Creativity, Crafts, Books, Movies, Greyhounds & Favorite Things

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Adventure on the high seas!  Master and Commander tells the tale of Captain Jack Aubrey, a British naval commander who is tasked to pursue and take the French ship Acheron during the time of the Napoleonic wars.  This movie captures the era when ships sailed the seas, and gives us a glimpse of life on board, raging storms, incredible naval battles and the age of discovery that was coming.  It is a suspenseful tale of “cat and mouse,” and also the story of friendship, honor and sacrifice.

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Inspiration:

Ever since I made the yarn egg, I’ve been dying to wrap more things in yarn.  I love this!

Supplies:

Glass Vase

Yarn

Glue (I used Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue)

Fray Check

Scissors

1.  Wash and dry your glass vase.  Apply Fray Check to the end of your yarn strand for a neat start.

2.  Apply a line of glue and start wrapping the vase.  I used a fast tack glue.  If you experience shifting, you may want to wrap a few rows around the vase and allow them to dry before you finish wrapping the vase.

3.  Continue to apply a line of glue and wrap the yarn around the vase until finished.

4.  Isn’t this adorable!  To finish my vase, I applied two felt flowers I purchased from Michaels.

 

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Thursday, May 7th was Casper’s 3rd Birthday!  Casper’s racing name was Try N Ryan.  He came to us with the “pet” name of Casper.  It seemed to fit him, so we kept it.  Actually, we’re very unoriginal when it comes to naming our pets.  Casper was fostered by my friend Amy and her husband.  It was through Casper that we became friends.  All I can say about my Caspie is that he’s the sweetest boy in the whole world.  He’s a good boy and infinitely patient.  He’s playful, does funny after-bath zoomies and has learned to manipulate his sister, Freedom, with passive-aggressive behavior.

I was trying to think of something fun to do for Casper’s birthday.  I didn’t want to get Casper toys since Freedom got toys for her birthday.  I first saw PetCakes by Lucky Paws on Kristin G.’s blog, Dogs Rock!! So I picked up a box.

PetCakes are fun and easy.  I purchased the PetCakes Starter Kit.  You get a PupCakes Pan and two packets of mix.

To make the PetCakes, you mix one of the packets with 1/ 2 cup of water and 1 Tbsp. of peanut butter.  Spray the PupCakes pan with nonstick coating and fill the pan until full.

Microwave for 2-1/2 minutes and after they have cooled…Voila!

Reviews were mixed.  Casper took his, dropped it, sniffed, then “sat” so that I would give him a different treat.  Freedom gobbled hers up and then while Casper was sitting, nabbed his and ate it before I could grab it back OR take a picture.  So, Freedom says, “Yay,” and Casper says, “Nay.”  I am going to make them again and experiment a little.

We topped off the day with a doggie ice cream treat.  Happy Birthday, Casper!

 

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When I did my first “4 Faves – Friends Version,” Bunny, from Tales and Tails, suggested that Freedom and Casper should do their 4 Faves.  I thought that was a great idea, and when I told Freedom and Casper, they were very excited and said they could even agree on their 4 favorite things.  I should have suspected something was amiss.  Well, I can’t go back on my promise so here they are, Freedom and Casper’s 4 Faves (descriptions provided by Freedom and Casper).

Butts

Best way to get to know someone new or make sure an old friend is really who they say they are.  Butts don’t lie.

Beds

2 Greyhounds + 10 Beds = Not Enough Beds!  You can never have too many of these things.  We like them best all over the house.  We’re both “fluffers,” so we prefer a bed that lends itself to fluffing.

Toys

Like beds, you can never have too many of these.  Also like the beds, we like them best all over the house.  We feel it makes our mommy feel less sad about her daughter being grown-up if we make it look like she’s living with a couple toddlers.  See that basket way down at the bottom of the picture?  That was suppose to hold all our toys…yeah, right!

Freedom’s favorite hedgehog.  It’s even grosser than it looks.

Daddy & Mommy (Pssst…aka our slaves)

Don’t let their looks fool you.  The friendly looking one on the left can pose a few problems because she gets ideas that she’s in charge of us.  The mean looking one on the right…total slave…does EVERYTHING we want.

Casper’s Nightly Massage

Lovin’ On Freedom

Alright then…that’s Freedom and Casper’s 4 favorite things.  Next time, I’m going to add a few stipulations.

SEE, we told you she’s the bossy one!

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

The month of August will be “4 Faves – Friends Version.”  What are your favorite things?  Tell me about them during the month of July and one (or more) of your picks may be chosen as a “favorite” in August.  You can let me know what you like in one of three ways…post a comment, email me (whatremainsnow@gmail.com), or let me know on the What Remains Now Facebook page (either by commenting or writing on my wall).  Tell me what the item is and why you like it.  Want to see what “4 Faves – Friends Version” looks like?  Check out this post from May.

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Patti Digh, in her book Creative Is a Verb, outlines six practices and behaviors that honor and enhance our creative spirit rather than reduce it.  She calls these the six creative commitments.  This week, I’m reading about the fifth creative commitment, Clear Ground: Stop Trying So Hard.  The sections within the chapter are, (1) Shave with Ockham’s razor, (2) Sit down and write, (3) Always yield to aircraft, and (4) Be the storm’s eye.

