Happy Halloween ~










Had a painting class last night at HL and we painted these pumpkins in the middle of a wooden tray! Everyone did such an awesome job and I'm so amazed at how quickly people that think they have no painting ability are able to pick it up when they are shown what to do. It was a fun class!
Here are some more awesome pics from the farm! These are my favorite of the bunch. The wind was blowing and the sky was such a brilliant blue! I wanted to lay down and just enjoy the beauty of the sky but since I'm terrified of any bug that crawls, jumps, moves, and can get on me that thought didn't last long ~ wouldn't even if I had had a blanket - love nature and God's creatures - but don't want them crawling on me.





















Off to bowling this morning ~ haven't bowled in over 2 weeks so it will interesting to see what my scores will be like. UPDATE: bowling scores were just okay today ~ 115, 168, and 153. My average was a 159 until today not sure how much it will go down.

Our family weekend R&R trip to the farm
It was so relaxing and much needed after how busy we've been here in the McTier household. It downpoured all the way up and let me tell you it wasn't too fun playing frogger with all the frogs that jumped into the road - hundreds - YUK! I'm sure you get the point. I kept cringing after each one and letting out a little yelp. I couldn't stand to hear it.
Here are a few photos from the farm. It's so peaceful out there. Blogger is being tempermental with me so I'll try and load the others later. The boys got some farm work done - got all the firewood loaded on the tractor and up by the house and the ladies just relaxed ~ Oma read a good book, Lynne and I went to a couple of antique stores up in Harlem (a quaint little town up the street from the farm) and found some awesome goodies - I'll share pics later. We played poker and watched movies ~ no where we had to be, no phone calls we had to answer and no computer that we had to check. It was nice and again much needed.




This is the view I hope to be seeing out my front windows when our house is finally built. I'm standing on the hilltop where someday it will be and the view is just breathtaking!
The wind was whipping through and grasshoppers were slamming into me left and right as they were trying to fly through the air.















This pond is the lowest I've ever seen it in the 16 years I've been coming to the farm. Opa said he thought it was the lowest he's remembered it in the 30+ years they've lived there.

Off for some R&R and inspiration ~
I love going to farm! Love to walk to the back pond! Love the scenery! Love the thought of my dream house in the middle of our land overlooking the back pond - someday ~ it will be built ~ some day soon I hope. Of course it will have a scrapbook & painting room. I'll share some pictures with ya from the farm on Monday. Enjoy and make the most of your weekend.

HOLIDAY WINDOWS
These are the two latest windows I painted. Feeling in the Christmas spirit now that it has gotten a bit chilly around here. Mid 60's which is quite a change from the high 80's low 90's last week.


Holly, berries, pine needles, pine cones and a cardinal.
SOLD









Pine needles, pine cones, berries, poinsettias, and a small little bird that you'll miss if you aren't looking for it.
SOLD




Didn't go bowling on Tuesday - so no scores to report. I was still not feeling 100% so I stayed home and got some things done around the house and rested finally.

Now I've gotta get projects ready for my painting class coming up on Monday and all of my painting projects for November. I have some ideas but am having a hard time finding supplies at my new HL. You can only paint on wood and paper mache so many times before people become bored. Will go again today to HL to see if something pops out at me to paint.
Just got a BUNCH of new scrapbooking stuff and HAVE TO MAKE TIME to sit down and get my pages done! My photos are sittin' there cryin' for me to do something with them.

October 21st Happy Birthday Debbie!!!
October 23rd ~ today ~ Happy Anniversary Mom & DadI tried calling but all circuits to Germany have been busy for hours now! What's up?Hope you guys had a great day together!


I'm BACK! I so wanted to update every day this past week but was too busy some days to breathe. So, here's what I've been up to ~ painting, painting, and more painting plus everything else a wife and mom of three boys does daily.
I didn't bowl on Tuesday so no score updates - although someone on the league did beat my high score with a 229. boohoo. I had a doctors appt.
Thursday our spouses group had a "Think Pink" function and we had such an awesome speaker. She is a breast and pancreas (SP?) cancer survivor. We had someone from the Susan G. Komen foundation as well that spoke to us all about the importance of self exam.
Here are the things I painted last week:




Old world Santa
SOLD















Sunflower pitcher and glasses for one of my
sons teachers. I gave her a pitcher last year as a teachers gift and she wanted a set to give to her mom for Christmas this year.

