Imagination is more important than knowledge...

Happy Monday!! I can't believe next Monday will be November 1st!! NOVEMBER, already! As of today, it's 1 month until Thanksgiving and 2 months until Christmas!! Seems like it was just the first day of Summer a month ago! I know I'm always talking about how fast time flies by, but it's really amazing to me how fast it really does! Anyway, just makes me want to stay busy being creative & making new things, taking more pictures, enjoying more things and loving the beauty of mother nature, family, friends & children:these two little girls belong to a couple of my wonderful friends. Although it was one of their Mom's birthdays, they blew out the candles. And it's just as well...seems like the more birthdays you have, the more help you need blowing out the candles anyway, right!So last night @ the birthday party some of the girls called me into the kitchen to take a picture. When I got in there, they were all standing together and pointed out that every one of them were wearing something I made...either a necklace, or a pair of earrings. It was so sweet...made me a little verklempt. I'm so lucky have to these amazing women as friends. I love them all!

And I love all of ya'll, too! I'm amazed out how many leaves fell off the trees in my yard over night! My car is covered! So to celebrate my wonderful friends and the ending of October, I'm giving away one of these beautiful Maple Leaf Necklaces. All you have to do to win is comment on this post, or the link on facebook. Ozzy will be picking a winner Monday morning, November 1st! Good luck!!hee hee ~ so this is one of my lastest "TtV" photographs. I just love this huge pink "Care Bear" I found at the thrift store for $1. And, as luck would have it, he talks and loves to climb trees! I sure am a lucky girl!This is what awaited me at the end of my road early Saturday morning when I headed down to the "Transylvania County Tailgate Market". The full Moon was still high in the sky and the rising sun was casting a warm pink glow on the mountain tops...it was breathtaking!

It's a little rainy & overcast today...the perfect kind of day to be creative! Don't forget to leave a comment and good luck on the drawing!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"What I do with today is very important, since I'll be exchanging a day of my life for it" ~ Anonymous

Birthdays & Ice Cream!!

Okay, so some of you probably think I'm "nuts" because Ozzy & Lita get treated more like children than dogs [just sometimes]. For their birthdays, I buy little cups of ice-cream for them and they just LOVE it!!! Lita's birthday was Friday and I think it was her best ever:

..that ice-cream made them sleep like little babies! They were in heaven...yes, life is really good for Ozzy & Lita!

The next birthday around here is mine!!! But today, is Jen's!! Happy Birthday, Jen!!! She's one of my awesome [cyber friends] and blog reader. Now, with that being said, I want everybody to leave me a comment and let me know when your birthday is. I'll be sending out a special little "birthday prize" to you on your special day! Of course, you don't have to tell me the year, just the month and day!! It'll be fun and, I promise you'll be glad you told me!
It's finally warmed up around it and it's going to be a gorgeous day! We are headed up to "Big Rock Trail" for a great hike! I'll have more pictures later [of course].

So seize the day peeps!!! Life is good ~ make the most of it!!
♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"Cheerfulness and content are great beautifiers and are famous preservers of youthful looks." ~ Charles Dickens

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

Yippie ~ tomorrow is my Birthday!!!! I always get so excited the day before. Not that we make a big deal out of birthdays or anything, I just like to get the cards, phone calls & general "happy birthday" wishes. Wayne's birthday is May 27th, so we decided to get a "Wii" for our combined birthdays this year. I can usually expect an extra little "something" from Ozzy & Lita, though :) My sister sent me a new purse and my best friend, Sharon sent me a purse, too! Gosh, I guess they thought I needed one and I sure do love having new ones {it's one of those things you can never have to many of, like shoes & jewelry, too} And then tomorrow morning we'll be headed down to the Farmer's Market because my awesome friend, Anne, is making me a special "birthday breakfast burrito" ~ yummy! And speaking of the Farmer's Market, I'll be setting up there on the 3rd Saturday of every month, starting May 16th! So, if you live close, please stop by and see me.I just had to share this awesome necklace I made yesterday for the shop. I named it "Gray Matter" ~ the Pink Peruvian Opal Briolette is just gorgeous! And these are gorgeous, too:In fact, they are the give away for next Wednesday!!! I know you'll love them! And, all you have to do to win is comment on this post. Ozzy will be drawing the winner, so good luck!!!

