Are you a Vera Bradley fan?

Well, so am I. Vera and I are getting to be such a good friends... maybe too good. But on thing is for sure... there isn't much else that perks up my mood than carrying one of my Vera's wherever I go.
My inspiration for this black and white picture (well, almost b&w) came from the beautiful pictures on "Sweet Up - North Mornings... a Creative Oasis" by Kathy http://sweetup-northmornings.blogspot.com/  Check her out!

Learning to "collage"!

Well, it's not that great but it's my first collage. I have a problem with following directions so I'm trying to teach myself through trial and error.

The pictures are repeats but just what I could come up with for the moment.

Thanks for your patience!

Ryan and his godson

Beau

Beau with his godfather... our son, Ryan!

Easter brought us an extra blessing. Our youngest son became the godfather to little Beau, the son of our dear friends.

It is so much fun to see the two of them together. I know they're going to be very close!

It's the next big thing - Family Reunion 2010

The Peterson - Cavallin - Larson Family Reunion

2009

     It's that time of the year... and actually I am running behind schedule, but planning for the 2010 family reunion is underway. The building has been rented (last year) and the dates are known to all... July 16 and 17th.

     My favorite part of the reunion is the "Tree Hugger" event. Everyone (well almost everyone) has emailed their latest updates: births, weddings and loved ones who have passed on. I will have recorded all of these events and then run off the family tree. We lay the family tree out on tables that have been lined up so that family members can review it and even at that point make additions and corrections.

     This is a labor of love for sure. It is my husband's Swedish family. This year we are trying to add a few "extras" to the reunion... perhaps a cooking demonstration of a couple of Swedish recipes. I would love to see some of the children act out the story of the family coming to America.

     Are you involved in your family reunion? What activities do you have?

A Peak at the Ranch

Minas Hill has been the site for our Easter Sunrise Service at our

deer lease... which we always refer to as "the ranch". On top of this hill a view of the land around is incredible.

The entrance to the area where we stay is always a welcome sight for us as we immediately begin to relax and prepare for enjoyable times. After we stay at the ranch, we all feel ready to accept the challenges of the week ahead and blessed with the comaraderi of our ranch family.

An aloe vera bloom is always lovely sight.

                                        Cactus blossoms are so beautiful as they open in full sun.

A field of thistles.  I opened the window of the truck to take this picture and could not believe the sweet aroma these thistles gave off. Don't touch; just smell!

I only wish I could tell you the name of this wildflower. They are everywhere at the ranch. It's so delicate and yet strong enough to survive the hot south Texas sun.

Let's finish our cascarones or "confetti eggs"!

Our finished confetti eggs - cascarones!

After coloring your empty shells and allowing them to dry,

fill them with colored confetti.

Cut colored tissue paper in circles that will fit over the opening of the egg shells. Carefully glue the edges of the openings and then press the tissue circles onto the glued area. The top pictures shows you the end product.

Now you have a "cascarone"!!

Our tradition when the boys were young was to use these confetti eggs in place of hard boiled eggs or even the plastic eggs. After all the eggs were collected during a "hunt", my husband would give the signal that the fun would begin. The boys chased after each other cracking the eggs on each other's head. We were not excluded from this either.

I do not consider myself a prankster, but for some reason I could not resist filling one egg with either a little glitter or flour. Tee-heeee!!

P.S.  Lori E. wanted to know who cleans up this confetti. Our hunts are done in a field usually... sometimes in our backyard. The confetti usually dissolves after a few rains. And if we see a stray piece of confetti, then we it just brings back the memory of a fun time!