Live Life Backwards

This was sent to me by my friend Cecilia....I just LOVE it, and have to share it with all of you!

I'd like to live my next life
backwards.....You start out dead
and get that out of the way. Then
you wake up in an old age home
feeling better every day. Then
you get kicked out for being too
healthy. Enjoy your retirement
and collect your pension. Then
when you start work, you get a
gold watch on your first day. You
work 40 years until you're too
young to work. You get ready for
High School: drink alcohol,
party, and you're generally
promiscuous. Then you go to
grade school, you become a kid,
you play, and you have no
responsibilities. Then you
become a baby, and
then.....You spend your
last 9 months floating
peacefully in luxury, in
spa-like conditions-
central heating, room
service on tap, and then....
You finish off as an
orgasm.
I rest my case.

These are Delicious !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1 lb. sliced bacon
1 1/2 lbs. ground round
1 (15 ounce) can baked beans with pork (your choice)
1 (15.5 ounce) white beans, drained
1 (15.5 ounce) butter beans, drained
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup barbecue sauce
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
Get your crockpot out......
In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crisp. Drain, crumble, and set aside. In the same skillet, cook and crumble the ground round until evenly browned. Drain.
In your crockpot, combine the bacon and ground round with the beans. Stir in the brown sugar, barbeque sauce, and soup mix until well blended.
Simmer on low for about 1 hour.......
Serve with salad....burgers...hotdogs.....whatever....and enjoy!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AMERICA***********************

Edible Arrangements

I think this looks YUMMY! Check this site out at http://www.ediblearrangements.com
they have some fabulous looking edible arrangements. I think this would be good for the 4th of July...maybe cut out some stars also...along with the cantaloupe balls...strawberries...grape sparklers...pineapple daisies...in a cute red white and blue basket....use a cookie-cutter to cut out the shapes.

Altered Board Book

Altered child's board book for my sister's birthday....

Fabric Book Page

A fabric book page.....

Shoes and Cake Daydreams.....

Even though I probably couldn't walk very far in these shoes.....I still LOVE them! AND....I think this cake is BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!

More Things...I LOVE....

The backyard waterfall with all the ferns is so peaceful.....and this little cabin would be my PERFECT studio........

WILDFIRE

This photo that I found on the web sums it all up....DEVASTATION.....Early yesterday afternoon around 1:45pm the winds flared up....embers flew...and the fire jumped the fire line...2000 more people have been evacuated....Firefighters are working like mad to get this fire under control before the winds kick up again today.
This fire has my heart sick.....I am so fortunate to live in the foothills...on top of a mountain surrounded by forest.....I don't take it for granted. I also KNOW how very very important it is to keep defensible space around your home....I also realize in some cases that there is nothing anyone can do once a wildfire gets out of control and starts crowning in trees....These poor people didn't stand a chance with the intensity of this fire. Forest Officials still believe it was caused by humans.....but have not determined yet if it was arson or accidental...they are leaning towards 'accidental' with the cause possibly being a cigarette. I am praying for all the people at Lake Tahoe who lost their homes.......I am praying they get a handle on this fire today....and last but not least..I am THANKFUL that NO LIVES have been lost! "THINGS" can always be replaced..."PEOPLE" CAN NOT !!!!!!

Flowers.....Smoke.......

Good Morning........I finally found some time to post something on the blog! The weekend (once again) went by in a blur....running errands....yard work....lots of cooking! I made 12 more jars of apricot-pineapple jam.....I also made a 23 lb. turkey with all the trimmings for Dad's birthday... dinner. Lots of left-overs for this week...yum!
The smoke from the Lake Tahoe wild fire was so BAD yesterday....I had a horrible headache from it.... The fire called the "Angora Fire" started on Sunday afternoon.... quickly destroyed a total of 240 homes..the winds were so bad, the conditions so dry...plus lots of dead trees which created lots of fuel for the raging out of control blaze...people barely had time to get out...I feel so sorry for all the people who lost everything in the fire. Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places on earth...it is a HUGE recreational area... since living only an hour away, Andy and I have spent a great deal of time there...my youngest sister lived there for many many years...it makes my heart sick to think of the devastation this wildfire has caused...as of this morning they are saying it is 40% contained. They still don't know how it started...but believe that it was "sparked" by humans.......Will people EVER..EVER...LEARN ???!!!!!

Old Books.....

I found some cool old books at the library..."The Brown Fairy Book" is really cool with some beautiful illustrations in it....

