Good rainy morning!

      Such a messy day!  In fact it is going to be a very messy week.  Perhaps good for some, not so good for my carpenter friend who was wanting to get my porch roof done.  Nor for my poor lab baby who cannot stand going out into the rain.  It is nice sleeping and creating weather though.
      Our inchie word / country was Bhutan - Land of the Thundering Dragon.  I went over and watched a really nice travel video on this enchanting place.  Mostly Buddhist, there are lots of beautiful monasteries.  I tried drawing a representation of the Tiger's Nest over the flag.  The flag itself is also beautiful.  I just could not do that dragon justice so it is a nice white "squiggle".  Think dragon.  Use your imagination, please.

      Joey's challenge is in the 9th week.  It is a finish the tile series.  She gives us a tangle and draws the center of the piece and we finish it.  The tangle we used this week was dicso (correctly spelled).  I kept it a very simple tile this week.  I kept debating on filling in the white space, but just could not.  I think it would have crowded out the beauty of the tangle. 

      Diva's challenge is a monotangle this week using the tangle puf.  I like this tangle by Carole Ohl.  It looks so soft and squishy!  Like a pile of yarn!

      I have done some coloring this week also but I am saving those for a blog post I am writing to review some Creative Haven things.  Hopefully that will be up this week or first of next.  If you do get a notification about it, please check it out and leave me a comment or two.  I want CH to like the review and possibly use me again for reviewing things.  Thanks in advance!
      Okay . . . help.  Does anyone know how  I can get the bar across the top of my blog - where it says HOME, to include other categories?  I can get the headings - no problem.  I just can't seem to make the links from there work.  I want to put up two more categories.  On the home page where you are now, I don't want these other posts to show.  Only if you click the link.  Yes I know this confusing and I am thoroughly perplexed.  If you do know how and can tell me VERY simply, please let me know.  I really don't think it should be as hard as it seems to me!
      Thanks for dropping by and leaving me some sunshine (really need lots of sunshine today!).  Have a wonderful week!  Hugs!

No tranquility today

        Our back porch roof partially collapsed last Friday.  Today we have a workman here banging and cutting and trying to restore order to our back.    It is quite a noisy task.  Add to that a very neurotic lab who cannot understand what someone is doing in his back yard and there is no quiet for me today.  Between bouts of crying and barking, he just clings to my leg as I work.  Oh my.  What a day.  Well, since it could take more than one day - what a week!
        Glad I got all the challenges done yesterday.  The first one, my inchie, is supposed to be about the country Lithuania.  I know nothing other than what I found out online.  And that it is beautiful.  I decided though to go with a couple of icons from an icons page.  I assume they are wine and cheese. 

        Joey's challenge was to finish this round tile.  In the center she used the tangle cadent.  I love that tangle.  It was one of the first tangles I ever learned and it appeals to me so much. 

        The 100 Days Project pushes on!  Here are days 46 - 49.  It is hard to believe we are half way through this challenge! 

        A little bit of coloring last week - from Color It's Mythical and Fantasy book.  I used prismas for both of these with a little gel pen to glitter some areas. 

        I really could use another hour or so of sleep.  But not with all this noise.  I might as well sit here and chill.   Thanks for dropping by and saying hello!  Take care and enjoy your day!  Hugs!

Happy Monday!

     I hope you all are having a wonderful day!  Mine is great - bright and sunshiny!  A bit hot but I am not outside so very much so that's okay. 
    Every Inchie Monday's country this week was Andorra.  I have to say I had never heard of it until I googled it.  I decided to just to a map of this tiny country and add the flag. 

      Joey's still doing the tangles where we have to finish up her tile.  She drew the tangle friendship in the center of the tile and I used the tangles zari and verve to finish it up.  I did not realize how much my paper showed through other lines and marks until I started coloring it.  I am not happy with the "dents' in the paper, but I am not redoing it!

      I have been having some fun doing bookmarks this past week.  It is a way to use up some scrap paper and a small space to try new tangles.  I think I will order some plastic covers and tassles for them.  Then?  I am not sure what to do with them, but they have been fun.

