Recent Love Boxes added to the SHoP...

SHoP

The Greatest Game Every Played...

Darling film.. We all loved it. The caddy is great!

Dido & Aeneas...

... was fabulous! Thanks Jackie!

Hallway is sooo close...

About 2 months ago, the city informed us that we had a small water leak... almost imperceptible.
We looked everywhere, but couldn't find it... until one day I was in the hallway and looked up.

.. the ceiling had sunk. Ooops. The swamp cooler hose had sprung a leak.

Bummer, but when life hands you lemons.. do the best you can to make lemonade... so we painted the hallway bright yellow!

It's still not quite finished, but sooo close.

We are really enjoying another bright, happy color.

The Shadow of the Thin Man...

This, so far has been my favorite of The Thin Man series. Loved it. Myrna Loy is fabulous and lovely! We watched this last night with popcorn and had a great time.

Back to School House...

In the ShOP...

Stand and Deliver...

"There will be no free rides, no excuses. You already have two strikes against you: your name and your complexion. Because of those two strikes, there are some people in this world who will assume that you know less than you do. *Math* is the great equalizer... When you go for a job, the person giving you that job will not want to hear your problems; ergo, neither do I. You're going to work harder here than you've ever worked anywhere else. And the only thing I ask from you is *ganas.* *Desire.* ...
...If you don't have the *ganas,* I will give it to you because I'm an expert. "

In that last line, is the secret to great leadership... to give another person the desire to better themselves... to expect great things from them.. to give them dignity and skill.. to show them who they really are and what they can really do.
Stand and Deliver is one of my very favorite of all time films. If you haven't seen it in awhile... check it out... It's a beautiful thing.

It may seem like a bad time but...

It may seem like a bad time to promote items, businesses and services on this blog. We are in a depression and no one I know is feeling materialistic. Save, save, save is the mantra of the day. We are in a depression. All of us have friends, family, neighbors that are out of work so it hardly seems like the time to buy a new house, handbag, fancy dinner, but sometimes it is the counter-intuitive thing that is the right thing to do.
I am not telling anyone to be irresponsible, or to purchase something they can't afford, or to go into debt. I'm not. Really, I'm not. That would NOT be good. I try to be good.
I believe strongly in paying 10 percent to the Lord and then paying yourself by saving 10 percent.
But, if you've done that and were planning to have the hallway painted, splash out on lovely red shoes or get a new hairdo. Do.
If we don't, more and more of our friends and neighbors will be out of work.
When you buy something that you can afford and have cash to pay for, you are helping to support some one's family. You are keeping the car repairman, beautician, salesperson or cruise director employed. Employed is so much more than money and security. Employed is self-determination and dignity. Employed is a spiritual principle that is a blessing of peace and a blessing of confidence and more.
So, that is my reason for promoting business (lovely items) on my blog. Business is one of my causes and I want the places I patronize, those who are talented, creative, innovative and hardworking to survive this thing. It's almost impossible in the good times.
So, if you have occasion to feel patriotic... Go shopping! .. even if it's just for a small treat..
Today, I did my patriotic duty. I bought a double blueberry donut from Tasty Donuts!!!
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm. Doing the right thing sure tastes good!

Cutie Skirt...

We bought this skirt and it's so cute on. Really darling. It's now on sale 1/2 price with a few sizes still available. It's quite long.. hard to find right now.
Boden

Happily Ever After...

Melissa & James had a beautiful wedding...

=

May Pole...

Candy Shop... Free candy!

Dancing into the night...

... on the terrace overlooking the river...

... leaving by way of an honor guard of bubblegum pixies with sparkler swords and daisy toes...

.. for time and all eternity.

Mints...

Little c and I recently collaborated on this

love box featuring

"Mints" the very cute Springer Spaniel...

Pretty Flowers at Moms...

The Professor and the Madman...

I wish so much that medicine understood more about the crippling, devastating condition of schizophrenia. Some people live too long and Dr. Minor has to be one of those people who suffered severe mental torture almost every night of his long life feeling that he would be forced to do something awful by the demons who raged in his mind after dark.
During his better hours, he did what he could to assist in one of the greatest, if not the greatest literary efforts.. the cataloging of the English Language.
The is a terribly sad and tragic, but amazing story.

Salt Lake City Magazine... Best of the Beehive!

