first brain fart -- about something I later came to call "seasonality" -- it was simply the realization that life was better when you made the most of its seasons. Back then we were still big-city-suburbanites, and it was mostly about how I decorated my home and entertained, and that when I incorporated seasonal touches into these activities, I was much less likely to get bored with them, or with everything I owned, making me want to go out and buy a bunch of new stuff I really didn't need.<br />
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Then we migrated to the Texas Hill Country, and it turned into something else altogether. I started reading books like <a href="http://animalvegetablemiracle.com/">Animal Vegetable Miracle</a>, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Good-Life-Nearings-Self-Sufficient-Living/dp/0805209700">The Good Life</a>, and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Reasonable-Life-Toward-Simpler-Existence/dp/0920256368">A Reasonable Life</a>, and I learned about the Slow Food and Farm to Table movements. Then "seasonality" became less about stuff, and more about how I gardened and what I ate, watching the seasons change outside my treehouse windows, and wondering what kind of world we were bequeathing our kids and grandkids.<br />
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Twenty five or so years down the line from that first light bulb moment, I am a much different person. I spend much less time entertaining and decorating, and my hubby has taken over the gardening. I still love to cook and eat what is in season and grown nearby, but mostly I spend my time playing with those grandkids, reading, journaling and <i>occasionally</i>, drawing or painting. Is it any surprise then, that Seasonality has followed me here as well?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM4PKUdfdSzPCOK9X9dMdmU9CwvkVGgvC7ADR9YHoBVAgro_qXpMPb6j7H58Mk2FTNcHbKuOwmbfZ6CmOE9yuHcrrYzj9UYYtHiLiqaZcAL5A-Fz9DSsITdGB4lhWFgpJ8eFm0N6k11Ro/s1600/51AD8762-FD39-40E7-ACB6-2B32804A9AE5_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM4PKUdfdSzPCOK9X9dMdmU9CwvkVGgvC7ADR9YHoBVAgro_qXpMPb6j7H58Mk2FTNcHbKuOwmbfZ6CmOE9yuHcrrYzj9UYYtHiLiqaZcAL5A-Fz9DSsITdGB4lhWFgpJ8eFm0N6k11Ro/s640/51AD8762-FD39-40E7-ACB6-2B32804A9AE5_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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I'm pretty sure that, back in December, I told you about grabbing this planner at Costco just because I needed one, then discovering that it was actually a mindfulness journal. But did I mention that a few days later, I was digging through my art shelves looking for something, and stumbled upon a book I had bought a couple of years ago, then forgot all about?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje2p98vAOH4s4Jr_sP3GSrWMv4KWyTGycyCKveNim7cO4c9oHkp5Xzn3d3mmN5X0Q0H6aMXapT6PqbtmbvnVifc4d9Vb4qQv6_gSbR9KbjfzYQPxWqkoxOZKrXYzSP1pmdW1Hz9y4_SB4/s1600/F4C61BE8-1464-4509-ADA5-C86981454239_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje2p98vAOH4s4Jr_sP3GSrWMv4KWyTGycyCKveNim7cO4c9oHkp5Xzn3d3mmN5X0Q0H6aMXapT6PqbtmbvnVifc4d9Vb4qQv6_gSbR9KbjfzYQPxWqkoxOZKrXYzSP1pmdW1Hz9y4_SB4/s640/F4C61BE8-1464-4509-ADA5-C86981454239_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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When synchronicity knocks, I listen, and it was clearly telling me I needed to use the techniques from <i>that</i> book to develop an artful journaling habit in the other one.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyUbhGGPUmd3OiS_OLxIuQvRpIx2xRbTI5vTBKA8mcjZEtG2NjjzFRhsOE12qrWGmZ2NFcuRVwKLUfUOlZO4YOuD2eFWGtvXWXfzAvbRlm06ezcwiJDR3PqNEVxN1PPvc5W393FmyQub8/s1600/2B3FED37-54F8-402A-A7D7-69B8BAB33DED.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyUbhGGPUmd3OiS_OLxIuQvRpIx2xRbTI5vTBKA8mcjZEtG2NjjzFRhsOE12qrWGmZ2NFcuRVwKLUfUOlZO4YOuD2eFWGtvXWXfzAvbRlm06ezcwiJDR3PqNEVxN1PPvc5W393FmyQub8/s640/2B3FED37-54F8-402A-A7D7-69B8BAB33DED.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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First step was to copy the yearly insert and paste it inside the cover, to remind me of my daily, weekly and monthly assignments.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSxMZ38zBXSuhGSxBYDVWjObNH9bevJQjBEjEstjoGz9-egWjl4DubOJB7P3nkDCB_DNa4vyj5xjmbSQhN3W2mxTxO3cLRmdW2fO4ZWF9aeEksafppeANsghaNwkLEDqDcaQK_IhR56S0/s1600/B9904370-AF36-423E-9BCC-697AEFD367BD.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSxMZ38zBXSuhGSxBYDVWjObNH9bevJQjBEjEstjoGz9-egWjl4DubOJB7P3nkDCB_DNa4vyj5xjmbSQhN3W2mxTxO3cLRmdW2fO4ZWF9aeEksafppeANsghaNwkLEDqDcaQK_IhR56S0/s640/B9904370-AF36-423E-9BCC-697AEFD367BD.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My First Assignment</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO2TFl94iPAr9RLUKHgeBblh3PVYMRtpYXTFpOZfXY8rOvpJ4zIxLSmP1fRFSph3ug7CgQS7Jl-ofv3yAUvEZc8L6oH2FQLMjA37N26Si6RepX0d7HhnMcwxx9v5bsiPQV_7qJhAyoEA/s1600/B5FC4B23-15CC-45AD-A70E-DEAF20A3789C_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO2TFl94iPAr9RLUKHgeBblh3PVYMRtpYXTFpOZfXY8rOvpJ4zIxLSmP1fRFSph3ug7CgQS7Jl-ofv3yAUvEZc8L6oH2FQLMjA37N26Si6RepX0d7HhnMcwxx9v5bsiPQV_7qJhAyoEA/s640/B5FC4B23-15CC-45AD-A70E-DEAF20A3789C_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Result</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I really did intend to follow their instructions, but then my hand, of its own accord, reached out and grabbed something that was laying nearby, and I knew that was the only image I needed to fill my altar -- the place I go every fall "to catch my breath".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKgp_Aj7qzLlrFdPVhAOr0smvg4Sf8aRc1I4CwvqU3FwhrfD6FCywt9uciQscb9_iFzJ3AhjX6kSOW_p_5hfHg2lxcrFLD9JcJxfWlUIRdwLLvZ5SFuzIL9p3HPaBOr-7ok08iEnD-MI/s1600/FE9F84BA-0D75-44B4-8D53-EAE6FD6317C0_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKgp_Aj7qzLlrFdPVhAOr0smvg4Sf8aRc1I4CwvqU3FwhrfD6FCywt9uciQscb9_iFzJ3AhjX6kSOW_p_5hfHg2lxcrFLD9JcJxfWlUIRdwLLvZ5SFuzIL9p3HPaBOr-7ok08iEnD-MI/s640/FE9F84BA-0D75-44B4-8D53-EAE6FD6317C0_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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Instead of New Years Resolutions, we were asked to make a vision board showing things we wanted more, or less, of in our lives in the year to come.<br />
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I had a lot of fun prepping my journal according to the No Excuses instructions -- adding things like envelopes for collecting collage fodder in, and sheets of water color paper on which to do our weekly "card peep" sketches. I spent so much time searching for the right colors of washi tape and envelopes to match, in seasonal colors (hmmmm...) that I ran out of time to finish all four of that month's card peeps. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRQb7bbCN_CDeyV4Rgo3J0BSj9A7knYMjiu2aERPAehFYdcMPrzy6rRn1CxxVXnUd2BHyQCk_ytm_bgU21MK_nXIoMG_mCDbR7MfMvB-Er3ltnwdTRHs215zL4f7YNZSdRZ_vMEE73198/s1600/4A2F8439-8BEE-4D92-A508-69C6FEFAF4D8_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRQb7bbCN_CDeyV4Rgo3J0BSj9A7knYMjiu2aERPAehFYdcMPrzy6rRn1CxxVXnUd2BHyQCk_ytm_bgU21MK_nXIoMG_mCDbR7MfMvB-Er3ltnwdTRHs215zL4f7YNZSdRZ_vMEE73198/s640/4A2F8439-8BEE-4D92-A508-69C6FEFAF4D8_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So Wintery!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOidw4ZvZTiqFR-SxEWATM6DHGAa8BXetrM8my0iiqHHNSZxmGNaC59QgO_1lmpFI9Pzn6DzjWumhZgADlfQZmYJybqFxz1lwpn5rIk9XB6NktgOLONSNF0GrnUyY1jVR6C8xyJ5o8T7g/s1600/4795A080-6071-4ACE-A762-4565445426BE_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOidw4ZvZTiqFR-SxEWATM6DHGAa8BXetrM8my0iiqHHNSZxmGNaC59QgO_1lmpFI9Pzn6DzjWumhZgADlfQZmYJybqFxz1lwpn5rIk9XB6NktgOLONSNF0GrnUyY1jVR6C8xyJ5o8T7g/s640/4795A080-6071-4ACE-A762-4565445426BE_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the many meditative coloring pages provided in my planner.</td></tr>
