One Mama Duck

Crafting my way through life - one adventure at a time.

Hi! I'm LisaDV. Thanks for stopping by. This is my life, crazy and chaotic most of the time, and I wouldn't change a thing.

Monday, May 30, 2016

Enjoy, but Remember


I've been using what little free time lately working on some ATCs for a swap. I'll show them off on Wednesday. But yesterday morning before church I pulled out a page kit and started a layout.  It felt so good to be working on a layout. I finished it up, except for my journaling which is going to go around the aqua pattern paper mat. I put this together for the 2peas refugee sketch challenge.



Sonshine and I went walking at a little preserve near our church. I just wanted to get a few of my steps in before we went to run our errands. I ended up with all of them in. woo hoo. ...and we had this for scenery.

We bought the bedroom furniture for both Sonshine and Princess, went to the library, and hit the grocery store before heading for home.  It was a good day with some fun things and some productive things.  Hubs was going to make steaks for dinner (always a plus when I don't have to cook), but he had another surprise. Princess was actually feeling good yesterday and they went to the local auction/flea market. He bought me ...



2 shoe boxes full of stamps and a bag full.  He paid more than I would have, but it was so super sweet that he did. Just like getting flowers for most ladies. He thought what I couldn't use would be good to use for my homeschool coop classes.  Then I wouldn't have to worry about if they got ruined.  See, super sweet.  In the bag, there is an American flag.  Perfect for Memorial Day! 

Since it is Memorial Day, which is a day set aside to remember those who have died in battle, I thank all of those military personnel from today to years past and their families.  So while enjoying the day with your family and friends, take a moment to remember the sacrifices made for our freedoms and liberties.

Blessings,


Friday, May 27, 2016

Weight Loss and Exercise Are Not Funny

Well, maybe, if you are like me they are.  Happy Friday. Today's funnies are brought to you by....you guessed it...  I gave it away with the post title, huh?! 

In April, I started trying to get an exercise routine going. Then, dd and ds came down with a nasty cold that they so fantastically shared with me, the little germ mongers. End exercise routine. Now it's the end of May, so Monday I decided that I need to start up again.  ugh, it's always so hard to start back.  

I realized that











I downloaded the pacer app on Tuesday. I thought 10,000 steps were like 5 miles. Nope, not on my phone  - somewhere around 19000 steps. I did get there on Wednesday. Thursday I only got to just over 5000. Today I'll try to hit 19000 steps again. Guess that means I'll be push mowing.  Good thing we have a lot of property.

I finished these very simple ATCs yesterday.  These are my first ever ATCs. I LOVE doing them.  I so want to do another swap. Still have to do one more.



Wednesday, May 25, 2016

WOYWW 364 -7th Anniversary

What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday is the brain child of Julia over at the Stamping Ground.  Today is the 7th year anniversary of showing off your crafty goodness every Wednesday.  Although Julia is out of commission for the next couple of weeks, Workdesk Wednesday does not stop. Lunch Lady Jan is hosting and you can find the link-ups there today.

My workdesk:

The last person to use my workdesk was my daughter. Thus her owl notepad and the bottles of spray inks are all haphazardly turned over and not upright setting nicely on the side. The scissors aren't in their spot. But the rest of the mess was from my last crafting.  Oh, and she left my mat all gross. Bleh!! 

I am still working on my ATCs. I was hoping to have them completed today, but home chores, and cards that needed to be handed out last Sunday, took over my life since last Wednesday.  -- It's also the reason I have not visited many desks from last week. My sincerest apologies. I will do better this week. --   I have set aside Thursday and Friday if needed to finish up these cards.  You can see a couple of bases on the desk. Some others are on the stamping desk.  They all still need to be adhered to some chipboard and have their backs put on.

Mine will be posted either Friday or Saturday of this week.

These are the people I know I'll be swapping with now, but I can swap with more if there are more interested. You can email me (in my profile on the sidebar or leave a comment).



