I may spend hours blogging, creating, drawing, collage, cooking, gardening, shopping, talking, cleaning, thrifting, baking, babysitting, driving, walking, harvesting, rummaging, but if I don't spend time in the word of God, none of these things matter. Christ is my strength daily to do all of these things that I without Him can not even breathe. Thank you Lord!

Vintage Cheese Labels

check this out. This banner is made out of vintage cheese labels and the creator of these labels let's you down load for free. Go see at justsomethingimade.blogspot.com

FISH CHOWDA (chowder)

RECIPE

1 1/2 lb. fish (haddock and cod mixed)

1 large onion copped

1 stick butter

salt, pepper, cayenne pepper

1/2 qt. half and half

1/2 qt. milk (I used skim milk)

1 can corn

2-3 bouillon cubes

Melt butter with chopped onion till softened, add fish and cook till fish cooked, then add half and half and milk, spices, and bouillon till melts then the corn. Let the chowda heat up well then eat with a loaf of french bread.

Ladder to Reach those Fresh Apples

I tried using my step stool up onto my raised garden to pick the apples. My tall son is not here for a few days so I don't have him. I need to buy one of those tools that apple orchards have to grab the apples high up. My daughter commented that our tree is like the ones you can climb. I guess she still has that little girl in her:)

This apple tree is connected in the ground with another tree that looks like some sort of cherries. I spoke with a man in Home Depot that brings his plants in for Home Depot to sell. He told me that anything that has a seed in the middle is a cherry. They are green and very little right now. I stuck my teeth into one of them, but no sign of sweetness yet. They are little and have little stems coming off of the branch. Researching all of this is a blast.

I don't know if a seed planted and this tree is from that or if the people that lived here before us put the trees too close together. This is what I mean, I was not observant enough which I thought I was. Keeps me feeling like a kid investigating and all. In fact, I didn't do things like this as a kid (only child syndrome).

Fresh Apples and Apple Cider

Soon, you will see a photo of my fresh apple sauce from my new found apple tree and I got another thought-why don't I make some apple cider in my fruit juicer. Believe it or not, these thoughts are just coming to me!

Becoming more and more knowledgeable with edible herbs, using the fruits that are right in my own yard, are a start to self sufficiency.

To all of my sisters in the Lord, I depend wholly on the Lord and His provisions are great.

Last year was so rainy, I received nothing from my garden. This year is so dry, I am losing plants everywhere in the yard. Friends pruned my raspberries and blueberries so much and in November (they were trying to help me with my huge yard because of health reasons) and I have no raspberries this year and only one bush of blueberries which aren't looking so great either.

So, to a better thought, I am going to forage and harvest edible weeds and herbs.

Today: Queen Anne's Lace!

Applesauce

A whole pot of applesauce has been made and sitting on the stove overnight to cool.

I can't find either of my items to puree it now. I tried doing it by hand with a colander and small holes with a spoon but it was taking too long.

I am in the direction of a cool antique shop today and will stop in quick to see if I can find a wooden mallet and something to finish the sauce.

The color is deep red and am amazed because the apples were yellowish green.

I want to freeze it and use it in muffins and breads for breakfast.

Is It AUTUMN Yet

Yesterday and today, I was out in my yard foraging and harvesting what I have from my summer crops. A neat little tree (not little anymore), which was maybe 4 feet tall when I moved in five years ago is now over 10 feet, directly in my front garden. Engrafted with another tree-very strange-looks like a type of cherry tree, is a yellowish green apple tree. I got into this garden with alot of different plants, both these trees seem to be growing out of the exact same spot in the garden. I couldn't figure it out until I decided to study the bark on each tree and did see that they are different. If you don't keep an accurate diary of your gardens and plants, you are not going to remember from year to year what is happening in your gardens. I thought I took alot of notes, and the last couple of years have had alot going on in them, so I have not distinguished what these trees are and what they are producing for me to eat. Yesterday, I picked alot of these little apples off the tree, being tired, laid them on the dirt near the tree, and today, being dry out but very hot, all rotted. I had a nice bowl sized full. Disappointed I was and am, I began to pick more off of the tree.

