All cooped up

Uh oh, we're starting to get nicer weather here. I'm getting antsy to get outdoors to play in the dirt, and these guys are, too.
These little chicks are still cooped up in the garage. Hubby made their chicken house inside the garage and it's just about nice enough outside to move it to it's permanent location in the backyard. I want it to be next to the grand-kids' playground so they're easy to watch from the deck. So cute!

I'll have to hurry and finish up the dolls I've started so I don't abandon them when that sun starts shining.
This gal should be done today. I think I'll list her on LPS to see if she can find a new home.

Early Folk Art Primitives listed today.

I finished a couple things this morning and added them to my web site.
The large Primitive Pin Keep is a OOAK Original, signed and dated by me. I love making these. I think I'm seriously addicted. Each one is unique. I love how this one turned out. It's very handy for
practical use!
I have a whole bolt of this 1850's Reproduction Blue fabric that I've been waiting for the right thing to use it on. I knew it was pin-keep fabric as soon as I got it.

Early Americana Pin Keep and Thimble Keep ~ 5 1/2 inch tall

Kickin' up some sawdust

I've been talking to myself about dusting the cobwebs off my woodworking equipment for months since I've reacquainted myself with a new website and ebay.Woodworking was one of my favorite pastimes for so many years. My daughter surprised me when she called to tell me that she wanted to learn woodworking, so I jumped on the chance to have her working with me!I searched my memory banks for some of the simpler things I made years ago and we came up with ladders, a wall shelf and bread boards. We made 2 ladders, so you'll have to go check it out on my ebay auction. It's one of my favorite pieces from years ago.We had so much fun making stuff. Hubby (Jerry) was on his half of the garage with the grandkids, working on his new chicken coop and we were on 'my' half working on furniture. I'll have to take pictures of his chicken coop and baby chickens to share. He bought some baby chicks on his way home from work on a whim last month. So we had to pick on him for putting the chickens before the coop.

Muddy Puppy Feet & Springs' First Robin

Spring is in the air here in Iowa. I have fresh trails of muddy puppy feet in the kitchen and hubby saw the first Robin yesterday! Those are sure signs that SPRING is returning from her LONG Wynter nap.

Poor garden... it's so drab and scraggly now. I've been watching the snow drifts stubbornly melt from my backyard garden through my kitchen window for a month. IT'S FREE AGAIN. Now we need a couple bright, sunny days with a good wind to dry it out. I walked through it today only to find out it's still too soggy to play in. I did walk through to take some pictures to start mapping out my plans for the year, though. Do you see that little patch of green on the upper left corner? It's alive!

I can't wait to see the green vines begin to stretch out again. My favorite barrels are waiting for new growth. This large one is always filled with a green sweet potato vine. It will spread into the tree and drape down across the ground in a couple months. Of course, my Castor Beans will soon tower over the area. They are my imaginary Palm Trees.
My little barrel will be filled with a red potato vine, with a "Palm Tree" towering in the background.
My medium barrel gets to be moved this year. Too much shade produced a weak and scraggly vine last year. As long as she doesn't fall apart, she'll be dragged over in front of the huge hollow trunk I sat in the back of the garden.
That's the back of my Garden Angel. She stands over 6 feet tall and her wingspan is about 5 feet wide. She holds my purple whatchamacallit vine.

I have a couple dolls to finish up today and some fabric orders to ship, then I'm off to the post office ---- then off to my rose garden to look for signs of life.

Stealing Space

I used to have an old trailor that I used for my crafting adiction. All my crafting fun was contained in one place. I used the front half for wood working and lumber storage, the back half for sewing, painting, inventory, supplies and office space. Hubby built a huge deck off the front so I could paint outside during the summer. I was so content out there in my beat up ole trailor.

After a dozen years of selling through craft shows and out of my home, I got completely burnt out. I couldn't get motivated to save my life! So, I went to work for someone else for a change. That lasted about 6 years before I got the itch to pick up a needle again.

I'm back home working for myself again and couldn't be happier. The old work shop is doomed for demolition this summer so I've taken over several rooms in the house. It's certainly not as convenient as the trailor. I have to keep things a lot more tidy so I spend a lot more time cleaning house than I had to before. Crafting is a messy job! With carpet in every room, I'm forced to use the kitchen as my staining and painting room. I have a lots of counter space, so I can't resist using this as my cutting and sewing room, too. I've taken over an upstairs bedroom for finished inventory. The front room used to be a 'Living Room', but is now an office/supply room.

I need to either build a house to live in or build a shop to work out of.

Gramma's Little Hip Huggers

What joy our beautiful grand-babies bring to our lives. We are so lucky to have them all close by so we can go snatch them up whenever 'Pappa' and I get the urge.
I just spent the last 7 weeks with two of our little ones (Ava & Corbin) as their daycare mom was on maternity leave. With today being the second day I'm waking up without them, I'm missing those morning snuggles.
My, how Ava's changed in 7 weeks. She's gone from crawling - to running, from no teeth, to 4 teeth, from sweet & mellow to sweet & sassy. We celebrated her first birthday while she was here and it's hard to believe a whole year has passed since she's been born.
In those 7 weeks, we gained a new one, too. Austin and his 1 1/2 year old sister spent Saturday with us while their mom and dad worked. Precious! Lily makes sure her new baby brother has all the attention he can handle. She gives him little love pats and hugs constantly and announces his every squeak and wiggle with concern.
Madisen is our oldest and is our little princess. She loves sewing and crafting with me. She taught me how to crochet last year - can you believe that! She loves creating things...just like gramma. To my surprise, she even likes making the primitive dolls with me and has never even wrinkled her nose at them (like her Pappa does).