Roses with white hydrangeas ~ The wood
on this window was too good to paint over.














I knew that I would paint the pomagranites but didn't know I'd paint them on a window. Love this fall window with the fruit, leaves and sunflowers.










Sunflowers with butterflies











Calalillies

I have always wanted a bouquet of calalillies in a vase by
my bathtub - don't know why just love them. Thought they would look pretty on this tall window.













Irises, tulips and white flowers. I thought of my mom the entire time I was painting this as she absolutely loves Irises.
I SOLD this this past weekend at the fair so I'll just have to paint another one for her.








Pansies and daisies















Fruit window - apples, grapes, peaches,
pears, cherries and plums.












Hydrangeas - probably one of my favorite flowers of all time.



blogger is being fussy today and not letting me upload anything else right now but I'll keep trying later.

I went to a fair this weekend and it was just okay. It was geared more for games and stuff for the kids and not really what I had expected. Most people said they didn't know there would be vendors there BUT...I made a lot of contacts sold enough stuff to make up the cost of the pitch and had a great time chatting with people about my ART. Three vendors next to me packed up before 3p.m. because they hadn't sold a thing.
Hubby and I aren't feeling too good today. He had to go to work and I've been able to stay home and regroup and catch up on some stuff that I've neglected over the last 2 weeks. I am still way behind on a lot of things but put a dent in most of it today.

Happy Monday
Taught a painting class this morning - had a blast - we painted poppies on a tall terra cotta pot ~ everyone did a gorgeous job - I managed to take my camera with me today but did forget to check with them to see if it would be okay if I posted their pics - so after I do that - I'll share the photos.
Here is what I painted this weekend:


THIS WINDOW TOOK ME VERY LONG! I have never been a fan of painting magnolias. I love them and think they are a gorgeous flower - I am a southern girl you know ~ LOL.

This took me twice as long to paint as the other windows I've been painting - just cause the detail that goes into a magnolia and of course since it's not my favorite flower to paint I was VERY critical ~ but have to admit I'm pleased with the final product.



SOLD









I also painted an apron so that I can wear it to my painting classes and not get paint all over my clothes ~ plus I just thought it would be cute to wear.


















Here is a close up of the apron - wild rose with pansies and daisies.


















Found this great plate and knew it had to be painted - to plain with the great decoration and nothing in the middle. I painted a peach on it and it's actually going to be given to someone at a conference - the lady that got it from me needed something that was really "Georgia" so what better than a PEACH?!


SOLD

















One of my favorite flowers has always been the dogwood. The trees are absolutely gorgeous when they are in bloom and I really like the ones that have that hint of pink on the edges.













I am doing something really exciting tonight - I've been invited to the Perry Arts League to do a demonstration for their program tonight. I'm very nervous but excited! I'll share with ya tomorrow how it went.
Have a great week!

WEEKEND CATCH UP
Where has this week gone? Here's what I've been up since my last update.
I never woke up Thursday. Was so tired all day long and went to bed at 9p.m. Felt like a new women on Friday! Got some painting done on the windows ~ and painted a window and cake plate for the boys bowling league raffle.


I painted these Friday ~
Love poppies. We used to have HUGE red ones in our garden when we lived in England and they were absolutely gorgeous. I love the wild ones too that grow on the side of the I75 here in GA. Pink, Red and White poppies all mixed together and such a pretty sprinkle of color.









I love blue and white and have some really cool Spode Blue and White dishes from England. I have some of them on display in my kitchen but since my kitchen is primarily GREENs I didn't put it all out.



This is the window I did for the bowling league raffle. Think it was well received a quite a bit of money raised for the league which is great!