I have been taking a course from Herbmentor.com and was studying wildweeds that can be eaten. While studying and watching videos tonight, I came across one on wild apples. My apples look better than wild (the ones I picked anyway), many on the tree look like crab apples. What I learned also is that no apple is a crab apple, just wild apples. Yes, I can make something with them. I think I will make an apple sauce and get them into the frig tonight just in case they do some funky type thing that the others did last night. I think the sun got to them today. There are worms in alot of them and many bumps and odd shapes on the tree. High up though, are more that I could pick but need a ladder and someone to watch me while I climb. I am getting up there in age you know.

Now my next lesson is how to prune apple trees seeing this is the third one I have in my yard and have not pruned, sprayed or done anything other than pick up the droppings and make apple sauce.

I would love to make apple butter but you need alot. At least with the apple sauce, I can make muffins and breads also.

I froze my apple sauce the last two years in zip lock baggies.

My recipe from Kathy---------

Harvest your apples,

Deworm if need be

Cut up in fourths

Throw in pot

add a bit of water

cinnamon, sugar, brown sugar if you like

slow cook

After softened, pour into a funnel type of colander, special for apples, and keep mushing with a neat wooden tool or spoon. Use a potatoe puree type tool, and get all of that nice apple mush away from the seeds and skins.

Mash the apples like you do mashed potatoes, let cool and put into gallon or small sized zip locks or can if you know how. If you want to can and give away, make sure your jars are cleaned in the dishwasher, ladle the applesauce into the jars, label and give away. Make sure you tell your family and friends to place in the frig and will last up to two weeks. The reason I like to freeze mine because I can store it for over a year. I still have apple sauce from last year. It is fun to compare the color of the sauce from year to year or batch to batch-rose colored, peach colored, light yellow in color.

Don't forget to write this in your recipe book and log the color of your sauce, and how many batches you made. Great for history!

This Weekend Journal

Boy, as I over-view this weekend, I did alot in my daily journal.

Friday night, I made home-made pizza for supper before bible study, Saturday I went yard sale-ing with a friend, had Carter's ice cream at night with my husband, went to church on Sunday and took a walk with my daughter where I did a bit of photography, gathered fern and Queen Elizabeth (road side flower) and today, went to the ocean-Seabrook (with my husband and daughter), slept, walked, drank Duncan Donut's iced coffee and finished my "CAT"s ATC. While working on the cards, my daughter made decaf vanilla coffee and my husband cut up the watermelon.

What do you think of that! Phew. Now tomorrow, grocery shopping, laundry...

Oh by the way, I forgot to tell you that I weeded a bit of my garden when I got home from the beach and made a yummy fruit smoothie in my $17.00 Black and Decker blender. My blender died and I did not have enough money to buy a really good one. So I decided on giving the Black and Decker a try. It has a cool spout, so when it is blending, you can pour it into your cup or bowl.

Now to watch a bit of "Lost" season 5 on Hulu,

"CAT" ATC

I sat down tonight and thought "I have got to be fair and finish these to mail to Rosesonmytable.

I really did not enjoy doing these cards and struggled a bit. I love kitties but for some reason did not feel creative to do this topic. I have been working on them for a bit. Oh well, they are done and will look forward to see the ones Zinnia selected to send me back.

Outcome of the Prize Draw - Plus Important News!

SELF PORTRAIT

Well, I have seen many self portraits in the art world, from photos, to journal pages, paintings...so, tonight I was thinking, I think I'll just sit quietly by myself and shoot some photos with my camera. That is a very hard endeavor when you are trying to do it by yourself and you get this idea late evening and your tired, and your makeup is almost off. I took a few and couldn't bare showing the others for vanities sake, so this one I put on.