Patti talks about finding our voice, our story, our time and our place.  Often, we imagine those things are either in the future or to be found when certain conditions are met or exist.  She encourages us to realize that everything we need is here now.  We often make things complex for ourselves when what we need to do is start with the simplest explanation or solution.  She says, DO THE WORK and quit whining.  She talks about reading “signs” and yielding to larger forces before they run us over and disable us.  To do that requires slowing down long enough to notice the signs (health, stress, lack of productivity, etc.).

This reading hit home for me.  I am in the thick of “clearing ground,” both physically (my creative space) and mentally (I keep myself busy, but I don’t get things done).  I wish I had something positive to say about my situation, but for now, all I can say is that I know I have a problem.  Why do I make it difficult for myself to have spaciousness in my life?  I think I need to shave with Ockham’s razor and look for the simplest explanation.

The picture this week is of me in my 20’s.  I think our 20’s is a time in life when we try too hard.  My goodness, just look at my hair!  That’s a lot of trying too hard and clearly, not the simplest answer.

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I’ve been dreading this!  One of my goals is to get all my crafting supplies into my creative space; so this weekend I started the process of gathering things up and sorting through what I have.  Here’s what was just in the basement.  Yikes!

 

Organizing a large project like this is difficult for me because I’m a detail person.  THIS overwhelms a detail person.  The process outlined in the book Organizing from the Inside Out has been helpful to me in the past.  I wrote about the steps the book takes you through in my June 26th post.  Before you start sorting and organizing, you plan and define your “activity zones.”  Here’s the outline of my zones:

Activity – Writing/Blogging

Supplies – Desk, computer, printer, files, notes, resources

Storage Units – Desk and desk drawers, file cabinet or box

Activity – Creating

Supplies – Craft supplies, table, inspirational items, instructions and patterns

Storage Units – Totes, shelves, containers, bulletin board, magnetic board, file cabinet or box, binders, magazine holders

Activity – Library/Planning/Quiet Time/Being with the Houndies (and Twinkie the kitty)

Supplies – Comfortable chair, lamp, books, paper, pens, dog beds

Storage Units – Shelves, basket for reading & writing material, floor space

Activity – Business

Supplies – Computer, camera, light box, files

Storage Units – Desk, file cabinet, not sure about the light box

Activity – Shipping/Mailing

Supplies – Table, boxes & packing materials, postage scale, labels

Storage Units – Shelves, tote

I find this helpful because it makes me think about what I want to accomplish in a space and helps me set limits.  A huge surprise to me…the “Shipping/Mailing” activity zone.  As I build my Etsy shop, I don’t want to be scrambling for a box and packing materials.  I also don’t want them scattered all over the house.  A new thing…the Library/Planning/Quiet Time/Being with the Houndies” activity zone.  Although I’ll still do some work while watching TV or at the kitchen table, I want to have a place that is quiet and where I have storage for my notebooks, magazines, etc., instead of by my seat in the Family Room (very messy).

I imagine this post will hit you in one of two ways:

Way #1 – You’re having trouble understanding why I’m taking up so much time thinking about this when I should just get in there and get the room cleaned up and organized…pronto!

Way #2 – You totally get my laborious process and are even a little amazed at how much progress I’m making.

Way #1 folks…This is how the other half lives.  Feel good that this isn’t your burden.  Your decisiveness and ability to get things done inspires me, even if it is beyond my grasp.  Way #2 folks…You’re not alone in the world and there is hope.

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The Help is set in 1960’s Mississippi and tells a story of African-American maids and the white families they work for.  The story is told by three characters, Aibileen and Minny who are maids, and Skeeter, an idealistic young woman who is trying to find her place in the world and is dissatisfied with the status quo.  The relationships between the “help” and the families they work for are complex, fascinating, infuriating and often touching.  This book is much more than the story in the book.  It is a story of America, an era, human dignity and perseverance.

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Mona Lisa Smile tells a story of women in the 1950’s.  Katherine Watson (Julia Roberts) comes to Wellesley College from California to teach Art History.  Katherine’s year at Wellesley puts her up against the variety of roles and traditions that women of that era inhabited.  Visually, it has the beauty and lushness of a 1950’s film, and it introduces many of the changes that women would begin to embrace and push for in the 1960’s and 1970’s.

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Inspiration:

blah to TADA! – Cool Collage

Supplies:

Store bag

Book or magazine pages

Scissors

Glue

1.  Cut out a design that is large enough to cover the store logo.  Cut additional design pieces if there is a logo on the sides or back.

2.  Glue your design pieces on the bag.

3.  You’ve just created a beautiful, unique gift bag.

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You may remember our post about Aristocratic & Common; so we thought it only fitting that this Independence Day weekend, Casper sport the flag of the Crown and Freedom display the flag of the patriots (well, and her name!).  These lovely collars are from 2 Hounds Design.

Casper wearing Union Jack, representing the Crown.

Freedom wearing Grand Old Flag, representing the patriots.

Freedom, Casper and I are taking the Wag & Walk 4 Lifeâ„¢ pledge.  We’re doing this for two reasons: (1) It will encourage us to walk and stay active, and (2) GREENIES® Brand will donate $5 to Freedom Service Dogs for every person who signs up for the Wag & Walk 4 Lifeâ„¢ challenge by July 11, up to $5,000.

Freedom Service Dogs trains only rescue dogs to be service dogs for people with disabilities, including veterans.  The donation from GREENIES® will benefit the Operation Freedom program that matches service dogs with disabled veterans.

To take the pledge, go to the GREENIES® Facebook page and click the “Wag & Walk 4 Lifeâ„¢” tab on the left-hand side of the page.