Brown Family Christmas Party

Merry Christmas Everybody.....this year's Brown Party Brunch was hosted by the Glen Brown bunch. They are the only ones with enough grandchildren do perform the manger scene complete with baby Jesus....Jason shared a book he had printed of an interview with his grandfather. It was very special. Missing my dad, of course, this year I at least made it completely through the party without tears. Let's visit Christmas past....just a few pictures that are handy...

Above: Aunt Sabrina reads a story to the children.

Glen, Coot, Sabrina, Pete 

We really missed Aunt Loreli this year. She went home to be with the LORD spring break.

Uncle Coot also had a complete healing in heaven.

The Glen Brown family out numbers all of us put together....I think! They hosted a wonderful party.

We were blessed to have both our married children and spouses this year!

Sam, Michelle, Olivia and Travis

Aunt Jacque and her two sons.....daughter is on a trip!

Aunt Sabrina's family and her caregiver..."mob of Halls"

Uncle Clyde's family

This photo from long ago is one of my favorites...Aunt Sabrina and her brothers

Glen, Pete and Coot. (I am guessing Clyde was in Palatka)

Enjoy your holidays this year and hug your loved ones!

Lynda

Stamped luggage

I have decided the holiday season is just too busy to be crafting....but I did complete a jewel I bought at the Fancy Flea in Lakeland a few weeks ago. This perfect suitcase was ready for a make-over...and only $10. I used a bag of cancelled stamps I purchased in Paris last spring break. We found a vendor near Notre Dame Cathedral that had only 1 bag for sale. I walked away the first day, but returned 2 days later happy to pay her price because we did not find ANYMORE at any location in Paris. The entire bag was around $25.

Yes....Paris is always a great idea.....

So let's take a good look at the before, inside the suitcase.....

rather a mess.....rusty

So first I measured, sort of, the paper I wanted to place on the inside. Graphics 45 was my first choice.. After cleaning the surfaces, tearing out any loose paper ends......Decoupaging the inside was easy, just time consuming....

Next came the outside. I began in the middle with the largest French stamp I could find....then worked around placing the stamps in different directions.

What a job...taking around 6 hours! If I had an etsy site I would take around $50, maybe...

but it is my first luggage project....

Check out the fab animal stamps.....

a few close up shots for you stamp fans.....

Dixie says she wants to go to Paris next time.....

Sweet dreams Dixie Doodle....

Original idea came from Pinterest. I found a large black guitar case covered in cancelled stamps.....

I am thankful I started small!

What do you think?  THANKS FOR LEAVING A COMMENT!!!

Connecting with parties below:

Creative Hangups/Fall Wreath

Talk about Trash to Treasure.......The Tour Eiffel has found a home. I received a set of shutters from my son and his wife back in the spring before they sold their home. These shutters were old, "wormy" and green. No real worms....just holes....anyway, I decorated them for their new home using Annie Sloan paint and knowledge gained from the painting class I took this summer at Robyn Story Designs. Shutter #1 was painted in French Linen. I added a Vera Drive sign discovered in an antiques store in Knoxville, TN. Bird hooks from Hob Lob complete the functional piece. A nice hangup area for Mandi's Vera collection!

Green shutters....circa 1940's....the before look

Vera Drive found a spot in the foyer.....

I also added clear knobs that can also be used as hangers.....

We updated the fall wreath for the front door by adding more eucalyptus, flowers and feathers from Hob Lob and the H...

Tour Eiffel is in the LR next to the hallway and used for hanging anything you want....

This shutter was painted with Annie Sloan Provence. The Eiffel tower transferred to a transparency and enlarged to fit the shutter. Black thingy hangers were added for function.(Hob Lob)

It did take some time to paint....

I used the ASP cream diluted with water on a small brush to paint the tower. Several places had to be repainted.  My daughter said "Mom, did you sign it big enough"....ha ha.....with this much work to paint a piece....yes this is hand painted and took several days. The original inspiration came from Pinterest......