My dad had grey eyes which I did not know until he passed away, and I was going through old documents of his, and read that he had grey eyes. I always thought they were blue like my moms and that is why I had blue eyes. Low and behold, I have greyish green eyes and my kids have been noticing the change also.

I may use this photo, copy it and add text to the area of my forehead; perhaps something I am thinking, perhaps a poem, or maybe just words...not sure what my inspiration will be when I sit down.

I am also working on cat ATC for Roses on My Table blog. Sometimes I am doing a couple of swaps at the same time so this time I got confused and made only two cards thinking I was trading directly to another artist. I have two more days to post the cards, and I started working on them tonight thinking I should finish. I am using an old children's book that has poems, music, and almost wood carved pictures. I am incorporating a bit of fabric for the background of the card along with some of the original papers, words, and yarns to create a sense of a yarn ball that cats play with.

Design, Color, Pattern, Line, Texture

The Citgo sign made such an impact in my life and I am sure it did for the artist/artists that designed this logo.

As an artist, these types of things make an impact in my life. I went to college for graphic art and illustration. The goal in 1978 was to create designs that the public would want; something catchy with design, color, pattern, line and texture that touches your emotions and memory.

I remember we had an assignment for the Worcester Children's Museum in Massachusetts. We went to the museum, had a tour, and went back to the studio to work on posters for the museum to sell. Another assignment was to help the museum redesign their floor layouts in the actual museum. It was a fun assignment. Back then, everything was done paystub style, handpainted signs with goauche, free hand lettering or presstype. Today, everything is done on the computer along with doing collage and ATC. It is really sad to me though. I love hand done artwork. Don't get me wrong because I do photography also, and my kids tell me doing artwork online takes just as long but I do appreciate art work done by hand with real paint brushes, and real paint. I love the texture of paint and papers.

HERE IT IS-THE CITGO SIGN

BOSTON (AP) -- The iconic red, white and blue Citgo sign visible over Fenway Park's famous Green Monster in left field is going dark for a couple months for an extreme makeover.

The Venezuelan oil company says 218,000 LED lights on the 3,600-square-foot sign will be replaced with more environmentally friendly and weather-resistant lights.

The more than 9,000 feet of lights on the 45-year-old sign were replaced five years ago, but those lights that saved $18,000 a year in energy costs are now out of production.

The sign went dark for four years starting in 1979 at the height of the energy crisis, and in 1982 Citgo announced plans to dismantle it.

But the sign stayed after an uproar from Red Sox fans.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/baseball/mlb/07/22/red.sox.citgo.ap/index.html#ixzz0uT5I6oDg

CITGO SIGN from the 1940's

Fox 25 news today told us that the historical CITGO sign in Boston, that let's everyone know they are near Fenway Park; home of the Boston Red Sox is being changed to a better weather protected sign. I laughed. Why does anything have to be done if it has lasted and works since 1940's. Why do things have to always become bigger and better.

As I am growing older (my birthday was last week), I reminisce alot. And I think alot of people reminise and love vintage things like signs, cafe's, eating restaurants, parks...

It seems that people love the oldies in music, antiques in furniture, shabby chic rusted items, old cars, old fashioned diners and the CITGO sign in Boston.

Oh well!

Teavana Tea Kettle-"Tetsubin"

My birthday was last week and I had been blessed with monetary gifts. To make a good pot of tea, I needed a real tea kettle with the basket in it. I have a pretty clear glass tea pot to brew the little tea balls that open up when placed in hot water and a flower sits on the bottom of the kettle. This particular glass tea pot is difficult making lose tea though and is more for the beauty than for the function of what I wanted. I would never have been able to buy a kettle like the one I bought at Teavana's today if it had not been my birthday. So, I began to do a bit of investigating on iron tea kettles online and decided that not paying for shipping was up my alley and I headed over to Teavana in the mall to look at the different colors, patterns, sizes and prices of "Tetsubin"s.

