Happy BD Brenda and Hello from the Twine Ball

Wow, It seems like forever since my last post....but it's actually not been all that long.  I have a thousand photos from this vacation and I'll post more later, but for now.....

Happy Birthday Brenda....

I'm headed back to California tomorrow.  Today we are celebrating my best buddy, Dee Dee, daughter's birthday.  She's shy about her age so shall I say, she is slightly over 21! 

I am so used to my craft room, and I will admit I am a tool-aholic, so, when I craft in other people's area I'm like a fish out of water.  For this card I used a new Cuttlebug Folder from the Paper Lace II collection.  (Did you think I could go on vacation without purchasing at least one new toy?)  Dee Dee has the Martha Heart border, which I used to punch the area for a sentiment, which I hand wrote.  I know what I'm getting Dee Dee for her birthday :-)  Making this card was fun.  Dee Dee was working on setting up her new Apple computer and I was crafting away in her new craft room.  She took her basement and built it into a fantastic family room, kitchenette, sewing room, exercise room, bathroom and last and most important....craft room.  She did it, with the exception of plumbing and electric, she built the walls, ceiling, etc....I am so proud of her.  What a gal!

Though this isn't my work desk, it's the desk where this card was born....so, I'm going to head on over to Julia's blog, Stamping Ground and post my space for this Wednesday.  If you've got a little time, hop on over to see what the others are doing.  And if you're really feeling like you need to stop and play, head on over to visit Di at Pixie's Crafty Workshop.  I'll see you there.

And Now, Without Further Delay.....From Cawker City, Kansas USA, I bring you......

We did it, we arrived at 7:30 in the morning, the sun was shining down on this tiny little town.  Dee Dee and I were like two small children, (only walking not running) to see the long awaited, much anticipated, World's Largest Ball of Sisal Twine. 

For all the joking that we'd done about getting this off my bucket list, this was a truly fantastic experience.  I'd seen photos of the ball of twine, so I knew how it would look, and the gazebo that surrounded it, but I had no idea what the little town would look like.  I didn't know what the trip from Madison to Cawker City would be and I never could have imagined the fun Dee Dee and I would have as we travelled there.  This entire trip was filled with tummy splitting laughs, a few tears but ones of joy and anticipation, a bit of drama and a ton of memories.  Thank you Dee Dee for being my life long friend, thank you Amy and Linn for sharing your most wonderful day and time in Chicago, thank you to Dan, Victor, Aaron, Rebecca, Lachlan and Bridget.  Thanks too to my Wisconsin and Illinois family for making us so welcome, and for sharing your lives with us. 

This is a photo of the main street in Cawker City, Kansas.  It reminds me of an old western town.  While we were looking at the ball of twine, a lady came running across the road carrying some twine.  She asked if we wanted to add twine to the ball.  Of course we did....so off we skipped with twine in hand and added our little piece to history....do I have a photo of the lady...of course not, in our excitement, we forgot to photograph her and her kindness....So thank you unknown lady!  Here's a link to Cawker City Kansas:  Here  I hope you take a minute to read about this quaint little town.

Are you ready for family photos? Not too many, though I could send you a zillion of them.....(hint).

 I have got to say, Amy put a year into planning her wedding and she did an absolutely beautiful job, her attention to detail amazed all.  So here is a shot of the beautiful bride, her dashing husband and what a lovely mom.... {{{{giggle}}}}}

Here I am with the true loves of my life (Dan, Me, Aaron, Amy and Damon).  I am so very proud of each of them. 

There are so many photos of the wedding, the venue and the people.  I picked this one because it was such an unusual candle and flower center piece.  The flowers were placed into the vase upside down and held in place with a floating candle.  This photo does not do it justice, I'll look for another better one if anyone is interested.  Amy and Linn chose cupcakes rather than a cake and they were wonderful and beautifully displayed.  Everything was perfect!

I think what I will do in future posts is throw in a photo or two of my vacation...I hope you'll stop by to see them. 

Now this is for Sarn.... Margot and Harriet...meet Bucky.  I'm sure the girls will be delighted to see this stunning example of roosterhood (is that a word?  It is now!).... Bucky belongs to my niece and her family (I'll post more of them later).  Bucky has quite a harem, I think the ladies would be more than happy to share him.  I learned lots from Sarah about chickens, pecking order and their little personalities.  So, without delay....Here's Bucky!

I so enjoy Sarn's Sunday Roast and of course her Christmas Challenge and checking in to see what she's up to on a daily basis.  If you've got even the slightest desire to meet three charmers, check out Sarn's blog here.



I live in California and our gas prices are of late are  not going under $4.00 per gallon, now my son from Australia says he has no pity as their gas prices are much higher....but we just can't wrap our heads around the costs of fuel.  Here's what joyously met us at one of our stops in Iowa....

We were excited to see this price, especially since the motor home was getting 7 to 8 miles per gallon. 

I guess I should get moving.  Lots to do today, Birthday party for Brenda this evening, and play time with Dee Dee before I leave for California....See you in my craft room next week...

If you want to see more photos, friend me on Face Book...

Later....and hugs from Colorado!
Mary AKA:  Glitter Grammy