Etsy beagles Team is having a blog giveaway!

My Etsy Beagles Team is having our 7th team challenge blog giveaway on our Beagles blog! Pictured are the 12 entries for this challenge, titled "Dog Tired of Winter." We went with a Spring/spring colors theme. To enter the giveaway contest, go to our team blog . Entering is free and easy, and we are offering a beautiful prize; a handmade origami gift card set from our team member DogsRule! Contest ends Saturday, March 27th, so hurry and enter today!

Spring! The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

I finally got outdoors today to clean out my flower beds. They were still full of leaves from what we couldn't get last autumn. It was sunny and in the 60's! Pure joy for Ohio in March, especially after the tons of snow we had in February! As I worked, I felt the sun on my back. It was heavenly. Flash (my beagle, for those of you who don't know), was content to lie on the front porch in the sun, and watch me work.
It didn't feel like work at all, though. It felt like a cleansing - my flower beds were being cleansed of the remnants of past colder seasons, and my body was getting a much-needed dose of vitamin D, and some exercise. I raked away the leaves gently, hoping against hope that something just might be blooming under them. Suddenly, there they were! Bright yellow, vibrant purple, and sparkling white snow crocuses were smiling up at me! They were good.
I noticed one independant yellow crocus had somehow crept underground, out of the flower bed, and decided to come up through the vintage heater grates that I painted to use as stepping stones to the water faucet. Although I admired the flower's free-spirit, I know it will probably get trampled. That's bad.
Saving the worst till last, I must confess that the ugly tire track in the ugly mud on the side of our driveway is my doing. One negative thing about Spring in Ohio is the mud. It's ugly. The snow is still somewhat piled up to the left-top of the photo. When we have huge piles of the snow after my husband shovels, it acts like a barricade when I back out of the driveway (on the right of the mud-track). Once the "wall" melts, I back out a little faster and less carefully. Every single spring since we've lived here (oh, about 15 years), my poor husband has to smooth out the tire track and plant grass seed there...again. I live dangerously even having this picture. I'm sure it would be solid grounds for divorce. I can just hear my hubby: "And, your honor, she has done this EVERY SPRING for fifteen years!"
Hopefully, the fact that I take care of the house and garden, and actually enjoy yard-work (except for planting grass seed), will save me from appearing in court. :)

Happy spring, everyone!

Mad Tea Party!

Since the new "Alice in Wonderland" movie is all the rage now, I'd like to share some of the necklaces I made. Influenced by the character of the Red Queen, here are a few necklaces that go along with the theme. I guess the Queen is my favorite character in the story, because she's such a wild-card! ;) Also, she doesn't like white; sort of like me - I love color, and red is one of my top favorites. White is fine, but I love vibrant colors the best. The queen necklace made from a playing card is something I dreamed up last year. I did have a Queen of Hearts one, too, but it sold. The photos of the Queen of Diamonds necklace are pretty rough, so I never listed it.

I've been tagged! :o

Christie from The Blooming Wildflowers Project tagged me! The rules of this tag are:

1. open your first photo folder
2. scroll to the tenth photo
3. post the photo and the story behind it
4. tag five or more people

Here is my picture:

It's from my 30-year high school class reunion in 2004 (Yep, I graduated from high school in 1974!) I was 48 yrs. old when this picture was taken. The tall skinny guy is my hubby. :) He went to a different high school, and we didn't know each other way back then. We are an old married couple in this photo, since we got married in 1988. The reunion was really fun. It was nice seeing people I went to school with. I was surprised how many of them recognized me right away. I recognized some, but boy, people can change in 30 years! I like this picture because I look tall. My husband is 6 ft. tall, and I'm 5'3." I always wear 3" or even 4" heels when we go out, so it's easier to dance with him! I had long hair then, too, which I've chopped off (see my blog header). We had a great time at the reunion. My best friend from high school and I are still BFFs, and she and her hubby sat with us at the reunion, along with another best friend and her husband. Our graduating class hasn't had a reunion since, which is good in a way. I turned 50 and fell apart! LOL!

My turn! I'm tagging:

Cody's Closet

Creative Comforts LLC

Cthings blog

Indulge Your Shelf

Sensory Felteds