Blue Angels

We were invited out to watch the Blue Angels this weekend by friends who have a boat, they like to go out and watch it when it is at NAS JAX every other year. We had been wanting to go but didn't want to deal with the ridiculous amounts of people on base so we were thrilled to get the chance to see it especially from the water. The tide was VERY HIGH and there was some very large debris in the water, it was overcast and the water was choppy which made it really hard to see. I say all this to say we hit a piece, a very large piece, ok so maybe it was a partially submerged tree... uhh yeah ummm... talk about something that makes you nervous!!! The coast guard boat happened to be going by so we flagged them down just to make sure we weren't sinking... so here is your picture of the cute coast guard... I was bummed I didn't get a closer shot because they were much closer while were were making sure the boat was ok. I thought it might be rude to take their pictures while they were doing that... hahaha....oh yeah we weren't sinking, incase you were worried.

On to the main event, which was actually last but I wanted to show it first because man these guys are AWESOME!!

The next few shots are sequential

I like to zoom this one in and look at the little bobble heads. I only have a point and shoot camera so you can imagine how close these guys were... it was slightly ridiculous...and loud.

They had a mock battle which was really fun to watch especially since I didn't know it was going to happen and things started exploding! We don't know what the cirle smoke ring was from but it looked really neat!

The heritage flight ...apparently the bird felt it should have a part in this.

Just because I like flags. Don't you?

Here we are! Lovely picture huh? Goobers

They are very sick of me taking pictures!!! I mean really can she put that thing away? (I took roughly 350 photos in a few hours...) These are some of the greatest people by the way.

I love how close birds fly by when you out on the water... as long as there is no poop involved!

This is downtown Jacksonville. The St Johns river runs right through it.

The Main Street bridge up for boats to pass though. You can see the Jaguars stadium directly behind them. I work on the right side of this bridge directly across the river from the stadium.

A pretty sail boat. I took this while we were flying down the river...

The perfect picture to end the day.

Hope you enjoyed the day... don't you just feel like you were there?

Sorry for the absence...

My goodness what a week! Sorry I have been MIA! And that I haven't been doing any commenting (I read everything people I swear!) I've been having computer issues and Vista and I are no longer BFF's. I should be back now though just minus a few weeks of mostly unrecoverable files... and yes I do backup however someone didn't tell me I needed to... I forgive him though because it really is Vista's fault... well not the lost files just the whole crashing part.
I have been crafting but I cant show some of it for a while because it is for people and I want it to be a suprise... I am sure this is a problem for everyone as christmas is getting closer! Anyway here is something I can show you.
I collected city pens for my funny german hat (what are those things called) when I was growing up and I wanted some way to display the ones that I still have (mom have you found anymore of these I know I used to have more). I love my header photo which my mom took in Austria this last summer so I decided to use it for a back drop for my pins.

It's not a perfect copy of the picture but you get the gist. I had alot of fun doing this it is actually 3d there are 7 layers of felt that build the picture. Which is why the shadows are so bad in the picture.

The box is from the Michael's Martha Stewart line. I got a bunch of them on clearance so you will be seeing some more projects with these in them. (If I can think stuff up)

He's such a hoot...

Here is the owl pillow... finally completed

I let his feet show more this time which I am totally digging...and don't even get me started on those feathers. This was my original plan for the feathers last time and I chickened out... I definitely think they are an improvement though. He's a little more subdued then I was originally thinking but he IS an owl so I think that is ok.

still digging the tree branch and leafs. Sorry about the lighting the sun was going down...

By the way I am keeping this one!

Oh and here is a picture I forgot to show you the other day. Aslan is getting ready for Halloween... can you believe it is next Friday? My goodness where has the time gone? It will be Thanksgiving before we know it!

I am off to work on a new sketch... wish me luck!

**check out these things I am loving bird pottery and this adorable silhouette plate. Gorgeous stuff. The Silhouette plate totally made me have this FABULOUS idea (even if I do say so myself) so here is the idea would it not be so awesome for your holiday dinner to replace name cards at the table with a custom silhouette plate of each person in your family? no names on the plate just each persons silhouette... agh! I totally want to do this! Has anyone already thought of this and I am to late? (if not I totally copy right this © JMC Creations 2008..that totally makes it official right? anyone want to buy the idea? Martha?)