   Guess that is all for this week. Oh!  I got a "job" (well, sort of) doing a review for a couple of Creative Haven's coloring books.  They are sending me some and I will write the review here!  It would be very nice if you could leave a comment on that post so they can tell I do have readers (ha!).  I would love to do others for them so we shall see how this goes. 
    Also I finished the Everglades virtual race.  Now I am doing Glacier National Park!  Oh that place is lovely!  I would love to see it in person.
    Take care and have a wonderful week!  Hugs!

Routines and patterns

     I like routine.  I am one of those people who don't mind a very planned schedule.  That was one of the most difficult things I found when I first retired.  Teaching my day was very planned - overly planned.  Not so being at home.  Then a routine developed.  Not a hard and fast, can't be varied, but still somewhat of a routine.  Monday is my day for working on all my challenge pieces.  Not yesterday.  Yesterday I played plumber's helper to my brother.  Then we had to wait for a "real" plumber to show up to finish up the job.  Ray did not have the tools we needed.  So it was a day of plumbing work and waiting.  But on the very positive side I have a new kitchen faucet that WORKS!!  I am so happy! 
      Joey's challenge was to use the tangle whirlee as a starter in the center of the round tile.  From there I did a lot of sitting and staring.  I could not figure what to add to this tile.  Finally made a border of pooma them just added some flowers and embellishments.  And a dash of color!

       Diva's challenge was to use the tangle somnee.  It reminds me of the tinker toys I played with as a child.  They were so much fun!  Sort of like this tangle.

       While rearranging some craft supplies (some people call it cleaning, I really can't say that happened), I found some vellum. so for my inchie this week I used vellum.  On the front I did the famous guard from the UK.  Then on the back I did the flag.  I wanted a more subdued look for the flag.  May have to try this approach again!

       And finally here is my last entry for the 100 days project.  This is day 34 and 35.  I really love doing that rose in the center.  The tangle is called roza and is very simple and soooo pretty!

       Almost finished with my Everglades bike (virtual) race.  Hope to have it done soon.  I am getting a really good pace - my best yet was today!  I know it doesn't compare to a real athlete but I am proud of the time I got - a little over 8 minutes for a mile!  I do about 3 miles each day.  Again I know that isn't great but hey, folks, when I started I was dying at about a 1/2 a mile!  This is progress.  Just slow progress.  I also probably shouldn't admit this but we are friends and I trust you not to tell - but the first time we sat the bike up, I could not get on.  I wanted to so badly it almost made me cry but I could not stretch my leg enough to get on it.  Ray, bless his soul, was very patient and helped me finally get on the bike.  Now?  I can easily get on with no help so my muscles are getting more flexible!  Again, slow progress.
      Take care and thanks for dropping by to say hello!  I think I shall go turn the water on and off in the kitchen for a few moments and enjoy the ease of running water!  Hugs!!

Backyard Bunny

     In our backyard we have a couple of bunnies that have taken residence.  Much to our surprise, Lakota doesn't seem to really care about where they are.  I guess he might have been more interested as a puppy.  When I saw this coloring sheet I knew I had to do it first in my Summer Scenes by Creative Haven.  He was such a cute rabbit!

     The inchie country was Greece.  I would love to see that country.  It has such a colorful, romantic flair to it - at least to me.  The homes are gorgeous with their stark white walls and "cleanness".  I loved teaching that unit when I was working with third grade.  We studied all the contributions made to our history and also got to sample some really great Greek food!  Yum!

      Joey's challenge used the tangle "spoken" for the center.  I don't use that one much at all, but I can see how nicely it works on the center of a round tile.  I love sampler style pages, so this one was lots of fun. 

      Two more days of the 100 Days Project.  The bottom one is a couple of "tangle folk".  I love doing those drawings.  The basic outline is done without lifting the pen - that can be challenging!  I usually do that part in pencil so that I can go back and straighten up the proportions.  Either way they are fun!

       The sun is shining and the weather is so comfortable.  Not too hot and not too cold!  I love it.  And so does Lakota.  He loves rambling around the yard and rolling in the sunshine.  What a sweetie!
       Thank you for dropping by!  Hugs!