Valentine's Day with my boys....

For us Valentine's Day has always been low-key, nothing over the top.  We have always thought of Valentine's Day as a day that we express a little more of our love to one another, but really why buy into all the chocolate hearts, blah, blah, blah, we know how much we love one another.  This year we actually have started a new tradition and I'm looking forward to it next year and for many more years...

Now, I'm not saying we don't give each other cards or do something a little special for one another, but again, nothing over the top.  We always try to give our son a little gift for the holidays, he truly is the center of our universe. 

Valentine's Day lasted 2 days in our house this year, Monday & Tuesday.  Our little guy had his party at pre-school on Monday, he handed out his CARS Valentine's complete with lollipops, he gave each teacher a handmade Valentine (he was so proud of them) and a pair of earrings made by yours truly.  I also made some cookies for his party, Red & Pink M&M Monster Cookies.  All in all he had a great day on Monday at pre-school.

Tuesday is a day off from pre-school and being that my little guy seems to have a cold we decided to make Valentine's Day a Pajama Day.  We cuddled up on the sofa this morning and watched Lady & the Tramp (one of his Valentine's Day gifts from Mommy & Daddy).

As we were watching Lady & the Tramp I was thinking how fitting this movie was for Valentine's Day.  It was very sweet and I think I enjoyed it more now as an adult than  I did as a child.  Perhaps watching it and seeing how much joy it brought to my little guy made it that much more special. 

My Darling Husband texted me to see if he could bring home some Valentine's Day lunch for us....AND who turns that down??  So, we ended up with some yummy lunch and these fine fellows came along too...

They came for lunch, but they didn't  make it out alive... Yum!

And finally our 'New Valentine's Day Tradition', we had personal size, handmade, heart-shaped pizzas for supper...

When we make homemade pizzas its always such an enjoyable process.  We all gather around the work station and make up our pizzas.  We all chatter on about how our own pizza is going to be the best, but in the end we all agree our darling son's will taste the best. :)  I highly recommend heart-shaped pizzas not just for Valentine's Day, but anytime.  Its super fun and gives whimsy to a meal for your kiddo's.

Well, there it is our Valentine's Day wrapped up in Lady & the Tramp, Chocolate covered Strawberries and Heart-Shaped Pizza's.  Yes, I think it was a fine Valentine's Day indeed.

Many blessings,
Traci



Mmmm Mmmm Good....

That's what a bowl of Bead Soup is Mmmm Mmmm good! 

I love living in an older neighborhood, aside from the fact my mail is delivered right to my door, I also get it by 10 a.m. everyday!  So, as I went down the hall to the front door and opened it I was surprised with a BIG envelope from my Bead Soup partner, Sonya Stille.  Let's just say this 39 year old skipped back down the hall into the livingroom, that's right, I skipped.  

Let me back up a little so in case your just joining me you have an idea of what Bead Soup is... Our lovely Hostess, Lori Anderson (http://www.prettythingsblog.com/) has this wonderful event called Bead Soup Blog Party.  She organizes this awesome event and allows 200 participants.  You are drawn at random and then paired with another beader.  You exchange information with your partner and then send a lovely arrangement of beads, a focal and a clasp to each other in the hopes of pushing each other outside of your comfort zone for creativity.  Then during the reveal day all 200 participants post their creations on their blogs and we do a blog hop looking at all the lovely masterpieces. 

This is my very first Bead Soup Blog Party and I am thrilled, so Thank You very much Lori for this experience and for putting so much effort into making this event a reality.  You're truly amazing!

I was partnered with Sonya Stille from Augusta, Georgia.  Sonya and I have exchanged a few emails and are starting to become good friends on Facebook.  I have shared details of my beading experience with Sonya and I am starting to catch little glimpses of her work, let me say I'm impressed.  Sonya is a wife and mother to 2 little ones.  Sonya is currently working on opening her Etsy Shop and has started a Facebook page for her jewelry, visit her when you can & give her a 'like' (https://www.facebook.com/pages/SAS-Jewelry-Designs/291318200921323).  Here is some Seed Beading Sonya has done, very pretty, something I haven't tried (yet).

Now on with the 'Soup'....after skipping back to the livingroom like a school girl, I tore open my envelope to find a lovely box.  I have to apologize right now to Sonya, my packaging is not pretty.  Please forgive me, this caught me in the middle of moving houses. 

Didn't I say the box was lovely?

My Yummy Soup Mix.  Thank you Sonya for the gorgeous selection just up my alley.  My husband even said when he saw it "Well, that is definitely something you would design with." 