You know, there are just so many cute things on Etsy that I'm going to start sharing them here, in case you missed them. So my favorite "cute" thing today is this:An awesome "little dress" pouch from "suezybees" ~ isn't it the cutest thing ever! I might just have to get it, as a "birthday" present to myself. Plus, it will be really cute in one of my new purses :)

Well, I'm off to go look through the fridge/pantry and decide what to fix for dinner. Then, I've got to make a couple of birthday gifts {for you know who & who ~ surprises}

Happy Friday!!!! ♥ & peace ~ Kathy

"Never regret growing old - it's a privilege denied to many" ~ unknown

Happy April 15th!!!

Happy Tax Day, everybody!!!! Whew, this has been a busy week already! Of course, Monday was "music Monday", so that's always a treat:seems as though more and more of our friends are picking up instruments they never knew they had the talents to play {which is awesome}. It's just great to see them "evolve" from shaking eggs or playing wooden frogs to actually playing guitars & mandolins. So there you go! You never know what you can accomplish, or what hidden talents you possess, unless you try something new. You'll amaze yourself, I promise!!Yesterday was Sandi's birthday {party} and I made her this awesome necklace, with matching earrings ~ she loved it!!!! It's really beautiful. I bought several of the "Ammonite Fossils" on my last bead buying extravaganza, so I can make another one of these. You know where to find it, if you are interested. But today is Sandi's actual "Birthday", so I'll be fixing dinner this evening, which will include my awesome "Brocolli Cornbread" ~ here's the recipe for those that are interested ~ it's the best stuff in the whole flippin world!

Ingredients:
4 Eggs
1 Stick of butter - melted
8 oz. of Pepper Jack Velveeta - melted
1 Cup of Chopped Onion
1 12 oz. Can of Mexicorn - drained
1 Box of Frozen Chopped Broccoli - thawed & squeezed dry
6 oz. of Cottage Cheese
1 Box of Jiffy Cornbread Mix
Directions:
I always melt the Velveeta cheese in a double boiler on med/low heat. Then mix all ingredients together really good in a large bowl & pour into an ungreased 9x12 baking dish. Bake @ 400 for 30/45 minutes ~ just check with a knife or toothpick in the middle to make sure it's not still runny. It will be very moist, though. And then eat it all and enjoy it ~ believe me, this will start a tradition!

And after we eat & do some "Wii Bowling", it's off to the "Duckpond" for the 1st "Duckpond @ Dusk" of the year!! But before I go and start cleaning house, I have to announce the winner of those awesome earrings from last post ~ it's lucky #4, which is Anita! Yay!!!! Congratulations, Anita! These wonderful little earrings are on their way to you ~ I hope you enjoy them.

Thanks to everybody for always reading my ramblings & commenting. I'll be back tomorrow with the "freebie" for next weeks drawing! Have a wonderful day!!
♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"What lies behind us, and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us" ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Music, Mondays & Birthdays....

Don't you just love the saying on Mark's shirt! I snapped this picture of him Monday night @ Jen's {little Jack's Mama} birthday party, which just so happened to also be "Music Monday". There was tons of food and I made some awesome potato salad, with my new "secret ingredient" "Wickles Pickle Relish" ~ it gives it just enough kick to make it awesome! I'm telling you, it was the hit of the party....

...well, besides the cake, which Jasmine certainly enjoyed :)
And little Jack & Patty played and played until they both zonked out on the floor.

I'm still sporadically talking to people in my family that are still in Baton Rouge. They are still without electricity/phones, etc., but all are okay and with no real damage to their homes besides some trees down. But I'll keep you posted on that. In the meantime, congratulations to Jen!!!! She won the earrings from my last post. Yay!!! We can all use a little "World Peace" ~ right!

Happy Wednesday! I'm off to take a look at some awesome new pendants a friend of mine started making ~ I'll keep you posted on that, too.

xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy