Deer Mountain Wood Art

I am so happy tonight =D Xmas is done and I squeaked by another year!lol I honestly did not get to do any shopping until last night and, man, it was hectic and frustrating, yet, I pulled it off again and all my little men are happy campers tonight! Whew!! Thank goodness I received a check yesterday and it all just fell into place!
I managed, just barely, to finish up the last two of the local orders I had out there and got them delivered and then, off to town with Austin (we had a "date"!).
I found out, once more, that that little guy has a LOT on his mind!lol I was certain that he would sleep on the long trip home, as I'm sure he was just exhausted from all the fun we had!, but no, he found the strength to carry on and keep me working on answers to his many questions and ideas! =D
He's such a great guy, and I was so proud of him as he struggled to maintain the fact that he was shopping for others, not himself, and I knew there was so much he saw that he wanted!! What a wonderful little trip - we even got to have a nice lunch at his favorite restaurant, "Big Daddy's" and he was so gentlemanly as he reached his little hand out to mine to help me out of the car and how he insisted on sitting next to me in the booth, instead of across from me! It was fun getting him to myself for this special occasion =D
We got home rather late, and I was so tired. The older boys started working on the ready-to-cook pizzas I'd brought home and Tyler and I plotted how we would get everything wrapped and still grab a few hours of sleep before Santa's bounty would be discovered - I think I did manage a few hours, but I was ready when morning came.
Austin did have a slight melt-down this morning as everyone put off the unwrapping for a hot cup of coffee and wake up time! I told him just a few minutes and it ended up more like 30 and you can bet he was beside himself when we finally got to it!lol Poor guy!
It's really funny, but I've always maintained that clothes were not something you get for Xmas because they're a necessity and as such it's something one has to get their children all year - but being broke and needing this type of thing, I broke down and purchased a few articles of much needed threads - they were very happy with what I gave them and Austin wore his new warmly-lined hoodie all day! Yay! I guess there's always a first time for everything!?!
I think we all made out like bandits though and I feel very blessed that I'm loved so much that my babies would work so hard to spend their own money on me and actually desire to see my happy face more than their own! It's very special to see them grow up and find out how they will handle such things - I couldn't be prouder =D
It seemed that everything everyone got was just what they needed, nothing more, nothing less - so well ends another Holiday and I'm glad it went well...
So, mostly I just want to wish you all a peaceful Xmas night and that you stay safe and warm for New Years =D Let's start 2009 off right!!
{{{hugs}}} and much love to all of my friends and family :)
Freida

Well I finally got to see Dr. 90210 (you remember, I mentioned in on the BlockHead talk radio program last Monday night?) and am just delighted that they are going to work through their problems! See, divorce, not always the answer!! =D
I was thinking about my oldest being gone in college and I realized that that is what has me down lately. Everything, except for financially (you know about that too, eh?!), is going really well right now - but I'm overwhelmed by a very dark shadow anyway!?
But I realize now that, even though he's not far away and comes home often, not having Ryan here has been like having a death in the family! He's not here and I cannot talk to him when I want, hold him when I need a hug, or be subject to his long heavy legs lying on my lap while we watch a movie. I have told myself many times to put it out of my mind, and I've lost many that I loved and remember telling myself the same thing during those times. It was a cold and lonely air of recognition; my old 'friend', grief, that washed over me at that moment.

