Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Finished my Easter Decorating !

Down to the wire, but  all is done! I started with my dining room table scape, using an Asian silk scarf that Barbara Marshall brought back from her recent trip, as my base, Moss covered rabbit topiary, Yellow daffodils in a white swirl glass vase, White wooden bird house, Verdigris metal frame, Terra Cotta rabbits, Small ceramic box with petite rabbit, jewel eggs, and a Teena Flanner paper mache Rabbit.



My Easter mantel for 2012,  Hope you can see the little moss covered rabbit topiary on the left and take notice of the cute birdhouse in the arrangement. Oh and I love my little wire plant stand with the pink roses, too cute! Perched atop is another one of my paper mache bunnies.

Spring in the Garden is Early

Normally this time of the year I would be enjoying my Azaleas, but alas, they have already bloomed! We have had such a warm winter, and this week they said we might hit 90 degrees! So now when I went out this past weekend I noticed all the plants that usually bloom in late May or Early June, are already busting open! My Yellow Alamandas is bloom, my White African Iris are in full swing, and my Double Watermelon Amarillos are now open full! Just had the yard sprayed with weed killer and the fertilizer is already down too. Next is my favorite part, shopping for annuals and getting red mulch for the beds, it just makes them look so finished.

Friday, March 16, 2012

A Great Artist is Born...Maybe...continues

Thought I would share the latest on my adventure into painting. This has not been easy, but I am pleased with my efforts so far. I'm sure this will change again, as I just keep tweaking! The two faces on the left are what I like , not so much the one on the right, so I know that will change. I am surprised at how these faces have come about, I thought it would me a more ethereal looking scene, but a little more realistic looking than I expected. If you refer to my inspiration photo, there isn't quite the amount of detail in the faces, I just can't seem to go there.

But I am going to keep at this and hopefully I can come up with a painting that  I'll be proud to say "I did that"!

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Gracie's Marker is Finished.



I finished Gracie's marker today. The purple broken hearts are so appropriate, because mine surely has. This has been a very lonely time in the garden, I find myself actually talking to her as I work. This is the first mosaic that she has not walked on or rubbed up against, but will now lay under. I put it in the spot she liked to sleep on, so if she was here she would be laying on top of it. RIP my precious Gracie, I will be with you in the garden.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Making a Marker for Gracie

I have been trying to come up with a marker for Gracie's grave site. I have decided on a 12" x 12" stepping stone. I remembered I had a statue of a grey cat in the back yard, actually it looks quite like Gracie.I will use it in the design. I have sat for a long time just looking at the square of concrete, hoping to have some kind of epiphany for the design. But I keep looking to the left, and there is the towel that Gracie had just laid on. She was by my side for every thing I did in this yard, I mean every plant, every mosaic, every project, always having a comment to add. Just being here in the garage, I find it so quiet, it's like the "fun" has left the yard. I have the collar that she wore, there was a small purple heart with her name on it, I will try and use the purple heart design, put her name on the stone and make sure there is enough room for the grey cat statue to sit. A white tile background will look so pretty too. I'm posting a picture of what I have so far.

Monday, March 5, 2012

My Most Precious of Cats, Gracie is Gone...

Saturday March the 3rd working in the garden, raking leaves, my Gracie was right there with me, just like a million times before. She was with me every time I potted a plant, worked on any of my projects in the garage, she just had to be right there in the middle of it all.When I finished this day, Gracie and I walked back to the garage to put things away, she jumped up on the table I had set up to do my (our) painting, I had laid a small blanket there so she could just hang with mommy. She was sitting on the blanket when I pushed the button for the garage door to close, I opened the kitchen door, paused and looked  back at Gracie, still sitting on the table, and went on in the house. About thirty minutes later I was going to check to make sure Gracie had enough food in her bowl..but instead I saw her lying dead, trapped by the garage door, closing on her little body, crushing her life away from us. Wayne was busy lighting the grill for our evening meal, when he dropped everything when he heard my wailing , I was standing in the middle of the kitchen screaming, I could only point to the garage, I was screaming so hard I couldn't catch my breath, I had to bend over just to stand.  And with all that Gracie was gone from us forever, only to live in our memories and in such a special place in our hearts. All day Sunday we grieved, and I mean we didn't cry, we sobbed, Wayne had to actually go lay down we were just overcome, Wayne said "Rena I feel absolutely hollow inside". The rest of the day we would go to the garage to see Gracie, we had laid her on a cat quilt on the table, she looked just like she was sleeping, I would put my hands on her, just willing her to wake, but this was not to be. Later Sunday night Wayne and I decided on her burial spot, and he proceeded to dig her grave, but we just could not put her in to be covered with dirt, just too much for us to handle. Wayne covered her with the blanket and I put a candle on the table. We just couldn't wrap our heads around the fact that we will never see our Gracie again. Gracie was a talker, an extra small kitty, with fur that was grey and peach and felt like angora. Gracie was there for us anytime we worked in the yard, always greeting us as she ran down the driveway as our car pulled in, or anytime she would hear us open the front door at night to let Sophie our dog out, she would be talking and running down the front sidewalk to greet Sophie, and would reach up and grab her face with both paws licking her face. If Gracie wasn't on the ground, she was on the roof and would  be talking and walking the edge to follow us around the yard, I would walk to the crepe myrtle tree that she had used as her ladder to the roof , and down she would come to continue the walk beside us. I am telling you this yard has lost a mighty life force, we have lost our Gracie, no more petting her as she would drop to the ground and roll on her side tucking her head upside down for us to give her some love, Gracie absolutely demanded this! And we were more than happy to follow her orders! Gracie never stopped talking, even as we were petting her, just seemed to have so much to say, when we would go into the garage at night, and Gracie lay there sleeping, she would always raise her head and meow at least once, just getting in that last word of the day. Gracie came into our lives choosing us ten years ago, but she has left with us choosing her above all. Thank you Gracie, you were a comfort in our lives, that we didn't know we needed...

Wayne and I buried Gracie this morning, Monday, March 5, 2012