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One of the No Excuses daily instructions was to track the weather, while my agenda had this handy little chart for tracking your mood each day. I ignored them both and turned that mood chart into a food chart, where I could track what was in season and available at the farmers' market.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TtfTQY6ODQGJADPtgb0lsfrlCiN5DlWySbgG0NNkA0AnNi7prHi3Hn0vrHkc1jE_2OR0KSIa_fr87wAbqF4slRNGcMlMRThTSOUScfHmln5pn7v0s8ZyiL4afG_Rri8ykN3Emq-HH_8/s1600/CFB8EEEE-5A36-463C-A425-16F75B4A9639_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TtfTQY6ODQGJADPtgb0lsfrlCiN5DlWySbgG0NNkA0AnNi7prHi3Hn0vrHkc1jE_2OR0KSIa_fr87wAbqF4slRNGcMlMRThTSOUScfHmln5pn7v0s8ZyiL4afG_Rri8ykN3Emq-HH_8/s640/CFB8EEEE-5A36-463C-A425-16F75B4A9639_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Tm61WG-WRKavoJvS78GSMwdaOjBeu2GZsK_U5pf0uOWWC2VAAvj-DQ45u86YiiW1tQTc3lBQIZGl-hHN_z5thR4cVJBGF6kIqboyb-8D99NEEFqsUhNXieNzJb88T0j6dty9QFRhFYc/s1600/CE6E7E2F-55FE-454B-B9A0-037E1D6547FB_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Tm61WG-WRKavoJvS78GSMwdaOjBeu2GZsK_U5pf0uOWWC2VAAvj-DQ45u86YiiW1tQTc3lBQIZGl-hHN_z5thR4cVJBGF6kIqboyb-8D99NEEFqsUhNXieNzJb88T0j6dty9QFRhFYc/s640/CE6E7E2F-55FE-454B-B9A0-037E1D6547FB_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5OHM2SZfPDhxdX5QBrwEaYjKq3U5wkVC0oVstN4J-t565zHk8H8nEgh1HQV3WCW-J3uVA6Qcd1OlkSESvq4lTsxKxct5VTBVBW1os1UiYQGpHGJz5PU0o2Cg7_psBmADLeZ1cmFPCNsU/s1600/6E8BF004-5ACD-43C0-98A0-2C5AC62ED30C_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5OHM2SZfPDhxdX5QBrwEaYjKq3U5wkVC0oVstN4J-t565zHk8H8nEgh1HQV3WCW-J3uVA6Qcd1OlkSESvq4lTsxKxct5VTBVBW1os1UiYQGpHGJz5PU0o2Cg7_psBmADLeZ1cmFPCNsU/s640/6E8BF004-5ACD-43C0-98A0-2C5AC62ED30C_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Beginning Assignment For February</td></tr>
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The collage was supposed to be of lots of February-ish images torn from magazines, to use as inspiration. Again I disobeyed, and used my collection of colorful painted papers to pay homage to the first of the asparagus spears that were poking their heads up in my garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN4UBtYNT8fwyiVGXq5W-Znwge2fEyM2Ul_aIXcJsIlkBrFlDpjyeBXY6FgLveti9OwduJoRGulFBBW6vbcbGo0myz_gxBOp7m7Vj27GLglH6uQ3yGykjPYpruqb5TAIW_hLi6MC6bGL4/s1600/61ACD0D2-BEF8-46CA-83F1-72144F69673A_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN4UBtYNT8fwyiVGXq5W-Znwge2fEyM2Ul_aIXcJsIlkBrFlDpjyeBXY6FgLveti9OwduJoRGulFBBW6vbcbGo0myz_gxBOp7m7Vj27GLglH6uQ3yGykjPYpruqb5TAIW_hLi6MC6bGL4/s640/61ACD0D2-BEF8-46CA-83F1-72144F69673A_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I actually managed to complete all four card peeks this month...and, of course, they were all about seasonal things!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9b78wvVruaC8HWyqENt61BWsorQqP_UxrUpfzWRAv2LhXMkBGiijdrz0eWGwT1LLETIv-QPnwFxbhRTF3aWE5_vRYU2RVh3TXeNoHUOj3mBLHJoeTDpmxmmkpJD-C6S_OZd36l3-ckCg/s1600/AB0A29DF-9837-4F8A-B5BD-F0E772AAD7A5_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9b78wvVruaC8HWyqENt61BWsorQqP_UxrUpfzWRAv2LhXMkBGiijdrz0eWGwT1LLETIv-QPnwFxbhRTF3aWE5_vRYU2RVh3TXeNoHUOj3mBLHJoeTDpmxmmkpJD-C6S_OZd36l3-ckCg/s640/AB0A29DF-9837-4F8A-B5BD-F0E772AAD7A5_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0Bz-MXqEyv6HgBLjp81OEUL_FVl3HwUSm-7SmctpaSavOp3JNWEIq7HPP3aUbDqIM9Fsp2v9qmHHsdUFYX8FBSXQ5R9kXY2MKzhl7Zruj-1qUYYaNv6LWbZe1Q6CzHVGwT17BkcviT4/s1600/9D4E793A-31C0-4048-9945-05BE16C40574_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0Bz-MXqEyv6HgBLjp81OEUL_FVl3HwUSm-7SmctpaSavOp3JNWEIq7HPP3aUbDqIM9Fsp2v9qmHHsdUFYX8FBSXQ5R9kXY2MKzhl7Zruj-1qUYYaNv6LWbZe1Q6CzHVGwT17BkcviT4/s640/9D4E793A-31C0-4048-9945-05BE16C40574_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSDj_B5o4Lv7S5KzmCu1MNX9zJyS7Pn0dDVDd3pM0aWRY1IA6M2hayGJEbzNGvULAEmymhBOQp8Xtt3ow_HxUceT89ghUjtOasXk5pB6hKdUzSGLxUAcSpiu_HADS78dbN3XXB2TJWAU/s1600/CBFE8C6A-74EB-494E-9750-A3FEBD5EA2EB_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSDj_B5o4Lv7S5KzmCu1MNX9zJyS7Pn0dDVDd3pM0aWRY1IA6M2hayGJEbzNGvULAEmymhBOQp8Xtt3ow_HxUceT89ghUjtOasXk5pB6hKdUzSGLxUAcSpiu_HADS78dbN3XXB2TJWAU/s640/CBFE8C6A-74EB-494E-9750-A3FEBD5EA2EB_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YVzLT1ungNQ1v3qkxI3NerTbfnEr-HUygf133AxEQtyS1jtezFP63IIINZRAwuvTGDnf4-tTB7SfQ6GbNTFFirR2dKN9Pd1flCyTGQM815HvzEzbdUo49jLeoafiZBOQ4ypuf3gpFq4/s1600/E9099EE2-586A-42CB-A683-772148A79930_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YVzLT1ungNQ1v3qkxI3NerTbfnEr-HUygf133AxEQtyS1jtezFP63IIINZRAwuvTGDnf4-tTB7SfQ6GbNTFFirR2dKN9Pd1flCyTGQM815HvzEzbdUo49jLeoafiZBOQ4ypuf3gpFq4/s640/E9099EE2-586A-42CB-A683-772148A79930_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWHYjt5br-crsaNb5wFeUITC_HJkQbtd9V4dgBG2DPeQ0Op2Q9cQq5WTLZnqi_FWA-NUBO94LYbuNPhvO3xZ3Kw0XmXIYqoH9k-ZHYLP3cs8WU-bEIt5NGxU3zcPGwGvzUgqRhUOeKukI/s1600/5D59AE39-BD77-4391-90B5-3846AF7796B7_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWHYjt5br-crsaNb5wFeUITC_HJkQbtd9V4dgBG2DPeQ0Op2Q9cQq5WTLZnqi_FWA-NUBO94LYbuNPhvO3xZ3Kw0XmXIYqoH9k-ZHYLP3cs8WU-bEIt5NGxU3zcPGwGvzUgqRhUOeKukI/s640/5D59AE39-BD77-4391-90B5-3846AF7796B7_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Version Of A Love Letter To Myself</td></tr>
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So, as I said, when synchronicity knocks, I listen! What was it telling me? Perhaps to slow down and pay attention? To spend more time on art and writing and sharing? To remember that life is better with Seasonality in it?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzFQ0yzhk_d-uLbHQob8wtL2gcIjMYbdA4Yuk8BryIV5tqoeUdJVkwu8ZkVZJehkQ7F0mdfjsQdHG6opRYcxxqG7Uuj88YJguZo_KpFOOE-W_UEKVDaqFvVdJi3n7WNveylh81kAxG6I/s1600/8B95813B-CE31-45C3-8E47-0359042C676E_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzFQ0yzhk_d-uLbHQob8wtL2gcIjMYbdA4Yuk8BryIV5tqoeUdJVkwu8ZkVZJehkQ7F0mdfjsQdHG6opRYcxxqG7Uuj88YJguZo_KpFOOE-W_UEKVDaqFvVdJi3n7WNveylh81kAxG6I/s640/8B95813B-CE31-45C3-8E47-0359042C676E_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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I still don't know for sure. All I <i>do</i> know is, it's gonna be fun y'all!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-75367521934074449082020-01-27T08:49:00.000-08:002020-01-27T08:49:32.065-08:00THE BIRTHDAY WRAP-UPOn day six of our "seven days of squeedunk" celebration, Hubby opened a package with a new puffy vest in it, and a note that said "Brrrrr. Better bundle up, there's a blizzard headed your way!" A DQ Blizzard, that is.<br />
