More Etsy Love

I am such an Etsy lover! And lately I've been finding some way cool handmade things! Very possibly too many way cool things! Yikes! I mean YAY! Look at this purse! LOOK at it!

I am about the pickiest purse girl ever. I'll spare you the details, I'll just say that I'm forever in search of the perfect purse. According to all my specifications. I actually gasped out loud when I saw this purse! Daphne makes them and you can find her Etsy store HERE.

Now, look at this ball! Are you kidding me with how adorable it is!?! It's common knowledge I'm obsessed with orbs. My vintage croquet balls are my all time faves, but I love spheres of every kind. I don't even know why. I just do. And I can if I want to.

These play balls are made by Heather at the Polka Dot Tot Spot, which you can find on Etsy HERE. They're about 5" with a tiny jingle bell inside. I purchased several and they are going to look fabu in my big glass jars. When I'm done playing with them.

Lastly, here are a few pics from a store I just found - I love these pudgy drawings! Look at Flight Training and Above the Clouds. TOO CUTE! Oh, Etsy... why must you torment me so!

the Walker Family You Tube video debut...

We wanted to do something fun and a bit off beat (how us of us) while the Red Power Ranger was home for Christmas. Since our lives pretty much revolve around music, and since the RPR is an editing genius, this video is the result of a lot of fun. The song "Machu Pichu" was written by my husband, and it's on his CD "Primrose Gardens". As we go about our (somewhat) normal activities, he pops in and out - his presence unbeknownst to us - singing and playing his guitar. 

Yes, the RPR does play the drums. Yes, the Mouse really does play the bass guitar. Yes, I am usually sitting on my fat arse with my computer. And yes, the Complex Middle Child really does play an awesome solo on his guitar (hard to hear on You Tube... bummer). There are also typical Walker things to watch for: my diet Coke glass, my dog Angel winking, my husband's Mini in the driveway, the sunflower on my blog scrolling by... just some fun things like that. So... enjoy!

P.S. if the vid won't play on my blog... click on THIS LINK.

I Heart This Boy

So we said goodbye to the Red Power Ranger on Saturday, as it was time for him to fly back to college and start yet another semester. We have all been a bit melancholy since he's been gone. We even played games last night and though we had fun, it just isn't the same when he's not here to be his jovial self and beat up his brothers. 

I am the mother of an adult child. No matter how I try to wrap my head around that, I can't seem to make it sink in. Maybe someday it will. It better, because I have two more boys rapidly headed for adulthood no matter what I do to thwart them. 

All kidding aside, I really wouldn't want it any other way. I love who my boys are. And I love the men they are becoming. I am so proud of the Red Power Ranger. He takes butt-kicking classes but manages to maintain a scholarship. He's determined to make the world a better place by focusing on education in third world countries. And he does it while working part time at a job where he has quite a bit of responsibility. How could I not be proud of such a great person? I know that he will, indeed, make this world a better place. 

Happy New Year 2009 ~ I Wish You Peace

I wish you peace when the cold wind blows

warm by the fire's glow

I wish you comfort in the lonely times

arms to hold you when you ache inside

I wish you hope when things are going bad

kind words when times are sad

I wish you shelter from the raging wind

cooling waters at the fever's end

I wish you peace when times are hard

a light to guide you in the dark

and when storms are high and your dreams are low

I wish you the strength to let love grow

I wish you the strength to let love glow.

~ the Eagles

P.S. They're way cool - and 50% off at the Sundance Catalog - I've had my eye on them for years, oh yeah :)

Help End Puppy Mills - VOTE TODAY!

Today is the day readers! I don't go into a lot of politics/policies/government bruhaha because that's not the kind of blog this is. However. A very big part of who I am, is an animal lover. I am very active regarding Animal Rights. 

I strongly believe that we as human beings have been given stewardship over the creatures of the earth. That means caring for them, not abusing them. Every animal has the right to enjoy the life they have been given, just as every human has that right. Most unfortunately, we know there is much suffering in the world - both human and animal. But animals have no voice. We must be their voice and stand up for them, as they cannot. Many are subjected to an entire life of horrible abuse - it is the only thing they know. They are innocent victims of a horrible fate. Such are puppy mills. It breaks my heart. It must be stopped. 