I found a pretty little tea kettle call a "Tetsubin" that only makes two cups of tea. It is green with dragonflies on it. It has a little metal mesh basket so that the tea will steep properly and the pot should last for a lifetime. I made myself a little tea cabinet with various teas from Teavana along with bagged tea from the health food store and grocery store. My cabinet has my tea ball, honey, sugar nuggets, tea spoons and other various little gadgets. I have it in a little corner near my kitchen cabinets. All of my children and husband love hot tea and cold tea.

I would like to have bought a kettle that would serve my entire family, but that would have been double the price, and like the guy at the store said "it is a good start". I don't think I would ever have a conscious to pay what they want for a larger kettle.

The tea kettle sits on top of an iron warmer. You put a little tea candle in the warmer and sit the tea kettle on top fo the warmer. The warmer sits on a matching trinket. The trinket matches the tea kettle and prevents damage to your counter or table surface from heat.

Here is what my tea kettle looks like but mine is green.

I loved the red, but the green just did my heart good!

THERE IS ALWAYS TOMORROWI

I didn't finish everything I wanted to pick tonight because the kids wanted movie night with family. I love that and am so greatful.

There were some huge fern leaves out there too! I want to flatten them and frame them for gifts for Christmas. Also, there is an area up the street where alot of spearmint is growing. Spearmint Tea is delicious. Grab all of the mints you can find, dry them, and throw them into a bowl. Moths hate mints and you can put the bowl into your closet or make sachets by placing dried mints into little square pieces of cloth or muslin and tie off with a pretty bow of ribbon. Are you a stitcher. Make a little pillow, fill the pillow with the herbs, and stitch up the fourth side. You could monogram an initial on the cloth first or handstitch a design or a few french knots with embroidery thread.

Every morning, I wake to an exciting day that will be fullfilled with special events.

I love to meditate on the Lord's goodness for the day, the health and ability to get up after I had been sick most of my life (fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue and irritable syndrome). Photography, art, gardening, reading, writing, blogging, taking care of my children, calling a friend, reading a devotional, meditating on what I learned in church or bible study, watching a movie online and the list goes on, redecorating a room, painting a piece of furniture, reorganizing drawers in the kitchen. I am never board.

Decorating With Herbs

When I harvest my herbs, I immediately hang them upside down. Mints I dry in my dehydrator to have for tea for the winter months. Mint tea is awesome for calming your nerves down at night and for an upset stomach and flu season.

You can also take a bath infused with mint tea leaves. Take a piece of cheese cloth, put the dried mint in a square shaped piece, tie it with some twine or wrap a rubber band around it tight, place it in the tub while pouring the hot water in it and enjoy the scent.

Fresh mint can be placed in your cold iced tea.

Making soap is an enjoyable event I have had with my friend Kathy Huppe. Mint can be added to your home-made soap.

Candles are cheap to buy. Purchase a white candle, spread glue on it and roll the candle in the dried mint leaves.

My drying herbs make great decorations on the back porch, in my crocks in the kitchen, and in home-made wreaths. The smell lasts for a long time. If you don't smell them anymore, rub the mint between your fingers, and the oils will liven your smell. And you can also use these herbs for cooking (unless they have dust on them from hanging for months0:)

Elmers Glue and Cloth Paper

Today, I began to make a piece of cloth paper prior to my going out hunting for "yarrow".

A friend of mine was going through a hard time and I know she loves to sew so I had seen "Stitch Alchemy" a wonderful book that I have wanted. I made mention of it to her, she looked at it online and ordered it. It took her mind off of things and onto things she loves. This book has a twist for her though. She has sewed clothing, costumes, stuffed animals and things like that. But this collage stuff is different for her. So, I just picked up the book for myself with birthday money.

I took a piece of canvas 18x12" and layed it on a glass cutting board. The book suggested freezer paper but I didn't want to stop my project because I did not have freezer paper.