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Then, on his <i>final</i> day, I was a little bit cruel. I told him it was BBQ and Tattoos day. I could tell he was fretting a bit all through lunch, but he told me later that if that was what I really wanted, he would have gone through with it. The <i>actual</i> goal was just to get him a new turquoise ear stud for his one pierced ear, and I'd been told this tattoo parlor sold them individually, instead of in the usual pairs. Unfortunately, they don't have anything for "traditionally pierced ears", just for larger holes, like expanders and stuff. Luckily, I had done my research in advance, and was carrying a nice set of turquoise studs in my purse. I stuck with the BBQ and Tattoo theme, however, because I just like the way it sounded, and it was kind of fun to see him sweat!<br />
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And, then it was on to this gal's birthday celebration!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_YrDOj61fEgTilEI8hnvtm2D74NoCHEX1Cdw7IhKT5nT4e2-YMjzE4PVs31PdxXcK_rzGLMGPEoBr7IFD383FavhWebAfgF1uUcxHd9iJ5cpbXKKWHcl3RsMcxD-jRDZkxU3oxL4PdM/s1600/3FE53742-87DA-48FE-A701-294E8E4E2E84.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_YrDOj61fEgTilEI8hnvtm2D74NoCHEX1Cdw7IhKT5nT4e2-YMjzE4PVs31PdxXcK_rzGLMGPEoBr7IFD383FavhWebAfgF1uUcxHd9iJ5cpbXKKWHcl3RsMcxD-jRDZkxU3oxL4PdM/s640/3FE53742-87DA-48FE-A701-294E8E4E2E84.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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I asked her if she preferred a big family celebration, or a mother-daughter thing -- like a good chick flick, or maybe high tea. She chose the mother-daughter thing. But, when she told me that where she really wanted to go was to <a href="https://loroaustin.com/">Loro</a>, I had to say "Sorry babe, we can <i>not</i> go there without your father. He's been dying to try it!" Fortunately, she was delighted to have him along.<br />
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Loro is the love child resulting from the collaboration between two of Austin's premier chef's -- the guy behind Franklin's Barbecue, and the one behind Uchi's. We went at 3:00 since our son had warned us that it can be a madhouse at normal dining times. Lucky for us, their happy hour starts at 2:00, and you can make quite the feast from the happy hour menu alone, and for a lot less money!<br />
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Start by walking up to that bar counter and placing your order, then sit down at one of their big communal tables, a cozy booth, or head out to the patio. We feasted on the following, though I may not get all their names straight.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWIEV2XYjoDrZL_A_SQ_oJhkVVtIMJvG0-cqztRAAeRNYpzkKoJB7wAoWobNEuyvzcVZ3s0H8VDYjdbb02GTUJhvrE9JVF31Ej98G9b-PcsE8uowwcoAxWP9LblRVll4kYQ0DTsLIuw4/s1600/34866806-7F55-4E22-BA95-F18F9D5C5CEB.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWIEV2XYjoDrZL_A_SQ_oJhkVVtIMJvG0-cqztRAAeRNYpzkKoJB7wAoWobNEuyvzcVZ3s0H8VDYjdbb02GTUJhvrE9JVF31Ej98G9b-PcsE8uowwcoAxWP9LblRVll4kYQ0DTsLIuw4/s640/34866806-7F55-4E22-BA95-F18F9D5C5CEB.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kettle Corn With Brisket Burnt Ends</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFW6hah22EeT5s2fUk1q70I6u2y8DFVqyDKwniVn74pTBfQ_oqZOpyAIB-8z5-mwMn-HzjM-RwHbr7ZZpysV0yrovJPa0tq3uXpdp9Ey78o1ckFvVTxaBVVkwZ034U_uR1zvZjgJCieQ/s1600/72FC2594-64EF-4174-B8D6-C469BDD8A757.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlFW6hah22EeT5s2fUk1q70I6u2y8DFVqyDKwniVn74pTBfQ_oqZOpyAIB-8z5-mwMn-HzjM-RwHbr7ZZpysV0yrovJPa0tq3uXpdp9Ey78o1ckFvVTxaBVVkwZ034U_uR1zvZjgJCieQ/s640/72FC2594-64EF-4174-B8D6-C469BDD8A757.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chicken Karaage With Aioli Dipping Sauce -- To Die For!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNeIl3D94egQESQpk8BR1M2MV81-1zvAdFr2xvR1ZYbl9fDS679Mz_uWuT4y7jLPpUdBON3afurKwPONEEzA_6q1EGas0VAgUipMsl8LhYxdwghcPRGyoRqrP4lt3QN7LOnxQv6XEfQWY/s1600/876AAEED-EA3D-4401-A259-A1AF5CB24F5A.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNeIl3D94egQESQpk8BR1M2MV81-1zvAdFr2xvR1ZYbl9fDS679Mz_uWuT4y7jLPpUdBON3afurKwPONEEzA_6q1EGas0VAgUipMsl8LhYxdwghcPRGyoRqrP4lt3QN7LOnxQv6XEfQWY/s640/876AAEED-EA3D-4401-A259-A1AF5CB24F5A.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pork Sausage</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1orC0tMh3XH8Om3oncTgyuRAuG08i7zn4sbnOD1UQOgrdL10L43h3y3p05HztWELgmF4WZ9BkjOSnIHTzjxrrk7Opw17zM_pDx4-Zwv3YHKRWziyV_GoKmVUvwQZ0NiikcrpMn38AfEU/s1600/6773A57E-6251-4B32-ABEB-F50E00D7ED4F.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1orC0tMh3XH8Om3oncTgyuRAuG08i7zn4sbnOD1UQOgrdL10L43h3y3p05HztWELgmF4WZ9BkjOSnIHTzjxrrk7Opw17zM_pDx4-Zwv3YHKRWziyV_GoKmVUvwQZ0NiikcrpMn38AfEU/s640/6773A57E-6251-4B32-ABEB-F50E00D7ED4F.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brisket Sandwich</td></tr>
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I think they liked it!<br />
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So much more to try...<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-20920002264277384412020-01-14T06:55:00.000-08:002020-01-14T06:55:01.069-08:00SEVEN DAYS OF SQUEEDUNK: DAY 5I knew there was going to be a conflict on Day 5 of Hubby's week-long birthday celebration.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxCTSBvo_TVQ_qdEV2dDmz5TxaP9cRKV17H0y-lhGwQcPPhNPK5zLEL8xOC6FK7PAAKlejMEUZ7yIvwvno8jlUSdiIyGl6q2rqS7eU9C0jLZ2YK-63DSOBNITVWM2uMiInuZ8ydzSt4w/s1600/4DC3CEFF-5EB5-4B8A-BEB4-AD4E625B89DE.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxCTSBvo_TVQ_qdEV2dDmz5TxaP9cRKV17H0y-lhGwQcPPhNPK5zLEL8xOC6FK7PAAKlejMEUZ7yIvwvno8jlUSdiIyGl6q2rqS7eU9C0jLZ2YK-63DSOBNITVWM2uMiInuZ8ydzSt4w/s640/4DC3CEFF-5EB5-4B8A-BEB4-AD4E625B89DE.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Gold Dust Boutique</td></tr>
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For Christmas, in my further efforts to shop small and local, and to choose experiences over stuff, I gave both my girls a stack-pack of little boxes, each one containing a small gift certificate to one of their favorite shops here in Wimberley, along with a card explaining that my gift to them was a Lady's Day Out, starting with lunch at The Leaning Pear, then going to each of these shops to spend their certificates. Since the day they chose happened to be Day 5 of Hubby's celebration, we secretly arranged for son Austin to accompany his wife down to Wimberley. John's card that day announced that it was <i>Have Fun With Your Son Day</i>, and included a gift card to their favorite local brewery. They also had lunch at <a href="https://creeksidecookers.com/">Creekside Cookers</a>, then came back to the house to play with the new VR set that John thought our son was just loaning him, but which ended up being a gift! I don't think he missed my participation that day <i>one iota</i>.<br />
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We gals had a pretty great day as well!<br />
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They both agreed, though for different reasons (Lex is a tea lover, and Areej is a scientist who is very picky about what goes into her face and body products) that <a href="http://www.theherbroom.com/">The Herb Room</a> was definitely their favorite shop.<br />