I have
1. SylviaH
2. Annie P and (thus twiglet Still need her address)
3. Nikki C
4. Shaz B
5. Debbie R
6. Lisca M
7. Kelly (whom I think I archived the gmail instead of putting it in the folder, sometimes I’m not the brightest bulb, so I’ll need to get again.)

  Happy Wednesday!!

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Hoping To Get Crafty

Hello Tuesday, Wait! Where did Monday go? Heck, where did my last 5 days go?  With all of the home chores going on, whenever there is a break, hubs heads to my computer. I either head to the kitchen to cook or to sit with the kids. The life of a mom, right?! 

Here's what's happened over the weekend.  Laying the hardwoods in dd's bedroom, we came to the closet, where my hubs banished me from helping. There just isn't enough room for us both to work in there. I was so sore from the previous 2 days that although I felt bad for not getting to help, I was also relieved to be out of it.

I was able to finish my catechism confirmation cards. I ended up deciding that I should make all of them the same. The only change was pink pp for the only girl that was graduating and the ribbon on her card. I used TH walnut stain distress ink and a blending tool to rub the ink into the depressed area on the embossing folder which gives a very slight outline to the letters. It's little things like that which makes a difference I think.


 My son decided to make a pond. He's hoping to get ducks. The fencing to the left is where the chicken coop and rabbits will be, so we told him, we could just add a fence for the ducks there if he dug it out. We also told him that's an all summer project with a shovel, but what a story to tell his own children and grandchildren.

On Saturday afternoon, we all took breaks from what we were doing, to help the princess put in her strawberry terrace.  It has a sprinkler that comes up through the middle tier. It also has a net and a frost protection cover. After it's completion, she was talking about putting flowers around the bottom tier. Hubs suggested paving stones and curved benches with flower pots in between.
 
By the end of yesterday, we had great plans for the whole area.  From this picture you see the brambles of several trees we took down last fall behind her. There is a ridge there and our fire pit. We've just been burning out the walnut stump in the orchard that my son took down earlier this year, thus the bramble remains. Hubs and princess decided yesterday to do a stairway, pave stone the entire top and put the grill out here as well. Also a bench along side the shed and some other seating besides the curved benches. Another project for the list, but it won't be attacked this year.

I, on the other hand, went to town and home depot yesterday. I bought 4 citronella plants for the front porch at a different store, but found the cedar barrel looking planter pots at Home Depot. I didn't buy them as I wanted to run the cost by hubs. But my biggest take-away was that I wanted him to build me long rectangular boxes for the bottom sides of the porch that have the cedar barrel look. I want to place my herb garden there. It's right off the porch for easy access while cooking, and it'll be contained.   Lots of ideas.

Back to Saturday, we actually had real food to eat instead of quick fixes, including the lovely morels hubs had bought to cheer me up from burning our own small findings.They were huge and Princess stood next to me the entire time. I teased her that she was just there to make sure I didn't burn them again. Really she just couldn't wait for them to be finished.

Sunday, after church and the catechism confirmation potluck, I made them go to the furniture store to look before I let them go fishing. We didn't move Sonshine's bedroom set, but sold it at our garage sale. It was time for a better quality set and more mature set.  He liked this one. Really it was the dresser that her really liked.





For him, it's really about finding a nice desk, which he did. I like that there is matching bookcases.
I'm wondering if the mix of the 2 woods is too much with our natural hickory flooring and 2 toned trim to boot???


Princess, who wanted a loft bed built and would not be swayed off. Found this lovely daybed with trundle that changed her mind.  The cincher for this bed was when she asked if she got it, could she get the sheer canopy that circles around the bed. Of course you can. Done. 



My job this week will be to measure out each of the furniture pieces placing them in their rooms so they can see what the footprint will be before I actually order the furniture. 