I mixed elmers glue two to one ratio with water and applied it with a paint brush that I don't use much except for oil paintings. Apply the glue to the whole piece of fabric (you can use muslin or cotton fabric-preferably cream or white)and begin to add tissue papers and other vintage papers. I had about 6 tissues papers I have saved from packages and old pages from an old bible. Yolana and I are christians so I figured she would love the scriptures from Genesis in the piece and the colors I was using were green, yellow, aqua blue, a bit of pink and just a floral look. The first paper I used was the aqua blue and layed pieces down on the soak covered canvas (glue all over it, don't worry which way your brush strokes go, just cover the fabric good), and then lay a piece of tissue paper down, fill your brush up with glue and apply, dabbing or lightly brushing. Keep adding your papers how ever you want all over the fabric. I tried added layer upon layer of the same colored tissue paper to see how dark I could get the color. I applied another tissue paper over another type to see what I could see underneath. Use the underside of the tissue paper to get a lighter color. I then began to tear pieces of the Genesis pages and put in different areas of the canvas. Then, I thought, this looks like oriental home made paper, so I got my dried herbs, flaked them a bit on the glue cloth, and then filled my brush with glue and patted it on the herbs. So I am getting some nice texture and color. I stopped for awhile to take my walk and to let it dry. If your glue is too sticky add a bit more water. I used a whole small student sized bottle for this days process. I need to buy more perhaps at the Dollar Store.

When I am completed with this cloth paper, I am going to cut it and send Yolana a half. She will do the same project with her supplies and send me 1/2 of her 18x12 sheet. Then more fun will begin. I am going to teach her to collage and mix her medias!

Ephemera, Tin, Collectibles

Remember how I mentioned my family calls my stuff junk? Do you think so? Well if you do, I am sorry, but I love this stuff.

Jennies in Haverhill is a little antique shop that is my favorite. I can go to huge yard sales, large flea markets, and not find what I find at Jennie's. I actually tried to get a part time job there recently, but there were no openings. Oh Well.

This tin I don't even have to rust. It is ready to go! The vintage papers I can't wait to use because most of my art and most of my teachers do little petit girls and not boys as much so I am going to include them in my journal. The drawer I think I am going to hang upside down by the little know and create a small shrine.

TUTORIAL ON CREATING A JOURNAL AND COVER

Buy a heating tool and spend more money!? Noooooooooo!

Use your hair dryer to blow dry your gesso. Don't hold the tool really close to the page but far enough that the page will dryer sooner than later. Dry both sides of the page so that the dampness will go away. I hold the page up with my hand and blow dry the side I gessoed and the other side that is not.

Don't feel like you have to use every page in your journal to paint and paste. I use paper clips before painting, deciding how many pages I want to use in the journal. I then paper clip the pages and gesso all of the pages at one time or take my time and do one spread, dry it with the blow dryer and lay out for a day or two. You can then work on this spread, or decide to gesso another two pages and so on and so forth. It is all up to you. That is what is so neat about doing a journal, being a mixed media artist and collage and painting your pages. You can do what ever is on your mind and heart.

A journal is a great place to place your heart and thoughts. A journal does not have to be shown to anyone and it can be just for you. You may have special journals that you display and others you just put away. You decide. This one I am working on will be a display to teach and show methods to others.

WET GESSO

You may ask what is gesso got to do with herbs?

I'll tell you, it is tough loving so many different things.

I am a mom, a marmee (grandmom) , a pastor's wife, an artist, a writer, a gardener, and a collector of what my friends would call junk. I have nicer names. like "ephemera" or "antiques" or collectibles". More expensive to get rid of it than hoarding it they say. Can I help it? "No"

So, what is gesso. It is like manure or compost to the garden. Gesso is a main substance for painting. I am a mixed media and collage artist. Gesso is used daily to cover a surface. This makes the surface one nice blank space that I can then begin to apply color and papers to. The surface you see in this photo is one of a new journal that I created out of an autograph book. I loved this little book and got it for $1.00 so I picked it up quick. The book's cover was already interested with vintage style photos on it. So, I covered it with a clear paper from a clothing store the Loft; kept the handles from the bag so that the journal could be carried. I added a vintage doily onto the cover. I began to collect vintage manila colored items that I love and painted one spread of page with the gesso. I also paper clipped the pages together so that I will have about 12-13 main pages to work on and that way they will be stable and sturdy.