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But, then we ended up at <a href="http://thewoodenspoonyogurt.com/">The Wooden Spoon,</a> our frozen yogurt shop, and that may have changed their minds. One of the flavor options that day was sea salt caramel, to which I added Butterfinger and Reeses bits. I'm still moaning at the thought of it!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-63552311971142961512020-01-06T07:13:00.000-08:002020-01-06T07:13:06.494-08:00SEVEN DAYS OF SQUEEDUNK: DAYS 3 and 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hubby's holding one of several humorous signs sent by his big brother.</td></tr>
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Well, we weren't very far into Day 2's Jammy adventure before we got a call that required my getting dressed and hopping into the car, but at least it was for a <i>happy</i> reason. The Wimberley Cafe called to say "Guess what? We're gonna have that apple pie for you today after all, and it'll be ready in 45 minutes!" I was going to leave John home in his jammies while I ran to get it, but he said "Ah well, we might as well both go, and have brunch while we're there." Great idea Snookems! We did, however, come straight back home afterwards, put our jammies back on, and spent the rest of the day binge-watching a new Netflix series called Virgin River. And, of course, there was pie!<br />
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Day 3 ran into snags as well (do you see a pattern forming here?). It was supposed to be "Hanging at the Bookstore Day", using up a gift card I have on the both of us and spending some time in the cafe with our purchases and a hot beverage. However, when I got the call that daughter Lex had developed a case of mastitis, and was running a fever -- on the day her hubby was supposed to head back to work -- we decided instead to go grab Mr. Goobs and bring him to our house for a sleepover, so that she and Rowan could get the rest they needed.<br />
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If you have grandkids, or kids, or even pets, you know that the first one is the practice kid. And, ever since Calvin outgrew sleeping in a crib, where we could keep him contained, getting him to go to bed, and stay there, has been a problem. We'd tried every different combination of location and who he slept with, if anyone, until we finally figured out that the key was to wear him to a frazzle first. This time we took him on his first hike at Blue Hole Park, let him play on the playground there, then took him to Wimberley Cafe for his favorite dinner, their grilled cheese sandwich.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UFxCT3GxcQRVmDtE5DAwIjqMiFsTUy93aOK03D_PfNdJXirdXWFJjZA5R5we2rqDZePHClOoD-ouXvCcU0SoxHD_bEJKKKSLzSixZqyJ0FAAb3s40efCueb8Z0MlqbbyuccoN2ZUEUk/s1600/48FD1D21-AD34-4CE3-84D3-BAE3F5A55091.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UFxCT3GxcQRVmDtE5DAwIjqMiFsTUy93aOK03D_PfNdJXirdXWFJjZA5R5we2rqDZePHClOoD-ouXvCcU0SoxHD_bEJKKKSLzSixZqyJ0FAAb3s40efCueb8Z0MlqbbyuccoN2ZUEUk/s640/48FD1D21-AD34-4CE3-84D3-BAE3F5A55091.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">While I was waiting for the bill, Papa took Calvin next door to the new candy store, to try his first ever Tootsie Roll Pop. He liked it!</td></tr>
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Soon as we got home we all got into our jammies and brushed our teeth, pulled open the sofa bed in the living room, and started up a good movie I had recorded for him. This time it was Paddington, and he was sawing logs within fifteen minutes, and stayed that way for 10 or 11 hours, never even noticing when Papa and I snuck back into our own bed! We started the movie up again the next morning, and boy, was he tickled to death when he discovered that I actually had some Paddington-style marmalade in my fridge for him to have with his breakfast, thanks to a dear friend down in Louisiana who is in his 90s, but still manages to make a batch every year using kumquats picked from his own trees!<br />
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So, day four was <i>supposed</i> to be our biggest adventure of the week, but when Hubby discovered that our rain tank was almost empty (we never got the fall rains that usually replenish it after our harsh summers) he had to call and order some water to be delivered, and take whatever day they gave him, since we couldn't risk running out altogether. So, instead of the adventure, he got to sit at home all day long, and of course, they didn't come until the very end of the day.<br />
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We're <i>really</i> on a roll now!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-57853670368820074702020-01-01T06:10:00.000-08:002020-01-01T06:10:49.019-08:00SEVEN DAYS OF SQUEEDUNK: Days One and Two<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpMa7ygN4twIuI5XW1IkRo2uwy0lSheWqZk4lKB2nHpOrYeI1BEsXftIZejgc_Y6QsX875cYMynWoVer6xhrJN-_wCvDQfT6TxfC6_01Y20887LPaBk8Cw4x79DwRuaFFd9N64_Q3uSo/s1600/F194CC59-5D5A-460D-BB0F-1CE6B6CBDC6B.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpMa7ygN4twIuI5XW1IkRo2uwy0lSheWqZk4lKB2nHpOrYeI1BEsXftIZejgc_Y6QsX875cYMynWoVer6xhrJN-_wCvDQfT6TxfC6_01Y20887LPaBk8Cw4x79DwRuaFFd9N64_Q3uSo/s640/F194CC59-5D5A-460D-BB0F-1CE6B6CBDC6B.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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My Hubby is a New Year's baby -- first one born in Kermit, Texas in 1950, and therefore recipient of lots of good loot from local merchants. That was probably his last great birthday.<br />
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His own mother <i>forgot</i> his first birthday, amidst the aftermath of Christmas. I have never done that, but it does tend to be sort of an afterthought -- an "Oh yeah, I need to come up with something else fast" kind of thing. But not this year! This year I gave it lots of thought, and decided that a 70th birthday deserves seven days-worth of celebration. So, each day he is finding a new birthday card, and possibly a package, at his breakfast table spot, containing clues about what to expect that day. Yesterday was the first day, and it did not go well. That was Choose-Your-Birthday-Treat Day, and out of all the suggestions of things I could bake for him, he opted for one of Wimberley Cafe's yummy apple pies. Easy Peasy! Or so I thought. When I got there they told me they had just sold their last one, but they let me order one for pickup this morning. However, later that afternoon I got a phone message saying "Sorry, not before Thursday." Never mind! Instead, he got one slice of chocolate silk pie with his dinner at Hays City, and the poor guy had to share it with me. Probably for the best though, when you think of all the Christmas treats we've just indulged in.<br />