Clockwise: Brown Freshwater Pearls, Snakeskin Agate, Copper Flower Toggle, Custom Copper pendant made by Sonya.

Here's a closer look at the focal.  Sonya texturized, annealed, soldered a bezel and placed the cabochon.  She also riveted the bail and patina'd the whole piece.  Wow!  Pictures don't do the piece justice, its a beauty.  Thank you Sonya!

Well, there it is my Bead Soup and I already have ideas rolling around, now to get busy for the March 3rd reveal date/blog hop!

All the best until the next time,

Traci

Here is a list of the other participants, when you have time please visit their pages and give them a follow.

 

1.  Adlinah Kamsir (Kingdom of Bahrain) and Hajer Waheed (Singapore)

2. Adrienn Lukacs (Hungary) and Agata Grygiel (Poland)

3.  Agi Kiss (Hungary) and Carolien Muller-Genger (the Netherlands)

4.  Agnes Asztalos (Hungary) and B.R. Kuhlman

5.  Alesha Conklin and Becki Mendivil

6.  Alice Peterson and Carol Dillman

7.  Alicia Marinache (Canada) and Dita Basu

8.  Amanda Dittloff and Brandy Thomason McNair

9.  Amanda Tibbetts and Andrea Trank

10.  Amy Freeland and Kay Mallery

11.  Andra Weber and Christine Murrow

12.  Ann Sherwood and Diane Welte

13.  Barbara Bechtel and Kerry Bogert

14.  Barbara Lewis and Cat Pruitt

15.  Bonnie Coursolle (Canada) and Fay Wolfenden (Canada)

16.  Carmel McGinley (Australia) and Tracy Stillman (Australia)

17.  Cassie Donlen and Deryn Mentock

18.  Cathie Carroll and Janel Dudley

19.  Cece Cormier and Morwyn Mullins

20.  Charlene Jacka and Christina Hickman

21.  Cheryl Brown (Canada) and Diana Ptaszynski

22.  Christina Stofmeel (the Netherlands) and Eva Kovacs (Hungary)

23.  Christine Damm and Deb Brooks

24.  Cilla Watkins (Canada) and Elaine Robitaille (Canada)

25.  Sabrina Straub (Switzerland) and Kathy Combs

26.  Cindy Cima Edwards and Eleanor Burian-Mohr

27.  Cory Celaya and Rhea Freitieg

28.  Courtney Breul and Dana Hickey

29.  Cynthia Abner and Jennifer Boreck

30.  Cynthia Tucker and Jean Peter

31.  Debbie Goering and Heidi Post

32.  Dee Elgie (UK) and Joanne Lockwood (UK)

33.  Dian Hierschel (Germany) and Eniko Fabian (Austria)

34.  Diane Cook and Lyn Foley

35.  Donna Bohler and Lisa Lodge

36.  Donna Millard and Kiersten Giles

37.  Doris Stumpf (Germany) and Eszter Czibulyas (Hungary)

38.  Elisabeth Auld and Eva Sherman

39.  Elke Leonhardt-Rath (Germany) and Marjolein Trewavas (UK)

40.  Ema Kilroy and Laurie Keefe-Cecere

41.  Erika Nooteboom (the Netherlands) and Giorgia Rossini (Italy)

42.  Erin Grant and Jean Wells

43.  Evelyn Duberry and Gaea Cannaday

44.  Genea Crivello-Knable and Heather Powers

45.  Ginger Bishop (military, Okinawa) and Martina Nagele (Germany)

46.  Heidi Kingman and Lori Greenberg

47.  Helen Kemp and Lisa Wangeman

48.  Helene Goldberg (Australia) and Karen Vincent

49.  Jamie Hogsett and Jeannie Dukic

50.  Jeanette Ryan and Jelveh Jaferian

 

51.  Jennifer Cameron and Tania Spivey

52.  Jennifer Justman and Kari Carrigan

53.  Jennifer Tough and Lorelei Eurto

54.  Joanna Matuszczyk (Poland) and Julianna Kis (Hungary)

55.  Joanne Tinley (UK) and Michaela Pabeschitz (Austria)

56.  Julie Anne Leggett and Kelley Fogle

57.  Karen Hess and Linda Landig

58.  Karyn Bonfiglio and Kathleen Lange Klik

59.  Kashmira Patel and Kat White

60.  Kat Barron Miller and Kelly Morgan

61.  Kathy Lindemer and Rose Binoya

62.  Krafty Max and Sandra Miller

63.  Kristen Latimer and Pam Ferrari

64.  Kristie Roeder and Lea Avroch

65.  Kristina Johansson (Sweden) and Penny Neville (Canada)

66.  Krisztina Erlaki-Toth (Hungary) and Nicole Keller (Germany)

67.  Lara Lutrick and Lisa Suver

68.  Laura DeMoya and Lisa Hanna

69.  Libby Leuchtman and Melanie Brooks

70.  Linda Koch and Rosemarie Cowit

 

