HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Soke !!

My Beautiful Madonna Painting

I believe I mentioned that I purchased a painting back in May. I went to the Fifty-First Annual Sidewalk Art Show in downtown Roanoke. The streets were closed and lined with tents filled with ART. There were many, many wonderful paintings and I enjoyed my leisure walk about town looking at each of them.

With all that beautiful and interesting art outside, I walked into a gallery just to look around. And there, just waiting for me to purchase her, was this painting of the Madonna. It was on a piece of canvas that was spread out on a table with some other pieces of art. I HAD to have her ~ I couldn't help myself. The gallery assistant told me that she had been purchased in New York with some other pieces of art. I bought her on the spot and left her to be put on stretcher bars.

After I picked her up weeks later, she leaned against the wall waiting for me to frame her. As you know, framing is not inexpensive. To no avail, I looked for a suitable frame everywhere I could think of ~ not much out there in the 20"x24" size and nothing fit the bill. She deserved a beautiful frame. So, off to the gallery I went a couple of weeks ago. I wanted something simple, yet elegant, and something that I wouldn't have to sell my car to get the money to pay for the framing.

I picked her up this past week. Now I have to find the perfect spot to hang her. I will never regret the money I spent to purchase, stretch, and frame her. She will grace my walls and give a sense of peace to anyone who looks upon that beautiful face.

These photographs don't do her justice. She really is a beauty!

The Green Cross

These wild vines are growing over the pole and wires very close to the Clifton Forge, Virginia, welcome sign. I was drawn to it immediately. I love seeing wild vines growing in large clusters covering large areas along the highways ~ the green is so thick and beautiful. I realize that some of those vines kill the trees and surrounding growth, but nature does what it wants and we might as well enjoy the beauty while it is there.

This particular growth of vines looked to me like a large green cross overlooking the area. I had to photograph it ~ I think it is beautiful. The hubs was driving and I yelled "Look at the huge cross". He, of course, did not see a cross anywhere and wondered what I was talking about. LOL! Plato was right ~ "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Dwight !!!

Wordless Wednesday

Thought For The Day

"IF YOU ARE SEEKING CREATIVE IDEAS, GO OUT WALKING.

ANGELS WHISPER TO A MAN WHEN HE GOES FOR A WALK."

~Raymond Inman

A Week To Remember

I had a great week with my son and his fiance. I only took 275 pictures this week ~ LOL ~ how do I choose what to show you?

We took my Mom (92 and still loves going out to eat) to one of her favorite restaurants ~ Red Lobster. She loved her lunch as well as spending time with her grandson, Casey, and Amanda.

I think Amanda and I went to every consignment shop and antique mall in the area. I need this week just to recoup from all the running we did. The one thing I purchased that I will share with you is my bench. It is made from a vintage bed headboard and footboard. I love the bedposts and am so happy I stumbled upon this bench. It will show up better once I paint the walls, but it fit great right where I wanted it.

Imagine how tired these two guys must be each night after holding the bar up in Isaac's Mediterranean Restaurant in Grandin Village. I had a fantastic chopped salad with chicken and hummus. YUM!

How great is this lion? He sets along side the steps at Amanda's parents house. His twin is on the opposite side ~ never the two shall meet.

The sites/views along the roads to Clifton Forge were wonderful. Couldn't resist a picture of one of the many wonderful old barns ~ so many of them are not long for this world. The dilapitated state of this one has a beauty all its own. .....the James River.......the rock formations on the mountainsides above the river.......beautiful sky.......deer in the meadow.......goodbyes at the end of a fun day.......

A week to remember!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Ann !!!

Izzy's Giveaway

Go check out the beautiful necklaces on Izzy's Blog and sign up for a chance to win one. The giveaway is tomorrow ~ Saturday~ so hurry on over.
http://stonespirit-izzy.blogspot.com

Clarksburg, WV

Ann, you asked if there is an Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Clarksburg. I looked online and found it. Picture posted. It looks to be very large judging by the door size and like one we would all love to see inside ~ looks like a church that should be in Mexico or Arizona ~ just has that Southwestern look to me. There are so many beautiful old churches all across the country. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to go see all of them?

I lived in Charleston, SC, not Charleston, WV, so I am not familiar with the Clarksburg area.

Stella Maris Roman Catholic Church

For those of you wanting to know, Stella Maris Roman Catholic Church is very old and is located on Sullivan's Island in South Carolina. While living in the Charleston area, my son and I would occasionally go to this church ~ there was just something about it that made us feel good ~ a certain warmth that comes with the age of the building ~ it is a small church with wood walls and ceiling and many old, beautiful statues ~ A very different feeling you get than when you are in a newer modern church. I am posting a couple more pictures from Stella Maris.

