Flickr~MSH 11.07

MSH 11.07
Originally uploaded by we98bees

I've had my eye on this group on flickr and have been tempted to join for several months now. Okay, so today I broke down and did it. I was intimidated by some of the strange/offbeat subjects for the scavenger hunts but decided I'd give it a try. Being the last day of the November hunt I went ahead and managed to pull together all 20 from existing photo's in my pool! The fun is in having to find out about those strange subjects and use your creativity to find things that relate. For example Photo # 3 (from top left) was "Brotherhood of Man" which I found out was a Brit Pop band who had a popular song called "Save your Kisses for me" & I posted a picture of my brother trying to get a kiss. It was a bit of a stretch but that's how the game goes. The more relevant and unique your photo's are the higher your photo's are scored but personally I don't care about that portion of it. I just find it amusing to look at your photo's in a different way and to have "assignments" to go out and photograph things if you don't have them in your existing photo pool. I'll post my completed Mosaics when completed each month.

Swap Bot~Photo Scavenger Hunt

Clockwise from top left: 1.Something red 2. Food 3. Child 4.Coffee or Tea 5. Animal 6. Nature

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

Smokin Hot Black Friday Party

The Friday after Thanksgiving we had our 3rd annual Black Friday holiday party. This year it was a fairly large group of friends and family. We had a very funny "Black Elephant" gift exchange, tree trimming, a fire (in a fire pit-outside), warm mulled cider, lots of food, a specialty "Black Martini" and a really great time overall. The party certainly has gotten me into the holiday cheer and I've finished decorating the tree. Seems so early but it will just give us more time to enjoy it this year. This party really came about by my disgust for the consumerism of Black Friday and I choose to boycott shopping (by way of keeping busy cooking for the party) on Black Friday and the rest of the holiday weekend. I'm going to try to give all handmade (by me or other artists/craftspeople) items this year with the exception of some "charitable" gifts. Last year we gave all the kids in the family Defenders of Wildlife Wildlife Adoption gifts in animals of their choosing. I'm thinking along those same lines again this year but obviously we won't do quite the same thing.

Family Thanksgiving

Family Photo
Originally uploaded by we98bees

Here is the gang on Thanksgiving day. Clockwise from bottom left, Mom (Andrea), me, "Grand Bonnie", Susanah, Ryan, Hunter, Brendan and Dad (Ed).
We ate like kings and queens.
Our Menu:
Appetizers
Eggplant Caponata
Roquamole
Radish Spread
Mini Pigs-in-a-Blanket
Assorted Crackers and Cheese
Soup
Carrot & Ginger
Fish
Norwegian Fish Mousse (Fiskepudding) with
Mustard and Chive Sauce
Main Dish
Brined Roast Turkey With Pan Gravy
Side Dishes
Honey and Wiskey Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Green Beans With Ginger and Cashews
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Jamie Oliver 's World's Best Baked Onions Corn Pudding
Crock Pot Stuffing
Cranberry Sauce
Desserts
Bourbon Chocolate Pecan Pie
Crunchy Caramel Apple Pie
Chiffon Pumpkin Pie
Carrot Cake
_________________________

Calories 12602- Full of Bliss!!!

Our long hike at Seneca Creek State Park before our meal was a perfect way to enjoy what is sure to be one of the last warm days. As the storm rolled in the temps began to drop from 60 to 40 over the evening.

Jamie Olivers World's Best Baked Onions-I made these after seeing his Naked Chef episode where he made these for Jamiroquai (one of my favorite bands)
Mom's Beautiful Table!

Crunchy Caramel Apple Pie

"As the holidays approach, you may be preparing yourself to gather with family members you don’t usually spend time visiting...you can call upon your inner strength to stand in your truth and simply be who you are without needing their approval or heeding any criticism. Then, you can offer them the gift you’d like to receive when you also allow them to be themselves.
Being in situations that we might not choose for ourselves allows us to see ourselves in a new light. The contrast helps us to see our own strengths and weaknesses, and to learn to accept others for theirs. Part of the magic of family is the way in which it bonds diverse people together, allowing them to function as a complete unit. Who we are today has been built upon our past. If nothing else, rejoining with the family and friends who knew us in our earlier days allows us to recall where we came from so that we can appreciate all that we’ve been given." ~Exerpt from Nov. 21st Daily Om

I wanted to take a moment this morning while all is still quite to be thankful for every moment of my life. I am truly blessed with wealth of spirit, health and wonderful family and friends whom I love so dearly~Happy Thanksgiving to ALL!

Table project finished!

Phew, sorry it's been so long. I've been busy in preparations for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, house guests and our Black Friday Party! All of these things were super motivation towards finishing the Table and Chairs purchased off ebay this summer. All together we got a new cherry dining table and 6 chairs for under $400! I'm very VERY pleased with how this project came out. It was a lot of work but so worth it. Brendan and I really work well together on these type of projects and I love doing them, especially with him.

After



In Progress




Before

Birthday Resolution-More Museums

Instead of just making New Years resolutions I decided I would make one resolution each year on my birthday. So yesterday being my birthday I do hereby pledge to see one or two museums every month for the next year! I'll also post more info on these visits here on my blog.
I spent my birthday evening attending a wonderful lecture at the Textile museum with Gerhart Knodel as the speaker. It was so inspiring listening to him talk about his tenor as an educator at Cranbrook academy. The topic was "Hot House: Expanding the field of fibers at Cranbrook 1970-2007"
My original interest in going to this lecture was that two of my beloved college professors went to Cranbrook and studied under Gerhard Knodel. I was totally blown away by the many notable fiber artists alumni who are so successful in the field of Fibers today. Among them are, Arturo Alonzo Sandoval, Joan Livingstone, Wesley Mancini, Fuyuko Matsubara, Piper Shepard, Chad Alice Hagen, Nick Cave, & Bhakti Ziek to name a few. Please see the exhibition website for works by these artist and links to their sites. The tremendous success of these individuals says so much about the quality of education at Cranbrook and the talent of Gerhart Knodel. These individuals have and continue to pioneer the field of fiber arts and are creating contemporary works of art that break the boundaries between art and craft. The attention to detail, exquisite quality, insightful commentary on society and conceptual/experimental approach of these artists is truly inspiring!