A Cut...and A Trim Too !!!!!!!

Took my Dad this morning for a hair-cut and trim.....he's getting all gussied up for his 91st birthday on Sunday.....We had to wait quite awhile...I think this is the only Barber Shop left in this whole town...What happened to all the good old fashioned Barber Shops????? Are they becoming a thing of the past????? All of the men in the shop looked at me really strange when I whipped out the camera, and started taking photos.....I TAKE my camera EVERYWHERE.....

ATCS

Atcs that I finished today for a personal swap...I used some of my real photographs of flowers ...stitched around the edges and added transparency film over it....

SO MUCH THANKS !!!!!!!!!! and LOVE

Looking through some pages of an old book this morning...and came across this old photo..It is my Dad's Uncle Aaron, 7 yrs. Aunt Lillie Ann 5 yrs. old and May 3 yrs. old.....these old cabinet cards are priceless! It doesn't have the date or year on it....
I want to take this time to let everyone know that my son came through the surgery with flying colors...he is in alot of pain...but on the road to recovery...soon as he can he will start physical therapy.....Thanks so much to all of you for your support and kind words...It is much appreciated...I just wish I could give every single one of you a great big HUG....SO...consider yourselves hugged !!!!! It helps to know that other people are out there thinking of you...and giving you support and love.....the blogging world is full of such amazing wonderful kind human beings.....XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I am taking today to "putter" around the house......enjoy the yard...and work in the studio. It's been so hectic lately....I need the "peace full ness" of this day....to do the things I love to do......but most of all to be grateful for all the blessings that have been bestowed on me...

I especially love the umbrella.......

In My Dreams/Things I LOVE

More Summer Flowers

Lily of the Nile...blooming. Good Morning ! Thought I'd leave you with some more beauty this morning...I am doing some last minute chores before leaving for the surgery center. I took these photos this morning while watering the flowers...

The Mimosa (silk tree) in bloom....time for quince jelly.....and blooming coneflowers.

Apricot-Pineapple Jam/ Weekend

The jars are sterilized and ready to fill....the cots and pineapple are boiling away...the jam is all made....and I still have tons of apricots on the tree! If I have time I'll make another batch this week....I can't stand to see the apricots go to waste.
What a busy weekend.....and looks like my week will be busy also...I might not have time to comment on all my favorite blogs...but...please know that I do check-in on all of you...and I LOVE all of you...my blogging friends!
It turns out that my Son's injury was worse than we at first thought...he actually broke his leg one and a half inches up from his ankle ...spiral compound fracture of the fibula.....dislocated foot...and tendon damage...SO....on Wednesday he will be having surgery....the orthopedist will be putting a large screw through the ankle....and a plate with 8 more screws where the break is on the fibula....after surgery he starts physical therapy.....I will be helping him out as much as possible...
I did manage to get some art finished...will be mailing some "stuff" today...and got a lovely vintage package in the mail from Marilyn...I'll be working on some book pages for my round robin swap...and some fabric atc's for Lenna....

more weekend photos....Ty is enjoying her soda at Starbucks......flowers from the Farmer's Market on my kitchen table....more lilies in the yard....and "the broken leg " at Starbucks.....

Happy Father's Day

This is my favorite photo of me and my Dad.....

Fabric Art Page

Just finished another Fabric page for the RR "shape" book....this one opens to reveal the heart.

Lily of the Nile....

This is for Blue.....Lily of the Nile.....

Beauty of Lilies

I am so excited....I've been watching my lilies from the time they sprouted up through the soil. They grew....and grew taller....and grew taller with lots of elongated buds almost ready to open...This morning (like every morning) I stepped outside to greet the day...Lo and Behold...some of the beautiful buds are open....and the majestic yellow lilies are greeting the morning sun....they are awesome! I (of course) ran in the house to get the camera...and started to take pictures from every angle you can imagine....here are some of my favorite shots...
This morning I decided to mow the front lawn before it got too hot....I pulled the cord...and it broke...so now...Ty and I are off to Home Depot to get a new universal handle and cord for power lawn mowers!!!! I was just there yesterday looking for wallpaper....(which our local home depot does not carry)..grrrrr.....I did walk away with a new plant...a Lily of the Nile....I've been wanting one of those for a long time! The HOT Summer is FINALLY here....triple digits are upon us....the pool is calling my name....

apricots are almost ready...I'm going to make apricot-pineapple jam this weekend......and a shot of the early -morning view......