As you can see, not much in the way of crafty goodness has been happening in my life. But with my cards out of the way, I get to play with the ATC swap ones which I've already started and have been enjoying. Plus I want to get some layouts made this week, I still haven't completed the Scrap Our Stash blog sketch challenge or the 2peas refugee sketch challenge. Still hoping to get them completed this week.

- I still have one home chore that must be done today, mowing. It's suppose to rain starting tomorrow. We really need it, so I'm hoping and praying it does. I'm also hoping that the rain will make the morels pop as they've been sparse this year.


OK, off to start my day so I can get crafty.

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Joys of Country Life

What's Up This Week?

I didn't do WITL, but I'm wishing I did.


We started working on my daughter's bedroom flooring on Thursday.


I took this after a couple of rows yesterday.  We are actually now past where the air compressor is setting in this photo. We're hoping to finish it today!! My daughter is SUPER excited. I will then clean and polish the floor and possibly tomorrow or Monday we can move the temporary bed in there.  Then hubs and I can do the hallway.....

Then, yesterday evening, my son was using the push mower. As he cut a line up by the grape vines,
he stopped, yelling, excitedly. Baby bunnies were scattering. He was afraid he had hurt them. But he didn't! He and hubs both caught one.


 and we were able to get my sick daughter out of the house for a bit. 

Aren't the bunnies so cute?

As they were letting the bunnies go, they asked, "if they come to the door can we keep them?" Yes, if they come knocking at the door, we can keep them. Hubs said "oh, no, you know one of them is going back out there later and bring them to the front door." hahaha Yeah, that sounds like something my kids would think of. 

On Thursday afternoon, hubs and I went looking for morels in the woods. It's a rough year for morels here. There just hasn't been enough rain. We had a small batch a couple of weeks ago, and I burned them. Yes, I know. I wanted to cry. -- After not finding any, we headed to the trail cam and hubs brought it in so I could download his photos. We typically see birds, squirrels, deer. Last time we saw the bobcat. This time....
Mr. or Mrs. Bear has visited 2x this week.   

Hubs asked if I was scared. Nope, not from the bear. The bobcat, well, that's a different story.

The joys of country life.

Friday, May 20, 2016

Funnies for Friday 5/19

Today's funny Friday is brought to you by my sweet niece's birthday.

You're welcome, Steph.

And because she has 2 children currently under 2 (for a couple of more weeks).


and the every popular


I love that one, and I actually thought of Steph and her daughter when I saw it for the first time.

The following is just good advice for any new parent.


My wish for my niece as well as everyone for this whole weekend.

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, May 19, 2016

#100Projects



#the100dayproject

I decided to participate this year with hand lettering practice. April 19th started the 100 day project. If one were to stay motivated and have the time to do a bit of the project everyday, today would be day 30. Only 70 more days left.  Yeah, if you had the time and motivation to stay on target.   (Ok, who else had the end of Star Wars pop in there heads there. As they’re trying to blow up the death star. "stay on target." Stay on target.......
... .. “I used to bullseye womp rats in my T-16 back home, they're not much bigger than two meters”….., sorry, Squirrel)......

I think daily practice is a great idea. However, I’m trying to improve my skill, not make this part of my daily routine. If it was something that I wanted to make a daily habit, I would definitely be trying to incorporate in every day.  

Since I’m not, this obviously is not work for me. I don't have the time every day to devote to it. But maybe 100 projects I could do. I can spend a couple hours a few times a week practicing. With a daughter who frequently is sick (we’re working on it), I sometimes have to sit with her while she watches TV. Sometimes she wants to be cuddled and that's all I can do. Other times she just wants to know I'm there but doesn't care if I'm doing other things. I find these Great times to make my menu plan/grocery list and work on my hand lettering.  

I’m a huge proponent of taking ideas and making them work for you. We are all different with different needs and desires. Living in an old farm house, trying to homestead, tweaking things to make them work for you is what life is all about. Why should this be any different!?! It shouldn’t.



What’s your favorite “made this work for me” moment?  (I really do read your answers and find them interesting.)