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Day Two, an official "Jammy Day", is starting off much better. He loves his new Rick and Morty PJs, and already has a new TV series picked out for us to binge-watch in our jammies. Who knows? We may even get around to taking down the Christmas tree! Or, we may just take a nice long nap, or read some good books...<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-89224551344536120332019-12-27T06:19:00.000-08:002019-12-27T06:19:13.869-08:00IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEARSix adults, two children, and one dog, for three days, in a two bedroom house? Believe it or not, we actually had a blast.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His Doing, Not Mine!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wiggle Butts!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Only Oculus VR could get John Lane dancing, by himself, with a roomful of people staring and laughing at him!</td></tr>
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Aunt Areej gave Calvin an accordion for Christmas...<br />
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and revealed a hidden talent we never knew about!<br />
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Best find of the season? Well, we decided to give Calvin a few accessories for his bare bones Brio train set, but those tiny little things come at a very dear price, so he wasn't getting much. So, imagine the <i>Happy Dance</i> I was doing, all around my favorite consignment store, when I stumbled upon this outfit, still in it's original package, for less than ten bucks!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMOmJ_0k7cqY-eIhpTejQs2t7bnpiGvldJ50xGPobALSfwK8qkbd2rMAgHBRgXypU9LQ1cRsSjzVMr4l6nTyvGLDzVHb1W0p_0NsTRfnXdykE7yll0aR027ig6ijl0p9KEN8eQnxWAqYU/s1600/0B013436-8BC6-4BF8-AC38-0748A5C2DF9B.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMOmJ_0k7cqY-eIhpTejQs2t7bnpiGvldJ50xGPobALSfwK8qkbd2rMAgHBRgXypU9LQ1cRsSjzVMr4l6nTyvGLDzVHb1W0p_0NsTRfnXdykE7yll0aR027ig6ijl0p9KEN8eQnxWAqYU/s640/0B013436-8BC6-4BF8-AC38-0748A5C2DF9B.jpeg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Complete with a working pocket watch, schedule card, radio, and bandana!</td></tr>
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Oh Happy Day!<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-20571898729671413522019-12-17T07:09:00.000-08:002019-12-17T07:09:23.567-08:00THE WONDERS OF WONDER WORLD<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDEU6sYho-JASxTRdsb7DFlYqIRxD6mxlioqWgOhoDgh45c4VlFiOvX5S-5FwXB6RyBJ6vi4uBqb8DhcVP_OvQXolIa0eX0wLZascuARuqUrJpnVK2bngzyeynWSXaEomMFzckh05KzQ/s1600/500B28EF-041E-4C01-A8AE-41C173602F65.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDEU6sYho-JASxTRdsb7DFlYqIRxD6mxlioqWgOhoDgh45c4VlFiOvX5S-5FwXB6RyBJ6vi4uBqb8DhcVP_OvQXolIa0eX0wLZascuARuqUrJpnVK2bngzyeynWSXaEomMFzckh05KzQ/s640/500B28EF-041E-4C01-A8AE-41C173602F65.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Little Goobs came over for another sleepover this weekend. So, of course, I felt another Christmas Adventure was in order. This time we took him over to the college town of San Marcos -- the same town where we took him on his first real adventure a good while back, the glass bottom boats. This time we were headed for <a href="https://www.wonderworldpark.com/">Wonder World Cave and Adventure Park</a>, home of the Holiday Express!<br />
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My first impression left me feeling somewhat underwhelmed. In fact, it reminded me a lot of that movie <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091722/">Adventureland</a>, where the teenagers are working at a derelict amusement park that had seen better days. For one thing, the Holiday Express isn't really a train. It's just several carts hooked together, and there are no tracks. Also, the animal park it drives you through is pret-ty tiny! Then there was the gift shop, which had <i>definitely</i> seen better days.<br />
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However, once I started looking at it all through <i>Calvin's</i> eyes, I realized it was just about <i>perfect</i> for him. For one thing, he's not a fan of crowds, long waits, and loud noise. Not a problem here! He's still at the age where you don't even have to put any money in the video game for him to be happy.<br />
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And, even Papa and I got pretty excited when we realized our "train" was headed straight for that waterfall you saw above!<br />
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Careful on the right, you just might get wet like Calvin did!<br />
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Papa was a bit sad that we didn't buy any of the food packets for the animals, but I think Calvin was quite content to let them poke their heads through the bars and pester everyone <i>else</i>, instead of him. Those guys were aggressive, and likely to steal the whole bag right out of your hand if you weren't careful!<br />
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Best of all, coming back through the tunnel it was Papa John who got all wet! <br />
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All in all, I think Calvin had a wonderful time. Plus, I think it was only about $6 each for John and I, and Calvin, being only 3 yrs. old, got in free! How's that for a bargain? We will definitely be coming back when he's a bit older, to do the cavern part of the tour.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-37985349578060903582019-12-09T07:04:00.000-08:002019-12-09T07:04:04.190-08:00LOST AND FOUNDWhen we first bought this house, I thought it was pretty cool that we had these great storage cabinets above the two closets in our bedroom.<br />
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Then I realized that they couldn't be reached with our indoor step stool. <i>Nooo</i>, you have to haul in that big fella, from out in the garage. Which, as it turns out, means that you go so long without ever opening those cabinets, you can totally forget what's up there! I did remember that there was one big red crate up there, which meant it probably held something Christmasy. Lights maybe? Or garland? No! Something much, much better. <br />
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I found this guy...<br />
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and all of his little friends! When our kids were young, and we lived in houses with <i>indoor</i> staircases, they took great pleasure in arranging them, one on each step. But, with our only staircase being <i>outside</i> at this house, I had to settle for grouping them on my grandmother's cedar chest. <br />
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Which works out pretty well, since Hubby has been <i>much</i> better lately
about not tossing his belongings there at the end of each day.<br />
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Know what else I found in that cabinet? I found these lovely little candle rings which go on my dining room chandelier...<br />
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this wonderful basket which hangs on my front door, instead of a wreath...<br />
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and all of the festive florals and greenery I used to rotate in and out of it, according to the season!<br />
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You have no idea the angst I felt, when I thought all of these cherished things had been lost in the last move or tossed out. But now, all is right with the world!<br />