The Backyard Herb Garden

We have a barn in the back with a small parcel of grass. The previous owners had perennials all around this little parcel. There has been so much I have wanted to do with this little parcel but the dogs go out there and do their duty all of the time so I was a bit concerned. But, when I have a goal, I want to do it. My son dug up a section of the yard (not the whole yard yet) and what I did was bought a bag of manure and compost, bought my plants and worked hard cleaning out the sod out of that little area. As you can see in the picture, the ground looks very dry. The new garden is the small piece that is to the left of the picture that is in a curve built with bricks put into the ground. Someone was giving away free bricks on freecycle and my husband and I filled the van and I was thrilled. Bricks are fifty cents a piece so getting a hundred bricks was money in my pocket. This job did not use all of the bricks and what the mauve colored blocks did for me was keep out the grass from coming into the herbs. I then added some compost to the dirt (not soil in this back yard). I hand tilled it in. Last year, I had bought black fabric to keep weeds growing in around garden plants, so I layed the fabric down with large staples to hold the fabric down. Then I layed out each herb where I wanted it placed. I cut an X shape into the fabric, dug a whole, placed manure in the hole (herbs do not need great soil), placed the herb inside the hole, and then filled the hole with compost and the remaining dirty. I did this with all of the plants. Compost is about $3.48 a bag so I bought five bags and laid that on top of the black fabric. So what you see in the picture is actually black compost that is so dry because of the 95 degree weather. I watered the herbs yesterday and they seemed to be doing well. The plants I started out with were small in the first place, so I am quite pleased with their well doing. I do expect some of them to die from the weather and am contemplating the fall and winter and what should be done to the plants. Thyme is a tough herb to keep in my yard and also sage.

CAN YOU GUESS WHAT HERB THIS IS?

I love the spring, summer and fall because I love harvesting herbs that I have grown and herbs that grow on the sides of the road.

Today is Sunday, and it was a bit cooler tonight, so I decided to take a walk because the weather has been so hot and has kept me indoors often.

I am taking a class called LearningHerbs.com. There is a special going if you are just starting out for $1.00 for a month. This is the time I wanted to take advantage of such a site.

I started out by writing down the different ailments my children, husband and I have and thought I would like to find out what is blooming right now out in the fields, harvest it and make teas, tinctures, creams and all that good stuff. This site includes videos, audios, live talk, photos, worksheets for kids, and also includes physiology and anatomy. I am going to include this into my children's homeschool studies.

So, the secret herb I found today up street from my house was "Yarrow" or achillia. Unfortunately, my street didn't have as much as I would like to pick, more poison ivy than you can imagine and I don't need that now. Hopefully I didn't get any on me.

Achillia or "Yarrow" has little white flowers that are grouped together with long, delicate type leaves. This herb was used historically when soldiers had wounds, they would take the leaves and pack them into the wound whichwould stop the bleeded. Yarrow is an astringent along with helping with bruises, sore gums, diarrhea, and fevers. If you have a fever, the yarrow tea will help you sweat the fever out.

So, after I harvested this cute little white herb (or to others, just a highway side flower), along with other flowers, I made it home, not sweating too too much, and took an elastic band, wound it around the bunch and hung out in my little porch to dry out.

I have a mud room or little porch I call it where I have my gardening, herb and aroma therapy books. There, I hang up my herbs because it is nice and dry and not overly sunny.

