She Never Did Follow the Crowd

"She never did follow the crowd..."

...Which meant that some days she felt kind of alone.
Some days she felt a little, well, odd.
A little different.
Some days she wished she thought, felt, acted, like everyone else.

But on most days she liked being a little different.
She liked not "fitting in".
She liked standing up for what she believed in, even if it meant someone laughed at her.
Most days she was very happy to just be herself.

People ask me all the time how I come up with my She Said quotes. I thought I'd give you a little inside look into some of the stories and how they came to be. :) I'm not gonna lie, they are all mostly based on some experiences (or feelings) that I've had.

I've come to realize that what makes us special and unique as artists is the courage to tell your story.

Here's a little of mine.

Hugs to you all!

xo

Chrissie

Tasty Tuesday:)

Ok, you can't get any easier than this!
I used a whole chicken, but you could use pork too.
Put your meat in the crock-pot, a bottle of Bulls-Eye BBQ sauce, a can of coke, and a tsp. of diced garlic.
Cook on low for 8 hours. Sometimes I serve it with hamburger buns, but I didn't have any this time so I made those yummy Pillsbury croissants (filled with shredded cheese). Add some mac-n-cheese (for the kids of course) and steamed brocolli.

And maybe we might have made ice cream sundaes for dessert, but I'm not telling!
Check out Balancing Beauty and Bedlam for more great recipes!

When you're done there, please go see the Nester. I knew she was doing a big give-away, but I am overwhelmed at how many wonderful things are being shared. Leave a comment to win $40 at my etsy shop, and then check out all the other great stuff! Wowsers!
Hugs~
Chrissie

Am I the only one?

Before I start, I must apologize for the quality of these photos. My Rebel is acting up and I used my iphone to take these pix. They aren't the best, but anyway...I'll move on.

Am I the only one who has a running list of things they need or want, but aren't willing to pay full price for?
For a little awhile, I was buying things at garage sales or Goodwill just because they were a great deal and I liked them. A lot of that stuff actually ended up back at Goodwill. So now, I only buy things that I really want or need and then refurbish them.
One of things I've been looking for are pillow forms. I've never made pillows before but wanted to turn some of my artwork into pillows. I finally got lucky this weekend! Three 12 x 12 pillow forms (still in the package) for $1.00. Great deal!:) Here is one of the pillows I made this weekend:

Unfortunately, that was all I found. A lot of the sales I've run by are way overpriced, and even my trusty Goodwill has been pricing too high. But I'm still on the lookout for a few things, like Lincoln Logs, a large mirror with a wooden base, some large white starfish to decorate with, and boys clothes in size 18-24 months. I'll let you know if I get lucky any time soon. Head on over to Rhoda's to see lots more deals.

It's time to announce my 100 post give-away. Again, the photo has terrible quality, but right under that very large black arrow, Random spit out the name...

RAMBLING GAL!!!

Congratulations girlfriend, you have won a $25 gift card to my Etsy shop.

But guess what? If you didn't get lucky this time~

There is another give-away at The Nester's to my shop, and this time it's a $40 gift card. You better go over and there and enter! There's lots of other cool give-away's as well. She'll be posting a different give-away all day.

Lastly, I have a little joke for those of you who are having a Manic Monday:

A psychiatrist was conducting a group therapy session with four young mothers and their small children. 'You all have obsessions, he observed.

To the first mother, Mary, he said, 'You are obsessed with eating. You've even named your daughter Candy.'

He turned to the second Mom, Ann, 'Your obsession is with money. Again, it manifests itself in your child's name, Penny.'

He turned to the third Mom, Joyce, 'Your obsession is alcohol.. This too shows itself in your child's name, Brandy.'

At this point, the fourth Mother, Kathy, quietly got up, took her little boy by the hand and whispered, 'Come on, Dick, this guy has no idea what he's talking about. Lets pick up Peter and Willy from school and go get dinner.'

I hope that wasn't too raunchy for you...I thought it was so funny!

Happy Monday!

xo,

Chrissie

I love my friends

I love these girls. Well, I guess I should be saying women. But I've known them for over 25 years. I'm talking since elementary school people. They are part of my family. I have been so super blessed to have such wonderful friends.
Even though none of us live in the same town anymore, we talk regularly. I am so inspired by all of them.
May I present to you one of my BFF's, Courtney, who just happens to be celebrating a birthday tomorrow.
Courtney is hilarious, strong-willed, a hard-worker, a good mama, and a very loyal friend.
I love you honey! Have a wonderful birthday week!:)

A Home is Made of Love and Dreams

I've told you before that when I start making something, sometimes I just can't stop. You'll be seeing lots of these in the upcoming week. And for those of you who asked, I am selling them in my Etsy shop.

This little boy, however, is not for sale.

Even though he managed to get in the paint I was using to paint all the baseboards (yes, I am still painting those!:)

He is definitely one of my babies. I have pictures of all of them with various paints and markers all over their sweet little bodies.

Don't forget to enter my give-away here. Three more days until I pick a name.

Happy Friday!:)

xo,

Chrissie

I'm on a roll...

I heart this quote so much.

I made this pocket out paper. All the slips of paper come out and have tiny inspirational messages on them.

I love how my mosaic-ed heart translated onto fabric.

Add some fabric and doilies...
And the burlap background with natural wood pieces (my kids call 'em sticks):) te-he

I'm. A.D.D.I.C.T.E.D to making these.

Okay, I'm off to watch my favorite tv show, So You Think You Can Dance.

See you tomorrow:)

Wild and Precious Life

I've been cutting and sewing and cutting and sewing and cutting and sewing.
This is the second piece for this series (and no, I couldn't resist using words.)
I think I'm going to call them quilted collages. There is fabric and other various mixed-media pieces in this...including natural wood and some of my never-ending stash of burlap.

Oh friends, I'm having soooooooooo much fun with these. I can't wait to show you more.
This is the first time in a long time that I've been in an art groove.:)

Tell me, what do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?