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Happy Holidays, Y'all!</div>
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-31068044443207844992019-12-04T07:03:00.000-08:002019-12-04T07:03:15.934-08:00THE MAGIC SLEEPOVER SOLUTIONAs soon as we got back from our little Thanksgiving trip, we invited grandson Calvin over for a sleepover, hinting at a special "Christmas Adventure" we had planned for him. We picked him up in Austin, stopped for lunch at "the orange stripey place", aka Whataburger, then took him straight to one of his favorite playgrounds at a church near or home. He got about a five-minute nap going from there to our house, then spent the rest of the afternoon running from room to room, pulling out and playing with every single toy he could find. Then it was time for dinner and our surprise adventure -- his first trip to the <a href="http://www.emilyann.org/">Wimberley Trail of Lights at the Emily Ann Theater!</a><br />
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Turns out, that kid just <i>looooooves</i> face holes! He insisted that both he and I stick our faces in every one we passed, so Papa could take photos. Who knew there could be so many?<br />
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The biggest surprise was when this kid -- the one who wanted <i>nothing</i> to do with the mall Santa, both last year and this -- hollered for me to stop so he could go talk to Santa!<br />
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And, it wasn't even as if Goobs had a long list of "wants" to give him. When he was asked what he wanted Santa to bring him, he just smiled sweetly and said "A toy." Santa, a bit taken aback, asked "That's it?", then chuckled and replied "Well, yeah, I think I can handle that!"<br />
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As for the title of this post, we discovered something amazing this year. You see, ever since Goobs got too big for a baby bed, keeping him in <i>any</i> sort of bed at our house has been difficult. We tried sleeping three in a king bed together, which was a bit of a disaster, since that kid changes positions at least 50 times per night. Then I offered to go sleep with him in the guest room downstairs, which worked pretty well, except for the fact that he wanted me to go to sleep when <i>he </i>did, at 7:30 or 8, and kept sneaking out of bed every five minutes, to tell me it was time for me to come to bed! <br />
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So, this time, I had a brainstorm. Between the time running around at the park, the time running around at our house as he pulled out every toy, and the time running around at the Trail of Lights, I knew he would be one pooped pitootie by the time we got home. I managed to keep him awake in the car, then, while I got him ready for bed, Papa opened up the sofa bed in the living room and cued up the new version of <i>The Grinch</i> on the TV. We all snuggled under a cozy blanket together in the sofa bed, and five minutes into the movie that boy was sawing logs. Seriously! And, he stayed there for ten hours straight, while Papa and I managed to tiptoe back to our bedroom, and <i>both</i> got a good night's sleep in our own bed for once. It's a miracle!<br />
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Now all I have to do is figure out other ways to absolutely wear him to a frazzle, once the Trail of Lights shuts down for the season.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-36933277928091409502019-12-02T07:12:00.000-08:002019-12-02T20:35:13.349-08:00FRIENDSGIVING: PART II<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Wednesday afternoon, after we finished our tour of the Georgetown square, the guys headed off to check out <a href="https://zodixcigarlounge.com/">Zodi'x Cigar Lounge</a> , which was right near our hotel. It has a members-only room hidden behind a bookcase, but they let these out-of-towners in with the purchase of 25-dollars-worth of cigars, and gave them a free beer. Talk about happy boys! Meanwhile, Paula and I opted to check out the hike & bike trail behind our hotel.<br />
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Feeling self-righteous about all the steps we had got in that day, we then treated ourselves to afternoon tea, and a little sumthin' sweet to share, back at the hotel. Yummy!<br />
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One reason this adventure morphed from a day trip into an overnighter was that, not only would all the fun shops be closed on Thursday, the main restaurant we wanted to try there would be too. If you live anywhere near the Texas Hill Country, you are probably familiar with Monument Cafe in Georgetown (the peach fried pies!), but did you know they've also opened a Mexican restaurant called <a href="https://elmonumentogeorgetown.com/">El Monumento</a>? So that's where we headed for dinner.<br />
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I had an amazing Torta Cubana (not Mexican, I know) but after seeing, and <i>hearing</i>, Paula's reaction to the Chile Relleno she'd read rave reviews about, I wished I'd said...<br />
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"I'll have what she's having!"<br />
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Back at the hotel we enjoyed spending some time around the patio fire pit, reminiscing about the many fun adventures we've had together in the last 40-some-odd years, before heading off to bed.<br />
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On Thanksgiving day we had reservations at <a href="https://www.gumbosroundrock.com/">Gumbo's</a>, in a gorgeous old building on the town square.<br />
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There were several different main course options, but we all went with the beef tenderloin. Good choice! <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgckbHQu-TbM3UA079di1kF945mYo___v5Lghx9hMJmkA2Epyhfh6ReJ04rm5SIU6zZAZ4prwYfdW0za5Gahr5Z8-uDXRJRzOyKuxaXGqwgK6KI0qClzmKG6kNdwdCKHh0wyhX6gGXGmdA/s1600/EF8967CE-BEF8-4964-9E46-E23A85E87787.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgckbHQu-TbM3UA079di1kF945mYo___v5Lghx9hMJmkA2Epyhfh6ReJ04rm5SIU6zZAZ4prwYfdW0za5Gahr5Z8-uDXRJRzOyKuxaXGqwgK6KI0qClzmKG6kNdwdCKHh0wyhX6gGXGmdA/s640/EF8967CE-BEF8-4964-9E46-E23A85E87787.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goat Cheese Salad and Melt-In-Your-Mouth Rolls</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHm3QQDHANntwXVcldLgQ9Dg0XrIdnO73kYic7XLsOfWX4csxrqhlsf63_6fYWHq4fxlejXxY2xz61PIHABS25zEBSRACaTEK6c7yIDruzYR6jvtkXsqoQr0weS62OIXWtzklfKpPkMA/s1600/8FC0EE7E-39CA-4F9A-A81B-4C6D166C6304.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHm3QQDHANntwXVcldLgQ9Dg0XrIdnO73kYic7XLsOfWX4csxrqhlsf63_6fYWHq4fxlejXxY2xz61PIHABS25zEBSRACaTEK6c7yIDruzYR6jvtkXsqoQr0weS62OIXWtzklfKpPkMA/s640/8FC0EE7E-39CA-4F9A-A81B-4C6D166C6304.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Cajun Cornbread Dressing Was To<i> Die </i>For</td></tr>
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We ended our Friendsgiving adventure at the movie theater, also right next to our hotel, seeing a really fun movie (one of our favorite things to do together) called <i>Knives Out</i>. Does it get any better?<br />