Logo

So here is the result of the logo project


It has actually basically been done now for a while I just hadn't gotten around to making it a jpeg. I took Kelly's advice and just played with fonts until I got close to what I had drawn. I am pretty happy with it the only thing that will make it better is when I figure out how to make it just the letters and not have the white square background (am I making any sense here?) if you have any hints please explain this to me. I have photoshop elements and photoshop 7 so I know I have the ability to do this.... just haven't figured it out yet!!!

a bit of pottery

When I was visiting my mom last time we did one of Kelly's pottery classes at the store. It was A LOT of fun we brought in pictures of painting styles we liked and I love the Portuguese Pottery (you see it at williams-sonoma) it is (way) out of my price range so I figured why not try my own. I would explain the process to you but I dont want to butcher it Kelly might be nice enough to comment at tell you the actual names of the glaze and style and all that good stuff but basically you cover your bisque pottery with a few layers of clear glaze and then you can paint on top of it with a special glaze that works like water color. I love it!


When I got home I decided to give it another go at a place down the street (a total disappointment after being spoiled at the Patch Multi-Crafts) They only had basic glazes and puff paint available so this is what I ended up with (it's about a 14 inch platter) I love it too!


Ah and this is a great way to use up your day off... when there are other important things that could be getting done.

Definitely loving this! (now having to resist the urge to go buy more... I thought I had more... I NEED more!!!

Things I'm loving

Walking on the beach and watching the birds get their dinner. They are crazy by the way just flying along peacefully and then nose diving straight down into the water. They made me laugh.


Making it to the car right before it starts to rain.


completing an organization project one closet = one hutch. I am loving this!


Trying something new. Well it wasn't an ACTUAL butcher we are still scouting for one of those but I am still excited to have a freezer full of meat for only $70 you can see some of what is in there but let me tell you it is way more meat then I could get at Publix for that price I should add it up to see the comparison but I haven't. It will be saving me alot of money though considering all the Publix meat I buy goes bad the next day (NO joke!!!)


Here's the first meal from the trip chicken with red potatoes, shallots, thyme, salt and pepper and a little bit of oil in the oven 400F for 1 1/2 hours... OH MY GOODNESS it was scrumptious. So far I am VERY happy with the meat. I am weird about meat (that is putting it lightly) this chicken had NO nasty poultry smell NONE it was juicy and just good. I think I may finally be appreciating chicken! (sorry mom)

Alright I am off to finish cleaning my house... I keep getting sidetracked with organizing and I have people coming over tomorrow and baking to do!!!

On not forgetting

My dad sent me this article today. I think it would be worthwhile for everyone to take a moment and read it.

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200810u/how-to-support-our-troops

**edited to add** my dad sent this because one of our friends was in this class and was interviewed. Also interesting fact the President was scheduled to give the graduation speech to Kings Point that year (it was the same year uber graduated) and he blew them off for West Point. I am not surprised though considering Kings Point cadets are not obligated to go active duty (uber didn't he is an inactive ready reservist most of them don't go active duty from what I understand) so it wouldn't of had the same relevance. However, Secretary Mineta (former Secretary of Transportation) gave them basically the same speech.

*Warning* This post may bore/scare

Thanks for all of the owl love. I think this one will probably go in the shop because I am already in the process of making another one for me… : ) At this point it is just a matter of when I am going to be able to get decent pictures of it! I seem to go to work in the dark and come home the same way... it is also raining. Which isn't a bad thing expect for the whole no picture part.

I am in an organizing mood. I seriously think this might be a sickness I LOVE to clean things up However, I also love to let things get dirty so I am not totally OCD. The picture above is evidence of the whole messy part... look at that floor! ( or just look at the whole thing!) This is my buffet in my dinning room that I am in the process of making my craft cupboard. I have a craft room but there is no tv there and matt does his homework there so I am usually downstairs. I am finally sick of running up and down for items so I am packing everything into this one space (except for the thing that wont fit because they are too big) I think this should keep my supplies under control.

I am always trying to think of ways to make the house run MORE efficiently even though it isn't really necessary seeing as how we have quite a bit of space for two people. I really like to purge stuff out at least once a month. I always seem to find things I don’t really need which is amazing because I can honestly say that I don’t buy a lot, and also that the stuff I get rid of are old things we never haven't used (where they had been hiding I can't say). I am probably a minimalist, but I also really like the things I do have. That is my rule when I buy things I have to REALLY LIKE IT and feel like I will be happy with it for a LONG time. Ask Matt. I will seriously think over things for MONTHS it drives him up a wall he is like 'JUST BUY IT' and I am like 'but what if I don’t REALLY want it'…. the nice thing about this is usually by the time I make my decision the item is on sale… which makes me even happier (so what if matt is prematurely gray? It's distinguishing!)

So anyway I thought I would share with you one of the things that helps me feel more organized and run more efficiently. I am a list freak! I have a list for everything … well actually it is one list and is sub categorized. And I completely understand that lists aren't for everyone but if you do like the thought then this is how I set mine up.