71.  Lisa Chapman and Menka Gupta

 72.  Lisa Liddy and Marion Simmons

73.  Lori Anderson and Marcie Abney

74.  Lori Bowring-Michaud and Mary Govaars

75.  Lori Dorrington and Maria Rosa Sharrow

76.  Lori Finney (Canada) and Marie-Noel Voyer-Cramp (Canada)

77.  Lynn Bennett and Mandi Ainsworth

78.  Marta Kaczerowska (Poland) and Milla Starchik (Canada)

79.  Mary Harding and Shannon LeVart

80.  Mary Jane Dodd and Stacey Curry

81.  Melinda Orr and Molly Alexander

82.  Melissa Meman and Michelle Escano-Caballaro

83.  Michelle Jensen (Canada) and Sandra Young (Canada)

84.  Nan Emmett and Nicole Valentine-Rimmer (Canada)

85.  Nancy Boylan and Suzette Bentley

86.  Natasha Lutes and Patti Vanderbloemen

87.  Pam Hurst and Rebekah Payne

88.  Patty Miller and Sara Rhoades

89.  Rebecca Anderson (UK) and Lori Anderson

90.  Rebecca Sirevaag and Sharon Driscoll

91.  Rochelle Brisson and Shannon Chomanczuk

92.  Rosa Maria Cuevas (Mexico) and Tejae Floyde

93.  Sabine Dittrich (Germany) and Sally Russick

94.  Sandi Volpe and Sarah/Saturday Sequins

95.  Shanti Johnson and Tracy Mok (Canada)

96.  Skylar Brez and Theresa Buchle

97.  Sonya Stille and Traci Zeller (Canada)

98.  Stefanie Teufel (Germany) and Tania Hagen (New Zealand)

99.  Stephanie LaRosa and Vonna Maslanka

100.  Terri Wlaschin and Wendy Blum



Laryngitis leads to CREATIVITY....

I started feeling a bit sniffly on Sunday, thinking I was getting a sinus infection, as I have been prone to those for the last couple of years.  However, by Tuesday evening I knew something else was up.  I'm not one to go to the doctors (willingly) and with taking care of everyone else, who has time?  So, my week has been pretty full (like all other weeks), took my son to school on Monday, ran a bunch of errands, Tuesday took the dog to the eye specialist to be relieved she doesn't have cancer, THEN Tuesday evening... my husband put our son to bed and when he came back downstairs I was sitting on the sofa with my feet up, just trying to relax.  I looked at my DH and told him that I don't have a good feeling about waking up tomorrow, I could feel whatever it is grabbing hold of my throat (my voicebox).  Well, sure enough, woke up Wednesday morning to a sweet little whisper.  "They" say Silence is Golden, but somehow not so much when your trying to communicate with your 4 year old child.  Let's just say there has been a lot of  'What did you say Mommy?" happening.  So be it.  I feel fine otherwise, I just think my voice needed a vacation (I wish it would have taken this body with it though, how unfair). 

What I did not expect with the laryngitis was the little burst of creativity I have felt with it.  My DH took our son to school yesterday (I didn't want to infect anyone) and then DS went for a sleepover at his Nan & PopPop's house last night, this left me with some time to sit down at the bead table.  I was pleasantly surprised to see things come together quickly and with such ease (it shouldn't have been difficult considering all the wonderful goodies that I have been receiving in the post).  Anyway, my thought around this laryngitis and burst of creativity is, MAYBE, just maybe Silence is Golden, you lose one thing and gain another....hmmmm, something to ponder. 

Okay, out of my silence I created 2 pieces, a bracelet and a pair of earrings. 

This bracelet is called Cristallo Tramonto (Italian for Crysal Sunset).  It was created using a beautiful collection of SueBeads in lovely Sunset tones combined with Swarovski Crystals and Antique Brass. 

Colorful, fun and fit for Valentine's Day these earrings are called Red Ruffle Romance.  A couple of months back I requested from Bubby & McGurk ruffled lampwork disc in a variety of colors.  Well, these beautiful red disc spoke to me last night and I combined them with Swarovski Crystals and Antique Brass.  I was quite pleased with the results.

So, as I head into my day of no voice, let me wish you a day of full of wonderful moments and a little creativity.

Take care,

Traci