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Why yes, it does! Ordinarily I'm pretty sad when we part, knowing it could be months before we see each other in person again, although the daily texting really helps. This time, however, I had something special to look forward to -- Little Goobs coming over for a sleepover and a Mimi-Papa-Christmas <i>Adventure</i>. Yes, he <i>did</i> head straight for his "Explorer" outfit as soon as he heard me say that word, but this time I managed to convince him that it wasn't really necessary...<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-77557036739715113502019-11-29T06:01:00.000-08:002019-11-29T06:01:25.968-08:00FRIENDSGIVING: PART I<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Our BFFs have one son, and he always spends Thanksgiving day with his wife's big family, then has a second celebration with Paula and Tim a day or two later. Last year, since both our kids were going to be with their in-laws as well, we decided to meet the Sanford's for lunch at the beautiful Hyatt Lost Pines Resort in Bastrop, which is just about midway between our home and theirs. We had so much fun that we decided to do the same thing again this year. <br />
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But then, just a couple of days before Thanksgiving, my hubby casually commented "You know, Georgetown is also midway between us and the Sanfords." Next thing we knew, not only did we have reservations for Thanksgiving lunch in Georgetown, we also had rooms at the lovely Sheraton conference center, and plans to head up there a day ahead, when all the fun shops on the square would actually be open. Turns out, conference centers don't have any conferences going on during the holidays, so not only were we offered a great rate for our rooms, we practically had the place to ourselves!<br />
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We met them just in time for lunch at <a href="https://600degreespizzeria.com/">600 Degrees Pizzaria</a>, then the guys and gals split up to wander the square. We'd only been in one or two shops when we came upon this place.<br />
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Craft Beer and Outfitters in one location? Weird, huh? No, <i>brilliant</i>! When I peered through the window, guess what I found?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnIlpunqnXc_p_JO90QtPs1A1x9LbffQbd0F9uEKVyjsdRZ9JzDAzKbDPqEEZtPo61MffbQl1QFXGFMsw-0xDkI7nrtrmEGDZpv5NfaL3TbxcaNfIVu6UQH_YQgtrlYZHG_84AlDeALJA/s1600/3E11B5BE-0C3F-462A-8593-60868CFE8F63.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnIlpunqnXc_p_JO90QtPs1A1x9LbffQbd0F9uEKVyjsdRZ9JzDAzKbDPqEEZtPo61MffbQl1QFXGFMsw-0xDkI7nrtrmEGDZpv5NfaL3TbxcaNfIVu6UQH_YQgtrlYZHG_84AlDeALJA/s640/3E11B5BE-0C3F-462A-8593-60868CFE8F63.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Our hubbies! Happy as could be, and in no hurry for us to finish up our shopping.</div>
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Can you imagine a better place than this...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIsu2zB1ZSWCk9l6RMJ6eAeeHs45iFDYgkVyJD8X6NIn2B9DKXnFT5X6_-1WOu_Qfq5qIRDcAAbYXHqpaWEHW3_fnsMaGeevXAhqq3giMTE5u6QWe93u715C8XmCKth-P2UbEja5Vt1xk/s1600/2AD4FBF9-C1E4-47AF-AC5F-46B57446BAF7.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIsu2zB1ZSWCk9l6RMJ6eAeeHs45iFDYgkVyJD8X6NIn2B9DKXnFT5X6_-1WOu_Qfq5qIRDcAAbYXHqpaWEHW3_fnsMaGeevXAhqq3giMTE5u6QWe93u715C8XmCKth-P2UbEja5Vt1xk/s640/2AD4FBF9-C1E4-47AF-AC5F-46B57446BAF7.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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in which to watch your all-time favorite Christmas movie every year?<br />
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Apparently poppies are a big deal in Georgetown, since we saw them mentioned everywhere, and on every<i>thing</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0TwvIPdvWB8ITgoIDw_tkoSMCoiZjJ0cOMZa_optLXDGfd89GUpXYbtJYHZCUqWHKpWKodYlo44TbNYKB-phi1SBqjVw-3j7mPS9DrYrJBwRylshiURxBiwDDzixUnXeclzJAHB-_YRg/s1600/8485B503-8C51-429C-B478-7F1C84E18879.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0TwvIPdvWB8ITgoIDw_tkoSMCoiZjJ0cOMZa_optLXDGfd89GUpXYbtJYHZCUqWHKpWKodYlo44TbNYKB-phi1SBqjVw-3j7mPS9DrYrJBwRylshiURxBiwDDzixUnXeclzJAHB-_YRg/s640/8485B503-8C51-429C-B478-7F1C84E18879.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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It seems they host a poppy festival here every year, so that must mean there are poppy fields around here somewhere, right? I was so sad that we were never in France when the poppies were in bloom. Wouldn't it be a hoot to discover they've been blooming right here, in my own backyard, all this time?<br />
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<i>to be continued...</i><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-82089983811984582052019-11-26T06:28:00.000-08:002019-11-26T06:28:55.760-08:00WARP SPEED AHEADTime goes so slowly here in Texas during the hot months. You start to think they will <i>never</i> end. But then you get your first cold weather, sometime in late October, and suddenly it's warp speed ahead! When I started having doctor appointments and stuff I needed to keep track of spilling into the new year, I realized it was time to high-tail it to Target to get a new agenda for 2020. On our way there we stopped at Costco to pick up a few things, and that's where I spotted this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJzgFc2sQmP33tGpJW9LLo3MBY1kYHQUfU9-IBFiNPwskxsVOdQ7f07ANi1TwEM8rIP8yNJDI4e18J_TtZXADKwyMR459dEbYTYGeYrzphJUP8kki8u0vgaaNzA7VC7hWpBS-bgJNospQ/s1600/74494024-0C29-40AE-A967-15F978B67367_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJzgFc2sQmP33tGpJW9LLo3MBY1kYHQUfU9-IBFiNPwskxsVOdQ7f07ANi1TwEM8rIP8yNJDI4e18J_TtZXADKwyMR459dEbYTYGeYrzphJUP8kki8u0vgaaNzA7VC7hWpBS-bgJNospQ/s640/74494024-0C29-40AE-A967-15F978B67367_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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I gave it a quick flip through. saw that there was actually room in there to do some sketching and journaling alongside the calendar stuff, and thought "Hey! Maybe this will help me get back into those daily sunrise habits that led me to blogging in the first place -- the ones that have kind of fizzled away over the years. Plus, it will save me a trip to Target!" So I bought it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFYl2xQGB38Qq1HPoLgHNvgfVWQMHjGsDb3Dop5X4OOTAS3aumSxQBb2xvTX13XLhTIikDYdKJtGKFE7-XRzJnya6UTnuakqStSwgyomySxlCQOjFJlwscTwwquNA49oIjzsRPrG1WIOc/s1600/C641FFA8-F0BF-48DC-A36A-19BD5B10D6AA_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFYl2xQGB38Qq1HPoLgHNvgfVWQMHjGsDb3Dop5X4OOTAS3aumSxQBb2xvTX13XLhTIikDYdKJtGKFE7-XRzJnya6UTnuakqStSwgyomySxlCQOjFJlwscTwwquNA49oIjzsRPrG1WIOc/s640/C641FFA8-F0BF-48DC-A36A-19BD5B10D6AA_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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It wasn't until I got it home, and gave it a closer look, that I realized it was actually a "mindfulness" journal, all about learning to be present in the moment, instead of constantly focusing on what's ahead -- something else I used to be much better at.