DOG DAYS OF SUMMER!

Elle wants you to know that these are indeed the DOG DAYS OF SUMMER! Or as the song says “Hot Times in the Summer Time”.

WOW IS IT HOT HERE IN TEXAS!!!!! Tomorrow marks 40 some days of heat registering OVER 100 degrees with another WEEK of the same in the forecast. Often between 108 –112!

And how do we stay cool????? Like Elle we put on our swimsuits & head to our neighbors pool!!!! That’s the only way to beat this heat! Grab a noodle & come on in….

Elle just loves to swim! And she is one stylin little girl let me tell you! Can you believe she is 10 months old now? And this cute suit & towel is found at Build A Bear Workshop which has great outfits for little dogs… There’s even a place for their tail to go through like on this suit.

And when I’m not swimming, I’m enjoying the online workshop Bo Ho Bliss by my friend Deryn Mentock. Check it out & see if it’s something you can’t live without!

Hope you’re staying cool~ And for all of you that have cool weather or rain…. SEND IT DOWN HERE!!!! We’re cookin!

HUGS! Charlene & Elle

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr Baby It’s Cold Out There!

My last post showed you our trip to Farmers Market with beautiful blue skies & temps in the 70’s. Wellllllllllllllll that’s not the case this week. And all those beautiful flowers & flats of pansies I planted…. are all covered with beach towels & blankets thanks to an Arctic Blast that has descended on us for this whole week. In the theme of this I thought I would share some photos I found & thought very interesting. In 1911 (Yes!  100 years ago can you believe that?) it was so cold that Niagara Falls froze completely. Can you imagine? And of course they did not have the wonderful source of central heat like we do today.

Can you IMAGINE?????

I hope you have enjoyed these vintage images & little bit of history. And as for Elle & I… we’re staying in & using this time to organize the studio (yes, after the holidays it is a mess again for it was a “Dumping Ground” for “STUFF”) fix a big pot of soup & to rid our files of 2010 paperwork. Do you suppose I can get my sales tax return done & NOT pay the $50 late fee like I did the last 3 years????? Since it’s so cold & not conducive to running around….. MAYBE!

And Elle wants you to know that being such a short/tiny girl makes it really hard to run out to piddle when your belly drags in the frozen grass!!!!!! Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Stay warm.

HUGS! Charlene

Snowy Day in Texas & Mosaic Monday

I know so many of you have snow all through the winter & it does not fascinate or excite you! But, this is Texas & we don't get much. So humor me & let me share some snow photos. The vintage image above is one that my friend Cami shared with us HERE. I thought she was so pretty & since I was having a "bad hair day" for my snow post I thought I would pretend that she was me for this post. So, welcome to my first Mosaic Monday. I have always admired so many of you when you do a mosaic & have wanted to learn to do them too. Today have included a few in my post so, thank you Mary & all the other girls for letting me play along.

This is how the day started. A SOFT WET SNOW with great big flakes. It was already snowing when I woke up & it snowed all day long.

Here is the front of our house about mid morning. I love how the colored glass items I have in the flower beds stand out bright against the snow. See my pretty BLUE glass tear drop that hangs next to my wind chimes.

We saw a lot of these fellows about the neighborhood. The kids all had a GRAND Time. There were snowmen(notice he is wearing a cowboy hat), snow forts & snow fights to be seen on every block.

This mosaic is of the snow that night. I love how the light played off the snow to create a totally different effect than the day time shots.

And see those little pitter patter of prints? Well it is none other than sweet Ms Reba returning up the front walk. She just loved going out to explore in this "strange stuff"

Here she is all "FLAKY". She has been really sick with pancreatitis since Christmas & I think we are finally coming out of the woods (we have another blood test Monday morning). But, here she looks good & wanted to say thank you to all of you who continue to call, send emails, & comments about her recovery! BIG PUPPY KISSES!

I loved the photo of this bench by my front door. This bench used to belong to my sweet Daddy when they lived in Houston. When we moved in here 11 years ago he gave this bench to me. He used to sit out there & smoke (bad habit for sure) & enjoy my garden. Isn't it pretty with the snow & the way the light is shinning on it?