To Do (errands to run/bills to pay ASAP)
pay Dr bill
pick up dry cleaning
To Get (anything I know I need to buy while I am out)
Tide
Tissues
Lavender
t-shirts
extension cord
2yds of linen
To Find (things I want to buy but haven't found)
Large Bowl
2x Lamps
baskets 18x16x10
Craft Projects (running list of projects I am or am planning on doing)
Owl Pillow
Lavender Sachets
House Projects (running list of projects I am doing now or soon)
Paint closet
organize paperwork
Long-term House Projects (things I would like to do at some point)
tile bathroom
clean/update Garage
Furniture to buy (list of things I am keeping an eye out for I may or may not know what I want)
Table
lamps
desk
gst rm chair
Kitchen (things/gadgets I want to buy, I am VERY picky about what I get bring in my kitchen so it takes me a while to find things)
pot lid rack
sifter
grill pan
Groceries (I try to always keep this up to date because I like shopping at multiple places and I never know when I might fit in a trip. )
diced tomatoes
bows pasta
sugar

You may think this is COMPLETELY over the top and well…it is. BUT if I am out I can run over the list and will know exactly what I need, also I add things like measurements so that if I find something I will know if it is the right size, I also add prices if I know what the item is going to cost(this is good for furniture or house projects), and when I am bored I can glance at it and see what I need to get done or what projects I already have laying around(this is good when I am about to go buy stuff and can instead stop and get old things done).

My favorite part about the list is marking things off. I love being able to look and see what I have gotten done.

Also I need to say that I have no issue ignoring the list. It does not bug me if I don’t get things done. I just like knowing that when I am ready everything I thought of is there, I don’t have to remember anything.

So now you can all laugh at me or run and hide… which ever suites you!

I will try to get more crafting up here soon but sadly I have to say nothing is anywhere near completion at the moment!

Tagged!

Ive been tagged by corinneaschaos

Here are my 7 random facts:
1. I am good at pretty much everything but not amazing at anything.
2. I hold people to high expectations and am usually disappointed 3. I will do (almost) anything for anyone.
4. My husband is my best friend.
5. My family likes to adopt random people and make them family.
6. I am very opinionated about everything.
7. I want to live near mountains and snow again someday.

I think everyone I actually know on here has already been tagged. So I am the lame chain breaker… another random fact I ALWAYS break chain things… haha…

Introducing…

The long awaited for new pillow design!

Hold your applause please. Alright just kidding…so anyway I am very excited about this design! I am so happy with it I am actually making one for myself (I would actually love to keep all my pillows but I have to be reasonable) so anyway I have been seeing all of these neat owls out everywhere so I decided to incorporate a bunch of the different looks into one of my pillow designs. His body is actually painted on the pillow and then I used felt and embroidery thread to add all of the detailing.

His chest is all puffy.

Oh and his eyes… ahhh… love them. I spent a half hour (ok maybe more) staring at buttons to find the right ones… the wooden ones actually have lines in them I think of them like wrinkles…

The tree branch is just the cutest thing I love the brightness of the felt! You will definitely be see more of the branch design!

I am trying to decide whether or not to even put it up for sale… I guess we will see!

Oh and yeah I know the pictures are terrible but I don't get home now until it is already almost dark so unless you don't want to see anything until the weekends you are going to have to put up with it...Sorry!!

(Thankya, Thankya very much)

nothing to see here

I was supposed to have a new craft item to show you today (it is SO close to being done) unfortunately we got slightly side tracked. Did you know we don’t have a printer at the house? I know it is ridiculous (especially with all the invite work that I do) I had an Epson and it made me mad so I Good Willed it (I am a little Good Will crazy) so anyway I am VERY over having to run out to get ANYTHING printed. So we started looking this afternoon and ran out to see if Costco had what we were thinking….
So yeah umm… they had that and a little more… Can you say HOLY COW! I am VERY excited about this we were planning on getting a new one in January but we ran across what Uber has been looking at for ever and it was on a really good sale so we went for it because our old laptop is um 5-6 years old now and so ridiculously slow you wouldn’t believe it. Plus I am hopefully starting to get more side work that really is going to require decent equipment!

I am really hoping this printer is as awesome as it looks it can hold two sizes of ink cartridges the small ones should print 900 color and 850 black and white and the XL ones should print 1700 color and 2450 black and white. I think this is slightly ridiculous! It also prints duplex and is a feed copier and scanner (and a fax). I am in heaven! I really hope it lives up to its full potential.
So I wrote this to say I am going to be late on the new craft item but I think you are really going to like it when I get it up!!