Change.org is a good place to start. And we are fortunate to have an animal rights advocate in our recently elected President, Barack Obama - as well as many of the cabinet members he is now appointing. By voting to stop puppy mills, our leaders will know the issues of importance to the American people. Positive changes will be set in motion. Countless dogs will be given the life they deserve. I've made it easy to vote by taking the Change.org button out of my side bar and putting it right in this post. If for some reason the button does not work for you, click here. All votes must be in by midnight December 31 Pacific Standard Time!

If you don't know what a puppy mill is, or would like more information, you can also visit the ASPCA, the Humane Society, and even Oprah's website, as she dedicated an entire episode to reveal the horrors of puppy mills, and what people can do to help. All these sites have excellent information and are invaluable websites.

Thank you all! And have a very happy new year knowing you did a really good thing :)

Secret Insanity

Ah, here we are at the peaceful Walker home during the Christmas holidays. Carols playing in the background, the house smelling of pine and treats, hot cocoa at the ready... a study of everything the season should be...
Ah, here we find the Red Power Ranger, home from college, relaxing with his dad in front of a crackling fire. The picture of holiday bliss...
Ah, a few more lovely details of a Walker Christmas. Stockings lovingly handmade over the years, precious to each one of us, like seeing a beloved old friend each Christmas.
Yes, yes, the happy couple in front of the tree Christmas morning (still tired. no make-up). Happy for the season, happy to not be old geezers yet (just go with it), happy to enjoy the rare occasion of having all three boys under the same roof.
And speaking of those three wonderful boys, just look at how adorable they are :) The Red Power Ranger age 22, the Mouse age 13, and the Complex One age almost 18. Have you ever seen such handsome boys?
REALITY CHECK. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THEY'RE TOGETHER. IT'S LIKE THE THREE STOOGES ESCAPED FROM THE ASYLUM.
This is what happens nearly the whole time they're awake, all day long. They stink, and they make unspeakable noises, and they break things, and they sneak into my shower, and they make incredible messes, and they brawl. Brawl, brawl, brawl. Today I caught them smacking each other on the head in church. And yes, that is the Complex One being ground into the carpet by the Red Power Ranger. 
And the NOISE! They are SO LOUD! SO. LOUD. Here they are playing an innocent Nintendo 64 game. No blood & guts. No death & destruction. But you can hear them playing even the simplest game all the way down the freaking street. All the way down. The freaking. Street. 

Okay, I admit I am loud at times. My husband has had it with me. He won't even sit next to me when we play games anymore. And I do have a really loud laugh. Really loud. Really loud. But come on! I mean seriously!  
Not to mention our coffee table which has now been transformed into an internet cafe. Admittedly, one laptop is mine. And the cup of diet Coke. Okay, and the catalog. With my cell phone on top. Hmmm, what else do we see..... dog brush, assorted glasses, a school book, a lint roller, scriptures, the TV controller. Kind of like playing "Where's Waldo", eh? And endless cords. Cords and cords and cords. My favorite thing.

And Christmas is now GONE people! GONE! All packed up and put away. Look at my little dining room. It looks like a bare wasteland. Not a trace of the most amazing Christmas we just had. It's all been wiped clean. Ready for the new year. Sniff :( 

But you know I'm just spouting off. Because you know I absolutely *adore* my boys. My stinky boys. My loud, loud, LOUD boys. Their messes. Their endless cravings for Wendy's. Their hysterical impersonations. Their incessant movie quotes. Their brawls. I love it all because it means they are here together. And when they start growing up and moving away, that's too rare. So I cherish every moment I can with them. 

As I type this ending, the Red Power Ranger is resting on the couch with his head on my dog Angel :) And the Mouse is watching the Complex One play a computer game. Watching with his head on the Complex One's shoulder :) Too few and far between, these moments. 

I'd better get to bed before they start fighting and I want to throttle one of them ;)

Christmas Day, 2008

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night