My last mosaic is of the HUGE pine tree next to my house. The limb hanging low from the weight of the snow & the snow filled sky in the background. I LOVED the golden glow in these photos. You can see those huge flakes still coming down. Thank you for visiting & sharing my snowy mosaic post.

Chirstmas Eve Snow in TEXAS!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS dear sweet friends. Bless each of you & those you love. Let us all keep the REASON for the Christmas Season in our heart's & minds EVERYDAY! Thank you Dawn for the lovely nativity image you shared with us! BEAUTIFUL!!! Don't you love the look on sweet Mary's face as she gazes into the face of her sweet baby? I do!!!!

Speaking of babies, here is my sweet fur baby Ms Reba. We just brought her home from the hospital after a scare yesterday. She has the beginning stage of kidney failure & I thought she had taken a turn for the worse. I just couldn't face loosing her at Christmas!!!! It turned out it was colitis. After IV's (see her blue bandage) lab work, $400.00 she is back home with us just in time to stand out & WONDER what this white wet stuff is.............................

I don't remember EVER having SNOW on Christmas Eve here in Texas!!!! Beautiful!!!!! I had so envied the photos of the snow in Monica & Vicki's post. And now I have a few of my own to share with you.

This is my back yard.

I'll share more another day. I hope each of you are safe, warm, with loved ones & enjoying this beautiful time. You are each a GIFT & BLESSING to me! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

ICE! Both the Weather kind & some ICE ART

JACK FROST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Shows his UGLY Face here in Texas this morning. I know many you have had cold miserable weather a lot this winter. We have had some cold snaps but nothing much to complain about. I did post about a little ice a few weeks ago & it looks like we will get another helping of this tricky stuff today. We woke to temperatures hovering around the freezing mark with rain, sleet, & fog. The temperature is supposed to continue dropping all morning & more sleet & rain is due to move in this afternoon. That should make for a lousy commute home for lots of folks. I am so happy to be snug indoors with my furry baby snoring at my feet. I WILL CLEAN MY WORK TABLE TODAY! That is a promise! I haven't been able to create anything due to bags stacked on top of each other all over my work surface. But, treasures reside in the bags :)

Now, for Jack Frost of another kind... In December we took the family to see ICE at the Gaylord Texan. I had posted previously of a past visit but, wanted to share some of the wonderful Frozen art from this year. This chilly guy was at the entrance. Imagine this HUGE Jack Frost greeting you. He was probably a story & half tall.Each October, 40 artisans from the city of Harbin China, arrive in Grapevine to begin sculpting the two million pounds of ice in this walk through display. It is located in 14,000 square feet of theater space chilled to a teeth-chattering 9 degrees Fahrenheit. The artist freeze thousands of LED lights in ice, building a three story slide of ice, craft hundreds of ice sculptures & install dramatic lighting. This chilly little fellow is holding onto his icicle & enjoying lots of the fun.

This is a close up shot of the large pond with an ice bridge that you can go on for photo shoots. Notice the LED lights built into the ice.

Here is a photo of my honey & I to give you a perspective of the size of this bridge. Note: they give you those big blue parka's at the door. They don't do a thing for a hair do!
This is my grandson entering the large ice gingerbread house. He is 8 years old so you can again judge size by comparison to his body in the doorway. Overview of the outside of the gingerbread house from a distance.
Huge sweet treats are carved from colored ice.
Here is honey amazed by the wonder of all these treats. Again, using him for size comparison you can see these sculptures were no small feat to create.
Sweets!

This is an overview of the three story slide. There were three separate slide coming off the top floor. You can see Rudolph & all his friends are flying off the top level. My grandson is coming down the middle slide. This again shows size comparison. The walls of ice in between the slides were huge thick light filled blocks. I hope you have enjoyed my frosty presentation on this chilly (COLD) Texas Day. I hope that each of you/my friends are warm, safe, & happy. Thanks for stopping by. Please leave me a comment for I always love to know who has visited. Hugs.

What a difference a DAY makes!

Yes, I know that is a song but... I was sharing the tale of our lovely warm Texas weather & the violets blooming under my bench & the violas & pansies loving life... TODAY... NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!