And below, at home near the hallway.....perfect for hanging diaper bags, Vera backpacks, etc.

It was a great weekend visit. It was comforting to find a  home for my projects. Thanks darling Mandi (and Grant) for trusting me to paint your treasured shutters!

Enjoy!

For all you crafters, paint-a-holics, Pinterest Pinners.....keep the ideas coming!

Lynda

Joining parties below:

Fall Decorations-Kiss Old Rusty

Thanks to Sabrina, my sister, I have a terrific collection of fall decorations. This morning I was putting together for the front porch welcome center near the front door. It turned out to be 1/2 day project....I asked my husband to clean the front lights....ended up with new lamps at the front door! Blessings!

My favorite new element....and the star of the show.....is the rusty barbed wire star from Atlanta!

It is paired with the rusty bedsprings pumpkin, also from Atlanta......

The clay heart is from Paris.....a trip with sister#3 last spring...her favorite pottery shop right down the street from the Artist Park, Montmarte.....

This clock was found in Paris at L'Objet qui Parle.....It took me over an hour to clean with q-tips all the dust in the cracks of this piece....

The yellow wagon is a gift from my other wonderful sister.....How cute is that scarecrow?

The fall plaque was created with Modge Podge, a canvas, and Ellison diecuts from scrapbook paper...

cut 6 leaves, 4 pumpkins and

small letters to spell fall.....glue down one sheet of fall paper, arrange the elements and glue following directions on the Modge Podge container.....

I spruced up the fall wreath with some hydrangeas.

The wheat bundle helps fill the space against the white wall of the house.

I did use a real plant in the shabby chic planter box....I grow ivy in the front of the house....

This is a cute, four-sided wooden pumpkin with metal leaves hanging from the natural bow....

Thanks for stopping by.......I hope to see you again real soon.

Please feel free to leave a comment. I enjoy each one of them so very much. I know folks are busy and don't want to take the time....go ahead.....make my day...

Lynda

Linking with parties below:

Whale Watching-Alaska

I thought I would share another day of our amazing adventure in Alaska. These pictures are from an excursion we took in Juneau. After boarding a large bus, our tour guide drove us about 20 min. from the town to a harbor. The tide was out allowing us to view a large number of eagles that were feeding on fish that were stuck on the rocks. We boarded a double-decker boat and launched across the bay to an island. After docking the boat, we went ashore to enjoy a salmon bake lunch at the Orca Point Lodge

A view of the lodge from the boat

Wonderful buffet, even though we ate on paper plates....

When you are on a cruise.....you want to eat small amounts.....

Below: a view of Mendenhall Glazier, which will be our last stop after whale watching....

Next stop......the light house and harbor seals....these seals climb on the buoy and sun....when the sun comes out.....

The baby at the top is my favorite...how cute is that?

We start looking for whales....first for the spout of water erupting from the sea....by the time I get the shot...it's all tail......

You have to be patient....after a while, we see some amazing activity.....

This behavior is called "bubble net feeding". The whales team together, dive down and release air bubbles to trap the fish....then surface for the feed.....you can tell they are about to surface by watching the birds that circle around......

There are so many bodies in this shot, it's difficult to tell how many whales are in attendance....

All the folks on that boat are crowded on the bow....

They started swimming toward our boat....the shutters were flying....

How about this shot?     I wish it was clear....but this was manipulated in Picasso....

This is where we had fun....a few folks volunteered to take our picture....this is special as we hate to ask other folks.....then we walked around and took couple's photos for them....met some really nice folks that way....

The glaciers in Alaska are unbelievable.  I would recommend this trip before you get too old to leave the boat....There is so much to see....this is just the tip of the iceberg....

I'll be back with more of each Alaskan port.  Thanks for coming by. Leave me a comment if you would like. I would love to hear your thoughts!

Lynda-please enjoy the parties below for fabulous ideas, recipes and crafting....