Too Much Stuff

Check These Blogs Out

I'm not so good at this kind of thing, but Niki tagged me.  I'll do my best, but don't take my word for what I'm saying here - go check these blogs out.

I was nominated for a Blogging Friends Forever award, and now I'm going to pass the honor along to five others.  There are only five rules, and I'll have to violate them. See, I'm a rulebreaker. I haven't gotten started yet and I'm already breaking the rules.

The Rules:
1. Mention 5 and only 5.
2. 4 have to be dedicated followers of your blog
3. One has to be someone new or recently new to your blog and live in another part of the world.
4. Link back to whoever gave you the award.

I don't know that I HAVE 5 blog followers, to tell you the truth, so I'm going to mention friends and blogs that I like, whether or not those blog owners comment here.  And I don't want any of them to feel pressured to post about this - I want them to bask in the fact that I like their blogs. They can post only if they really want to.

1.  Check Niki's blog out. She's the one who tagged me. She doesn't blog. She doesn't make ATCs either. NOT! Me thinks this lady doth protest too much. She SAYS she won't do those things, and then she does. To be honest, I have no idea how she accomplishes as much as she does. She just moved, for goodness sake, and then she had a house full of company, and then she gets a bunch of stuff published. She's a dynamo, when she's not sleeping. ;-)  She's probably my most dedicated blog follower. Thank you, Niki.

2.  Jennie. She is an online friend of many years, and I hope one day to meet her in person. She is a funny lady, and she manages to translate that humor into her blog. She's another one of those people who accomplish so much and LIVES so much at the same time.  I think she's younger than me, but I might want to be her when I grow up. She doesn't post every day, but her posts will either make you laugh or go ooooohhhhh over some creation.

3.  Amy Sorensen. Amy has read my blog a few times, but I read hers all the time. And reading is the key here. Amy is a talented writer, and I love to read her book reviews. She picks up so much more than I do when she reads a book, and I find her reviews enhance my enjoyment of the book when I read it. Amy teaches journaling classes for Big Picture Scrapbooking, and this past year during the holidays she posted a great series of challenges on her blog. She doesn't post every day, but her posts are worth reading.

4. Lisa. Hello. Is anybody out there? Lisa is an amazingly talented lady who has been sadly neglecting her blog lately. I'm hoping to shame her into posting some more of her incredible work. She'll sneak a bit of humor in there too - don't read while sipping your favorite drink or be prepared to clean your monitor.  This link is to her newer blog, but you can see her old one here.

5. Um, I'm out of blogs that sort of adhere to the rules, and I use that sort of very generously. So, for the last one, it's Cindy. Maybe she can qualify as the "new" one. She reads my blog sometimes, and I read hers. She's an amazing photographer who also has a garden blog. Her plant photos will knock your socks off.  Give her a look. 

Again, no pressure. Just bask in the fact that you all are admired!

Watching Her Boy Leave

It's been a good month - lots of scrapping getting done. Amazing what a clean table and access to supplies can do.  I took this photo on the last day of school this year. She sat there until long after her boy was out of sight. 

Silly Boy

I counted last night, and over the last month, I've produced eight layouts.  That's pretty good for me, in fact, it's amazing for me. I guess cleaning up my scrap space has some benefits.

In the layout below, I was going for a bit of an Ali Edwards look. I combined photos from different times, but the photos all relate to the title. I guess this is also what Stacy Julian is trying to teach with her Library of Memories and Photo Freedom philosophies.

Saturday Creativity

I've been making, or rather remaking, necklaces for the last little bit. Today, I decided it was time to play with paper.  For some reason, orange and blue are just speaking to me lately (even though I profess to not like orange).  So, here's today's effort.

Review: Garden Spells

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I didn't know what to expect when I picked this book up and started reading, and I found that once I got a few pages in, I could not put it down. I was initially interested because the back cover talked about a special garden and a magical apple tree. While those provide that special magical spark, I fell in love with the characters.

If you liked The Secret Life of Bees or This One and Magic Life, you will adore this book. The characters are real and the things that happen are the things of real life. In addition to the magic, what makes this book so special are the relationships the characters struggle with - and their struggles are our struggles. You won't be disappointed.

View all my reviews.

Witchlight by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Witchlight by Marion Zimmer Bradley

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I should have read this book BEFORE I read Gravelight, but since there was nothing on the books telling me which order was correct, I ended up reading them as I did.

Of the three I've read: Ghostlight, Gravelight and Witchlight, I liked Witchlight the best. It has several of the characters present in the other two books, and they play a somewhat minor role. The main character, Winter Musgrave, has recently checked herself out of an asylum for the wealthy. She can't remember most of her past, and she thinks she's haunted or possessed. She seeks the assistance of psychic experts, but she must figure out what's happening on her own while discovering and confronting her past.

I really enjoyed this book, and even though I was warned about unusual twists, I was still surprised by them. I thought the story was tighter than the other two books, and I found it satisfying. Truthfully, I had a hard time putting it down.

View all my reviews.

Tiger In My Garden - Layout

I took the photos a while ago, and I'd been wanting to make a LO. I just wasn't sure how.  These are some of my favorite photos, and I used the large one as my banner on my garden blog, Instrument of Grace.   Once I smarted up and discovered I could print 8 x 12 photos at Scrapbook Pictures, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. 

And since I hadn't posted in a while, here's one.  It's for you, Niki.

Gravelight by Marion Zimmer Bradley

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book follows Ghostlight and has two of the same characters. The main character is Ghostlight is also a main character in this book. Gravelight is more tightly written than Ghostlight and its characters are more well developed. The story is also more intricate. I had a hard time putting this one down.

Three characters come together as tools of good, evil and the balance, each trying to harness or shut down a locus of power in West Virginia. Wycherly Musgrave (eccentric name, no?) is a privileged rich man who has been running away from himself and his demons most of his life. Mellusine Dellon is a successful actress come back to the hills of WV to try to find her roots. Truth Jourdemayne has come to WV to investigate disappearances and psychic phenomena. You'll have to read the book to find out what happens!

View all my reviews.

I Wish I Could Sleep Like This

I have trouble sleeping.  Not going to sleep but staying asleep.  Some nights it lasts all night long. Some nights it lasts only a few hours. It seems to get worse as I get older, and nothing I've tried helps.  And then a member of my household has to rub my face in it.  I took several of these pictures, complete with flash.  Not a twitch, nothing.  Her breathing didn't even change.

There she is, arrayed across two stacked beanbags, and not at all on a flat surface.  I have no idea how she can be comfortable or even how she can sleep in that position.  All I know is I want to be able to sleep like that.

Garden Blog Re-Launch

Last month, I started a new garden blog at Wordpress.  While a great free service, Wordpress doesn't allow me to have the visual content I need for my gardening blog.  So, I've started a NEW gardening blog, and I'd like for you to come visit.  You'll find it here.

In the future, my gardening posts will be on the gardening blog, allowing me to share more crafty things here.