So how do I change it? I still have Tyler and Austin here, and they are still very dependent on me, so why this hole in my soul?? and how do I fix it so I can get back to my old self and be there for my other two boys as well as my husband, friends, and clients?? Something I guess I'll have to try to put some extra effort into to change...
Roger got to work with Jim today and said it was the best day the two have had in a long while. Jim was cheerful, fun, and a pleasure to be around. All that said, as soon as their work was done, Jim was flying down the road to see Mary.
I haven't heard from him yet tonight, but I sure hope it will be a good visit for them!
I got to tell him this afternoon, before they quit work, about all of your well wishes and prayers and I'm quite touched by the tears that welled up in his eyes. He really is a sweet person and I know that he would be amazed at all of the emails, comments, and convos I've received for him! I intend to print them all out for him to see =D and I'll let you know what he says!
Well, in between all of the homey interruptions, it's only taken me 3 hours to get this written!lol So I will close with a fond adieu' for now and send wishes of peace and happiness your way - until next time;

Thanks for "stopping by the shop!"
Freida

It was a very uneventful day in the shop :( My oldest, home again for the weekend, decided we should clean house - man my back hurts! He's going back tomorrow morning, so hopefully I can get some more things cut and get back on track =D
In the meantime, I think I figured out the one ornament - I used 1/4" poplar with cherry veneer for the ornament and used ribbons from one of my hair bands I never felt young enough to wear(lol) to decorate and hang the ornament - how 'bout that for re-use!!?! =p Anyway, hope you'll check it out and let know what you think ....

Thanks, as always, for "stopping by the shop!"

I know this is probably the oldest saying in the world, but it's true!! Even my almost grown sons are finding it out - there's just not enough time in a day, week, month, year.... It has me frustrated to no end!

I just joined Entrecard and need desperately to find out how to use it, and what it's for exactly - I join these sites and then I'm lost! It's not like I have a mountain of time to spare learning either!! I think I've been dumbed down by senility(yes, I'm still on that kick!!) and it's starting to affect everything around me - aghhh!

Friday I shaved Tyler's head for his charity fund raising and was so surprised that he didn't look like a terrible monster!lol He just might be one of those guys that can pull off a bald head!! =D He managed to go over his $200 goal and I'm very, very proud of him!

To all that donated and sent kind notes, thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping to make this a memorable event in Tyler's life - I'll never forget it! =) and I know he won't either!

Friday afternoon we farmed Austin out to his friend's house, dropped Tyler at his buddy's house, loaded up Ryan's girlfriend and headed to Adams State College in Alamosa for Ryan's first college concert (well, there were some other kids in it too!). It's really kind of silly as the college is only 2.5 hours from here, but for me and my back it was an epic journey! I'm terribly sore but we made it there and back and I'm glad we got to go :)

Last night, around 11 or 12 I sold a custom puzzle so I need to get to work on that and finish up on several other orders and misc projects I have going.

Greg received his Dragon Box and enclosed
this picture and kind words,

"Freida,
Received the box today!
All I can say is "WOW"!
It will be cherished for many years..
Thank you soooo much!
Greg




humm, what else... oh, we had no power for most of the day which helped me get a few things done and get off of this silly machine! Always glad when it comes back on though!!! =]

Our bottle baby calf died today after being mauled by a bear about 5 days ago - we took him to the vet but couldn't afford any real tests so he gave us antibiotics and we just had to take him home and hope for the best. He gave up today and after examining him I'm sorry that we didn't know how bad he was suffering, I would've rather had put him down so he could rest. This is the second calf we've lost to this bear and the first one was a baby of mine, bottle fed too. You just can't imagine what a bear can do to an animal without it ever showing! Makes me worry when I go out to the shop and such. He killed my other one while I was sanding in the shop not 100 feet away and I never heard or saw anything!
We lost a baby earlier this summer to a bear, but the bear was inevitably destroyed for being an 'abuser' and tagged for previous bad behavior. On that day he killed our brand new baby pygmy goats and a 4 day old calf. When he came back later that day he was not interested in the food left for him but instead tried to get into the calf pen and kill another!? It was so horrible watching him stalk the babies!
ANYWAY, enough sadness - too much in the world already!
I guess I better 'get back at it'... my day never really ends and as I lay on my arm at 3:30 this morning, apparently typing "k"s and "l"s across the screen while trying to write a note to a customer, I realized, there's just not enough time in the day!!!
Thanks as always for "stopping by the shop!"
Freida