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRabAtjBSslziFUCOrs1ZlxLiwnCoVoZApyOn-4-dwOYWUO55gn0O74inPZqjQ6T27ujzOoz-FBrayJBVPQS3Uln3bBGdxOtImCo7q0wnw6Dk8mk7NxbwP2JFwnZL86ZhMTswB8lQWxhU/s1600/22C8943E-28D1-482F-AB19-FA6A6AC8AFF5_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRabAtjBSslziFUCOrs1ZlxLiwnCoVoZApyOn-4-dwOYWUO55gn0O74inPZqjQ6T27ujzOoz-FBrayJBVPQS3Uln3bBGdxOtImCo7q0wnw6Dk8mk7NxbwP2JFwnZL86ZhMTswB8lQWxhU/s640/22C8943E-28D1-482F-AB19-FA6A6AC8AFF5_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSpg7Ixbwt3ub7UA6NSw0H6KMeYTWfOhF4wBtv__rU5Ew2EPeDyBQVvmX-eTpAbPZZVfu8U1x8rjWlgs6OpH9ib5gU1aoKC3VLV2NkhfeIYrauo8M0rxy1wN9RPbkSK2UG38tij9ot4Tk/s1600/22929800-7AAB-45A7-A3B3-E69F9B00F77C_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSpg7Ixbwt3ub7UA6NSw0H6KMeYTWfOhF4wBtv__rU5Ew2EPeDyBQVvmX-eTpAbPZZVfu8U1x8rjWlgs6OpH9ib5gU1aoKC3VLV2NkhfeIYrauo8M0rxy1wN9RPbkSK2UG38tij9ot4Tk/s640/22929800-7AAB-45A7-A3B3-E69F9B00F77C_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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In order to help us along the path of learning to stay present in the moment, they have a rotating set of tools, such as coloring exercises...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kkFJ0Y2VTd4Oy-5mkGiqs13qVwCM8nLqg7bktCSgTzvUUkBjHIsrS5fw7EmjEJtVmjPE_YPxqIUEYhwjNt5KTIBNvuD0IsfyMu7Mv1omPwvG2_Osy5vPnDEJWbwaB_-mf0oJwN4c7WE/s1600/0C7F0909-432B-44AD-85B2-57A0B33CCD11_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kkFJ0Y2VTd4Oy-5mkGiqs13qVwCM8nLqg7bktCSgTzvUUkBjHIsrS5fw7EmjEJtVmjPE_YPxqIUEYhwjNt5KTIBNvuD0IsfyMu7Mv1omPwvG2_Osy5vPnDEJWbwaB_-mf0oJwN4c7WE/s640/0C7F0909-432B-44AD-85B2-57A0B33CCD11_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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breathing exercises...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj61bTRR1HHRruLN0dUrIlrFx9q6ACvIiP6J-gyf9s3yrNwvyROtRlV2980qbr3P-Y44_-I9kQT0jryCOfTunpsb09YyeTPkyo7n_4qbhGy5MVOciOOg8s0evL6nXHqlwPFaQXYyQwSjms/s1600/660563A9-5AAB-4E6C-AEDC-835114344143_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj61bTRR1HHRruLN0dUrIlrFx9q6ACvIiP6J-gyf9s3yrNwvyROtRlV2980qbr3P-Y44_-I9kQT0jryCOfTunpsb09YyeTPkyo7n_4qbhGy5MVOciOOg8s0evL6nXHqlwPFaQXYyQwSjms/s640/660563A9-5AAB-4E6C-AEDC-835114344143_1_201_a.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
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art exercises...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrn5HLg_X_WY3TuPNT5vFfyqkyXamuzMdY32oiyk6NZCPJ5Fo6gRGy46xbtunbbCyiXb9fnaL6OFP9Xnf1pUxZurzpv4HaBm99EchLkv8eIy268Rcb9ox_n1LzDWHBzIfffeNPWBNKCqI/s1600/CEFBCF22-01E1-42D1-9CC4-56DEF149EC4E_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrn5HLg_X_WY3TuPNT5vFfyqkyXamuzMdY32oiyk6NZCPJ5Fo6gRGy46xbtunbbCyiXb9fnaL6OFP9Xnf1pUxZurzpv4HaBm99EchLkv8eIy268Rcb9ox_n1LzDWHBzIfffeNPWBNKCqI/s640/CEFBCF22-01E1-42D1-9CC4-56DEF149EC4E_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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journaling exercises...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg009ZugZ2vQDFvwlY_Ab-a3pbkRV1l-ZQcSIvEqYz4I5_DKtbILGlzWtH4x3T-xfIf78Z0F-gW1nr09NvnT5Af6YKjqqq7iK_LNkurK_X0EhSLIZZTIriL3HTXYZfhq77PKeJV4kwDFA/s1600/F88126F5-E770-4771-809A-33E67A08A533_1_201_a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg009ZugZ2vQDFvwlY_Ab-a3pbkRV1l-ZQcSIvEqYz4I5_DKtbILGlzWtH4x3T-xfIf78Z0F-gW1nr09NvnT5Af6YKjqqq7iK_LNkurK_X0EhSLIZZTIriL3HTXYZfhq77PKeJV4kwDFA/s640/F88126F5-E770-4771-809A-33E67A08A533_1_201_a.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div>
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and more!<br />
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It got me to thinkin', maybe this little journal and I were <i>meant</i> to find each other.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-84760078446588033682019-11-14T06:19:00.000-08:002019-11-14T06:19:56.047-08:00GONE TOO SOONWe almost had it -- enough fall color to impress our northern relatives who arrive next week, and who are forever going on about their dang maples when they come to visit!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDHXrmRpt_bvueejYZU6HucUsrRSy8kuNNd9PmGDs0NWyQSnBXDWh3jzdWfxFB7sQTv4xD2qcgzSOFORzaQAy-ZoTYwI3vdrwN9Rk8aq68BAm9izdeCVhDKnONP7cr_SMhafE27JLs3u4/s1600/IMG_7079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDHXrmRpt_bvueejYZU6HucUsrRSy8kuNNd9PmGDs0NWyQSnBXDWh3jzdWfxFB7sQTv4xD2qcgzSOFORzaQAy-ZoTYwI3vdrwN9Rk8aq68BAm9izdeCVhDKnONP7cr_SMhafE27JLs3u4/s640/IMG_7079.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH84Zq159GNSXPH264MYJm2nJTGtyA3eIREnQ54uOens9GMabKIv8GvPlUChEkh_XaupXQ8XTxrTg60swyssgCeVs7njnQCEXjfOE7Qcxu0J0l1LcrMd8zSWi62yY0ssdgJhcyD7Pewyw/s1600/IMG_7091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH84Zq159GNSXPH264MYJm2nJTGtyA3eIREnQ54uOens9GMabKIv8GvPlUChEkh_XaupXQ8XTxrTg60swyssgCeVs7njnQCEXjfOE7Qcxu0J0l1LcrMd8zSWi62yY0ssdgJhcyD7Pewyw/s640/IMG_7091.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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But then, this dang arctic blast came barreling through our little town like a runaway locomotive, and took most of our newly-turned leaves with it!<br />
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It just isn't fair...<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1736158478689457949.post-22963460220444378872019-11-04T07:22:00.000-08:002019-11-04T07:22:19.442-08:00Goober's First REAL HalloweenOur little Calvin is finally catching on to Halloween. Not only did he get to visit the pumpkin patch with Mimi and Papa, carve pumpkins with Mama and Dada, and do some fun Halloween activities at his preschool, but he also got to go trick-or-treating with his neighborhood <i>gang</i> (and all their parents, of course)!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivKBYuyp7S4AdLl0tzO3OoXHbFQHP58hDUNzIj1L6E_avWPqvGFRjEUfjgx9TYh-vIPeCfISGq7HBCfEOcRqEszIg0FHxKgS4BgBtozyg8NY3md3AbZTpxmDNR_NBxEGi6m5Zbrcz7W7o/s1600/untitled-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivKBYuyp7S4AdLl0tzO3OoXHbFQHP58hDUNzIj1L6E_avWPqvGFRjEUfjgx9TYh-vIPeCfISGq7HBCfEOcRqEszIg0FHxKgS4BgBtozyg8NY3md3AbZTpxmDNR_NBxEGi6m5Zbrcz7W7o/s640/untitled-3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIV2leb6W3-U-yxkQ2o9vyx__gumeerQC9LQpaTHDovM4FFIpZhDBS_aJXgsUPGP2I5JvZZgo5-3fyn6loAGykERwmb524gGOG1E1Llb4l23dzMJuKab4WcHgNrk4qQNLi8XTobXS6B2c/s1600/untitled-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIV2leb6W3-U-yxkQ2o9vyx__gumeerQC9LQpaTHDovM4FFIpZhDBS_aJXgsUPGP2I5JvZZgo5-3fyn6loAGykERwmb524gGOG1E1Llb4l23dzMJuKab4WcHgNrk4qQNLi8XTobXS6B2c/s640/untitled-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Calvin, The Veterinarian</td></tr>
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Meanwhile, Mimi and Papa held the fort down at home, taking care of Little Rowan, and handing out candy to all the ghosts and ghouls.<br />
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Not sure who enjoyed it most! <br />
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<img align="left" src="https://i386.photobucket.com/albums/oo310/shabbycreations2/sig-2.jpg" style="border: 0;" />Hill Country Hippiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08723660054417859671noreply@blogger.com0