Got home from bowling and took my Dad's car to get a new battery. Then on the way home almost got into one of the worst wrecks ever. This guy went up over this hill and the ladder which was way too long to be in the bed of his truck went flying out! It landed on the road thankfully and narrowly missed taking out two motorcyclists. Two cars in front of me stopped cause she saw the ladder and it landed right in front of her car. The guy in front of me had a motorcycle in the bed of his truck and it went on it's side as he swerved and then I ended up just on the left bank of the road still in the grass - thank God no one was behind me and I was able to stop. The lady two cars ahead didn't realize she couldn't run over the ladder as she was trying and the guy behind her got out and moved it and put it in his truck to take to the guy that lost it. AGAIN, thankfully no one was behind me still on this VERY busy road. I was able to back up and get around these two cars and get home - shaking all the way!

THANK YOU SHARON!!!!
I got this trade in the mail today - Sharon's Artist's Trading Card. LOVE IT. I'm mailing yours on Monday. THANK YOU very much.






Hubby is off with son #2 for a soccer game and I'm off to my painting room to get some windows done. Will share later.

BRAIN BLOCK
I've had brain block all day and cannot figure out what I want to paint, how I want to paint, etc. I feel like I've gone around in circles since I got up this morning. I probably should have gotten up at 5:30a.m. when I was awake ~ instead of going back to sleep and getting up at 6:30a.m.
Oh well.
I did manage to get my new canopy (for my upcoming craft fair) put together ~ thought it would be a good idea to get it out of it's wrapping and put it up since I've never put one up before. TOOK me over an hour - it's hard to get all four corners to go out when you are just one person pulling in one direction ~ you know what I mean.
Anyway....enough about that.
Had a painting class yesterday at HL and it went fabulously well. The ladies did an awesome job on their plates ~ they went with the popular vote "the pumpkin plate". Forgot my camera so asked them to please take pictures and either email them to me or bring their plates with them to my next class so that I can take pics. HAVE TO REMEMBER my camera.
I did have a play yesterday with the CRICUT machine since my friend Terry is coming back from the beach today. Here are a few things I cut out:

I started just before the boys came home from school and started making some flowers and Christmas stuff and then when they got home and loved what this machine was doing - I made them some bookmarks with animals on them. This machine is incredible - when it works properly ~ OKAY, when the operator knows how to work it properly. HAHAHA
The details are so intricate. You have to know when to adjust the pressure of the cut and the speed at which it cuts - all things I think it should know when you decide what you are going to cut. You have to tell it those things and I THINK it would have been easier to have a button asking whether you are using card stock or regular paper. Verdict is still out on whether or not I wil purchase one for myself - might wait til they go down in price.
Painted this last night. Has two hummingbirds, one butterfly, 4 bees and 1 dragonfly ~ can you find them all?











Here is what I managed to paint today ~
Still not what is in my head but hopefully by this evening I will figure that out and paint it!


Made this one so that you can put 4x6 photos in the vine windows. Not sure if I'm gonna add something to the bottom ~ thought maybe something ~ Bloom where you are planted ~
F A M I L Y ~ hooks for hanging things on???
Let me know what you think I should do!

Bowling day ~
Okay here they are, my bowling scores for today: 134,155,191 (480 series) I started off slow but found my game in the end thankfully.
Hung out at the Georgia State Fair yesterday for about 5 hours and had a fabulous time. Lots of walking - kids were out of school and their admission was free ~ it was also Military appreciation day so we only had to pay my admission. Boys rode tons of rides, played lots of games and we ate way too much Fair Food! YUMMO! Funnel cakes, corn dogs, cotton candy!
I fixed the flower pot on my topiary window - took about an inch off each side of the pot and am more pleased with it. Not sure if it's enough but it's staying like it is.






















Lovin' this window - I painted it yesterday after we got home from the Georgia State Fair.
Love this pink roses with the purple flowers mixed in.










Working on some wooden plates for an upcoming painting class I'm teaching at Hobby Lobby. Love those stamps I bought last month!

Not sure if we are gonna do this plate or
the one below with mums on it.
I like them both but the VOTE this morning with my three boys was this one with the pumpkins.
Maybe, the class attendees will get a choice - we'll see.














Fall Mumms