If you purchase just one magazine this year.. this is my favorite. It's so much fun to go through and see all the the great talent we have in our fabulous state!

Grateful for Pioneers...

Many of the Mormon Pioneers converted to the church in Europe. They joined the body of the saints in New York, in Missouri, in Nauvoo. In each place they built a beautiful community, in each place they were misunderstood, hated and finally persecuted and brutally driven out.
Leaving their beautiful and tidy little homes, they crossed the great plains in covered wagons if they had means and handcarts if they did not. They took each step with great courage and faith in their convictions. They suffered greatly along the way. They buried their husbands, brothers, sisters, wives and mothers. They left their children in frozen, shallow graves as they listened to the wolves howl in the distance. But with faith in the goodness of their God, in his eternal plan of happiness, and in reunion they came into the Salt Lake Valley and built the glorious Salt Lake Temple in order to worship; a place where they could be sealed forever to those precious ones who were left behind.
I am forever grateful for my connections to these valiant saints and for the city they built with courage, industry and faith ... all in reverence and honor to God.
Hope you had a wonderful Pioneer Day.. July 24, 2009 marked 162nd anniversary of the day the Mormon Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley.

Images from the Eighth International Art Competition...

This painting of a warrior mother was a favorite.

This "Orion" quilt was simply brilliant and amazing... You have to see it in person.

I always look for the beautiful paintings of Larry Winborg, a very gifted artist from Farmington.

These are some paintings depicting the sacrifices of the Utah Pioneers that I thought were lovely.

The International Art Competition is on display and The Conference Center until sometime in October. Don't miss.

The Spring Garden has grown up...

This was the garden in the spring, early in June actually. It doesn't look like this anymore. The summer is passing quickly and I still have so many plans and things I want to do with my children before the summer is over... I wish time would slow down a bit so that I can catch up.
There are also a thousand projects in the house that need doing, but I'm trying to put most of those off. I can do those when little c isn't here to play. :(

Here's to making the most of the next 4 weeks until school starts again.

Elephant...

He'd look a lot cuter with a big red wooden bead at that end of the string and I thought about it, but you have to know baby l.. no matter how tight I get the thing on.. she'd get it off and try to eat it so.. until that stage is past.. no bead.

If you want to make a pull toy... it's easy with the help of

BANISHED

Silas Marner...

I loved this production of Silas Marner. It's so sweet. I could relate to the part where Silas sees all his gold in golden hair of his beautiful child. I've often thought that myself.

We Do Not Apologize...

One of my heroes, my great Uncle Charles flew a glider into Ste.-Mere-Eglise on June 6, 1944. The landing was assaulted with German machine gun fire. He lost most of the men he flew in with. He was captured, tortured and starved by the Nazi's. In the events of history, D-Day doesn't seem that long ago.

I have visited the Utah Beach in Normandy, France where Americans are buried almost as far as the eye can see.

I am tiring of an administration that seems so anxious to apologize for America. While this country has its faults, there is no more generous people in the world, and the thing they have been most generous with is blood.

The following has been finding its way around ... if you haven't read it, you might want to.

At a time when our president and other politicians appear to want to apologize for everything about the United States, here’s a refresher course on how some have handled negative comments about the United States . . .

JFK’S Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, was in France in the early 60’s when Charles De Gaulle decided to pull out of NATO. De Gaulle said he wanted all US military out of France as soon as possible. Rusk responded “does that include those who are buried here?”De Gaulle did not respond.

When in England at a conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example of empire building by George Bush. He answered by saying, “Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return.”

There was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were taking part, including French and American. During a break, one of the French engineers came back into the room saying “Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he intended to do, bomb them?”A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly: “Our carriers have three hospitals on board that can treat several hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day, they can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day, and they carry half a dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and from their flight deck. We have eleven such ships; how many does France have?”

A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English. He then asked, ‘Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?’Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, “Maybe it’s because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans arranged it so you wouldn’t have to speak German.”

Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane. At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.“You have been to France before, monsieur?” The customs officer asked sarcastically.Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.“Then you should know enough to have your passport ready.”The American said, “The last time I was here, I didn’t have to show it.”“Impossible. Americans always have to show your passports on arrival in France”The American senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he quietly explained, “Well, when I came ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn’t find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to.”