Wordless Wednesday

King of Mice Studios Giveaway

Carolee Clark of http://kingofmicestudios.blogspot.com/ is having a giveaway. Visit her Blog to enter for a chance to win this sweet little box, and then take a look at her wonderful Halloween art.

On Their Way

My son and his fiance are on their way here. They will be staying all week and I can't wait to see them. They are still living in South Carolina ~ they love the heat and the beach. My son will be working during the days, so Amanda and I will be off to consignment shops and the like. We love searching for those special items that we can bring back to life with a coat of paint or leave them "as is", depending on our mood. The hunt is just about as much fun as finding something that we love.

Amanda and Casey have been together for 8 years and I am so lucky to have a "daughter-in-law-to-be" that I have fun with, I can talk to, and we have a lot of the same interests. Actually, she just started her own Blog a couple of weeks ago. I hope she keeps it up.

http://ag-brighteyes.blogspot.com

As for my son, Casey.... I couldn't love him anymore than I do. It brightens my life anytime I get to spend time with him.

I'll post pictures of our "finds" this week. I know it will be fun.

I must tell you how blessed I feel to have made so many new friends because of my Blog.

Your comments are always appreciated ~ I look forward to them. Also, I get so much pleasure from reading your Blogs. Your passion for your art, your poetry, your pets, and all the things you share on a daily basis give me inspiration and puts a smile on my face. Thank you for that. It is fun getting to know all of you. It is comforting to see that most everyone out there live their lives with the same passions, joys, desires and fears.

It has been a joy sharing my thoughts and photographs with all of you. Soon, I will start sharing my art once again. This last move was a tough one, but the paints and canvas are unpacked now and I finally picked up that paint brush ~ I have a couple of paintings in the works.

So, today, I must say that NEW FRIENDS are definitely a blessing!

Gathering Nectar

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Jennifer !!

Community Pool 3..2..1..Jump

I took this photo (quickly - just in the nick of time) one day this week. I wasn't going to post it because it isn't one of my best - not real clear and it isn't a front view of the birds - but I decided to post it simply because of my surprise to see the different types of birds at the birdbath together. Of course, they weren't there long enough for me to even think about taking another picture. I was lucky to get this one and wanted to share what I thought was an uncommon thing to see.

Geek Squad

Last evening the Geek Squad came to our aid. The hubs had some things for them to do concerning his wireless, computer, etc. I had the nice young man check out my computer to see why it has been SO slow and doing very strange things for months. I was somewhat worried that I had some serious problems that were going to cost me buckets of money. Turns out, the computer just needs more memory and the other thing was my Webroot Firewall was fighting with my Windows Firewall. I suspected that two firewalls was a problem but I am by no means a computer whiz and wasn't sure how to handle the situation. I was so happy to see that little Geek Squad Beetle pull in my drive.
Last night, my computer was very happy and I was flying through the internet. It has been a long time since I've seen such speed. God bless the Geek Squad.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Josh !!

Wordless Wednesday

Early Bird

It's true, the early bird gets the worm.
So does the late bird and the bird in-between. Because by design, there are always more than enough worms.
In fact, the only bird that doesn't get a worm, is the bird that doesn't go out to get one.

~From: TUT....A Note from the Universe
www.tut.com

Today I must tell you what a blessing I consider TREES to be. I love trees - in all their glory, shape, color and function.

Just think about all the wonderful things we have in our lives because of trees: Furniture, Lumber, Firewood, Syrup, Paper, Boxes. Think about the shade that trees provide. The homes provided for creatures like birds and squirrels. What about the Koala bears and the monkeys - where would they be without trees? What would Christmas be without a Christmas Tree ~ not only to showcase our ornaments, but the smell is wonderful? Think about the beauty that trees provide. The great pleasure of seeing all the gorgeous colors in the Fall is enough to realize what a blessing trees are. I'm certain there are many more functions and joys provided by trees that I've not mentioned here. Think about those. We should take care of our trees - a blessing for sure!

My Day In Blacksburg

As promised, here are some pictures from my day in Blacksburg. It was a beautiful warm day and my body is still angry with me for walking 4 hours in the hot sun. I didn't see anything that I absolutely loved so my purchases were few. I bought a small 7" x 9" piece made out of vintage found objects glued onto an old cigar box - pretty neat - when I spotted the bird, I had to have it - made by a gal from Alabama. Also, I purchased a windchime made out of old metal items - made by a gentleman from Wytheville, VA. (Already hanging in the screened-in porch). I bought a few small Christmas gifts but can't mention them as the receivers read my Blog everyday.

When my legs started screaming at me, I got in the car and drove around Blacksburg for a while and took a few photos. It is a neat college town and so pretty. Virginia Tech is on a beautiful campus with lots of flowers and outstanding views all around. Even the buildings are beautiful - many of them made of large old stone. Of course, you can't mention VT without a picture of a Hokie Bird.

All in all, it was a good day.