Support your local SPCA

Every time I look at Bear I think : "where would he be now if it wasnt for our local SPCA?"  Please support your local animal rescue association.  They do such an important job!
Today our Bear got his first bath since he has been with us (I didnt want to stress him out by bathing him straight away because he had just been neutered and was in a new home and had so much to deal with as it was.)  He was very good and stood still while he was bathed although he did not like it.
Here is a photo of  him all cleaned up with his brand new blue collar on (which says: "now I belong").

(the bandage on his leg is because he decided to pick a fight with our Pitbull and he came off second) However, he's tuff and he'll be fine {I cant say the same for my poor nerves though...:-)  }

"human beings who leave behind them no great achievements, but only a sequence of small kindnessess have not had wasted lives." -C.Grey 1932-

Gratitude

"Thou hast given so much to me,

give one thing more,

- a grateful heart,

not thankful when it pleaseth me,

as if Thy blessings had spare days,

but such a heart whose pulse 

may be Thy praise."

 The creative e-course that I have been doing has as its theme: GRATITUDE.  It's been such a wonderful re-awakening to the practice of gratitude .  What a huge difference it makes in our lives when we fill our hearts and lives with gratitude and with the art of giving.  Here is a photo of  our third project for the course which I finished this weekend.  It is an altered board book (pages are made of thick board). It has lots of textures and layers added to it to make it very interesting and unique. I chose to do a vintage theme in cream, pink and green. This is the cover of my book:

"If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you", that would suffice."

-M.Eckhart-

Its weekend again. . .

A little bit of scrap booking inspiration for you.  This is the page I did with my class yesterday.
Its a fun use of smallish scraps of patterned paper and ribbons, lace, ric-rac etc plus some buttons and flowers for fun.....

And here is (part of)  my absolutely gorgeous blessings banner that was a project for my Creative Kismet e-course. I am soooo thrilled with this project.  It was GREAT fun to do and I will definitely be making more of  these!

The grand essentials to HAPPINESS are:

Something to DO

Something to LOVE 

               and

Something to HOPE for.

-Joseph Addison-

A great big THANK YOU...

Today I want to say a great big thank you to my brother, Eldon, who has unselfishly supported and taken care of me and my family over the past few very difficult years.  Words can never express how grateful I am dear brother. THANK YOU for absolutely everything - I think you're amazing!!! Love you LOTS.

A hint of summer in the air....

The past few days have been so warm and sunny.  The early fruit trees in my back yard are blossoming already and I even found a few tiny Jasmine blossoms!

This past weekend was a full one for me.  I could not do my usual Sunday blogpost because our internet was down (aaargghhh!)  But I worked on my Art Journalling for my e-course.  (You can see photos of  these projects on my facebook page.) I also brought work home from the factory.

My "homework": The flowers are cut from Nguni cow hide and each one is hand stitched onto the fabric. (no easy task)

 These beautiful cushions are the end result!

These cushions are available from www.afritan.com plus many more gorgeous products made from the hides of African animals: buck, zebra, wildebeest etc.  They also produce placemats, bags, mats, ottomans ,a large range of different cushions and much more.

In case you were wondering Bear is doing well.  And of course here are more photos of him:

Already making himself  WAY too much at home!!!!

He has some weird quirks-  he lies down to eat his food, he drags his matress and blanket around all over and he growls like a bear (especially when he cant get his own way).

Daniel says the only way that this family can get any weirder is if we buy a bear and name it "Dog" !!!

A question to ponder this week:

WHAT WOULD YOUR PERFECT DAY LOOK LIKE?


"We need both FAITH and REASON to make meaning in an uncertain world"   -B.Brown-

Each Second. . .

"Each second you can be reborn.  Each second there can be a new beginning.  It is choice.  It is YOUR choice." - Clearwater-

I am learning and gaining so much from the creative e-course that I signed up for that I feel like a new season of my life has just begun. And its a great feeling.  Make a choice today that pulls your life in a new direction - a new beginning.  It can be a small choice (like mine) or a big choice.  Just go ahead and do it.  You are sure to be blessed.  (challenged probably too - but blessed !!!)

 This is me working on one of the projects for my e-course.  I may not look like I am having much fun because I am so focused on what I am doing - but really its tons of fun - I havent had this much fun since I was 8 !!!! :o)


Today I am sharing a scrapbook page that I did of my doggies.  I love the "saying" on this page.  My dogs do add another dimension to my life - one  I would be much poorer for not having in my life.

It says:  "Dogs are not my whole world . . . but they make my world whole !"

More Photos of Bear. . .

I took some better photos of Bear this afternoon, out in the garden and decided that I REALLY had to share them with you. . .  :-)