In Honor of Joey

"If every tear we shed for you became a star above; you’d stroll in Angel’s garden, lit by everlasting love."
~Author Unknown

Today I attended a funeral of a 12-year old boy--Joey Sudo. As the presiding priest said, "there are no words." The service was beautiful. Friends sang heartfelt songs, the priest was compassionate and wonderful, and the church was packed. Joey's mom and little sister said the eulogy. I can't even imagine how they did it.
The family has a very large support group, but they still need prayers. Prayers to get them through after friends and family go home; prayers for late at night when they pass by his room; prayers for when they see little boys his age playing in the neighborhood; prayers for every day they have to live without their son.
This post is in honor of a very, very brave boy who fought cancer for five years. It's in honor of his grieving family who stood by him every step of the way.
No need for comments. Just prayers.

Some Sweet Finds

Remember when I told you that I was looking for lavender colored bottles? Well, I did tell you, but anyway, they are hard to find and kind of expensive on ebay when you include shipping. So, today on my way home from a flea market and sale where I scored nothing much (except for a few large wood letters -see pics), I saw one just sitting at a yard sale...it has the sofest shade of lavender when you put it next to other old bottles. The best part (other than it was only $2) is the bottle has Portland, ME on it, which just happens to be one of my favorite places.

The letters, well, they were $1 each so I bought all of them -- four Z's, one X and one O ... I'll save the X and O for Valentine's Day (get it?) and the Zs will be all over my house and probably be gifts to various inlaws ... if you haven't guessed by now, my last name begins with Z.

All in all, a couple of sweet finds that made me happy. What made you happy today?

Craft Show Chaos

Spent part of my day yesterday at a local health club doing a craft show. It was fun, but not profitable. On the bright side, I met a new friend and got a lot of exposure for my etsy shop. I didn't have much space (and didn't realize that until I got there as the coordinator told me I would have a six foot table with eight feet of space)...NOT! But, I made do and reworked a lot of things on the spot. The lady next to me was so kind to let me use part of her table since she only had a small display. I told her that I would help her get on etsy, so we helped each other. Here's a lame shot of my "booth."

It's been a crazy week with end of the school year chaos, work, getting ready for this show and grieving for my friend and another parent who just lost her son in a car accident.  I'll be spending the rest of the week in and out of funeral homes and churches. I am thanking God for my healthy children. If you have kids, hug them today -- even if they are driving you nuts.

An Angel Enters Heaven

My friends...the little boy I wrote about in a post last month lost his battle with cancer this morning. His young life touched so many people and my heart grieves for his family. Please keep them in your prayers.

In Bloom: Inside and Out

 
It's lilac season here in Annapolis. So I thought I'd share some of my beautiful blooms with you...inside and out. I'm currently visiting my sister. We took an art class and celebrated her big 50th birthday last night. Will share the fun when I return!

Loud Music and Chemical Reactions

Last night I was invited at the last minute to a concert. My friend's husband was too tired to go and she had an extra ticket to see Portugal. The Man. 

Great band. Great time. I even liked the warm up band, The Lonely Forest (I attached a link to their music at the end of this post just in case you never heard them.

 So, any chemists out there? I was priming some things so I could paint them with acrylic or chalk paint and an interesting thing happened to a little metal candle holder I painted. I fully intended to paint it off white, but as soon as the primer hit it, it turned pink, and I mean pink. I know it's some sort of chemical reaction, but have no clue what type of metal it is...except it was brown before I painted it. Never had this occur before, have you guys?

So, I'm gearing up for a one day craft fair next week. All you locals...visit me at Big Vanilla next Wednesday from 7 to 9AM or 4 to 7PM...I'll be selling lots from my shop at special prices. And, maybe I'll include this pretty pink candle holder!

Enjoy the music:

The Lonely Forest.

Portugal. The Man.

End of the Year Teacher's Gifts

I used to give all my kids’ teachers the same end of the year gift – and I’m not ashamed to say, a big part of it was from the dollar store. However, before you think I’m the cheapest person in the world, let me tell you I spent hours painting the sundae glasses I bought there. The ones pictured are my family’s – well worn after many years of use. I especially love this train sundae glass (right) that I gave my son (who was at the time two and crazy about trains). Even though the train tracks have now worn off, I think he loved it. 

Anyway, I would gather four or five glasses, paint them with themes and place them in a pretty basket filled with chocolate, strawberry, and caramel sauce, plus a jar of sprinkles. It was a coveted gift. 

After several years of doing this, I got tired and decided to have the kids paint terra cotta pots and filled them with herbs…much less stress for me and the kids loved it. As a matter of fact, one of my oldest son’s teachers told me that she still has the little pot that my son painted when he was five …he’s now 20! I still think hand made gifts are best, but I do pitch in for the occasional gift card. I haven't decided what to do this year...the last year of elementary school. Sigh.

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