You can even put the herb in a brown paper bag and turn upside down in an attic or in a dry closet. After it is dry and crumbly, you can put it in a clean dry jar. Make sure the jar is dry because your herb will become moldy and that has happened to me. You can then make this dry herb into a tea for your ailments. Don't forget to label your jar. I have said I will label my jars later and then get confused or forget what I did so if you can try, do it right away. When I am hanging my herb upside down, I also grab a piece of paper or a tag, label it "Yarrow" and tie it around or attach it to the elastic band that is around the stalks of the herb.

I feel like I am living in the old days and I like the feeling. I don't like the idea that there are all kinds of things growing around me that the Lord created and I don't know what it is and how to use it. I want to learn to make vinegars, ointments, teas, tonics and all that good stuff.

I hope this lesson will help you.

Take a good long look at the picture though before you pick or use to make tea.

July 14 Herbal Calendar

July 14 Herbal Calendar

One Half Century Old

My birthday is right around the corner and I have been reminiscing alot lately; talking to my husband and kids about my life. I have added a couple of new widgets. One widget is like the old etch a sketches we used to have. I know they can still be bought in the toy section of stores. I played with mine for hours and it was great to take in the car and not make a mess for my mother.

The other widget is watching movies---classical movies with various topics such as: adventure, horror, cartoons, etc. Check it out and watch movies that you have never seen or will watch and reminisce with me especially Frankenstein's Daughter. I cracked up watching a section of it.

Frugal Meal for Hot Wednesday

Yes, it was hot and sticky again here in Massachusetts. Mid-afternoon came and I needed to decide what to make for supper. Finances are tough right now and I am using us what is left in my cupboards and freezer and trying to be creative with what foods are given to my family. My husband is a pastor and our church is suffering through the financial crisis. So, I decided to make chicken soup.

Here is my different chicken soup recipe that my Italian friend "Chris" gave to me years ago and my family loves it. The recipe can be changed if you only have certain ingredients.

1 roaster chicken

2 jars of Ragu

cellery

carrots

onion

chicken bouillon

spices-salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion salt, and any type of seasoning you prefer

garlic fresh if you have it (I used jar garlic about a good TBS of it)

rice or pasta

Put your washed roaster in a pot and add water to 3/4 filled pot.

Let boil and simmer till chicken is cooked and you have a stock. Add more water if it evaporates. Mine does. Remove your chicken to cool. Add cut up celery, carrots, and chopped onion. Add about 3-4 chicken bouillon, spices and fresh garlic. Now that your chicken is cooled, take it off of the bones, add it to the pot, add two jars of Ragu (I like this the best) and add quite a bit of salt and add pepper. You can boil rice or pasta in another pot, and then add to soup.

This soup does not take long except for the chicken to cook and the carrots and celery to tenderize. After that, it is nothing for the other items to be added. This soup tastes the best if you start it in the morn. Eat it with parmesian cheese and a loaf of Italian break, french bread or biscuits. Yum

Enjoy with your family

Welcome to my Photography

On Crystal's Creations-StillWatersgallery, I will share alot of my photography. In fact, most of the photography is done by me. I also take the pictures and videos of my work.

I have a Canon Rebel. Years ago in college, I took a photography class with an SLR Canon camera. I learned to do the developing also but the chemicals were so expensive that I did not have the money to buy them or to replace them when they went bad. When you are a new photographer, things go wrong and your chemicals can go bad too! At that time, I couldn't even afford the film.

Yes, I have always been a poor artist and hopefully that will change someday. My parents bought me the camera for a gift and I was an art major and music major in a college in Boston. So, out of sheer desperation and care, I would try to take as little pictures as I could because I could only afford one role of film. You laugh...yes I do too! One role of film is nothing compared to our world today of taking thousands of pictures in one trip and then trying to decide which ones to keep and the rest to delete. We can delete on our camera and we can delete on our computers when we load up our pictures. We can have our pictures developed from companies online or stores down the street, camera shops or even our homes with our lazer print machines.

We just don't know how we have it made. But you want to know what is funny? I took my memory card to Ritz photo three months ago to bring my sons wedding pictures and still have not picked them up. "Why" you ask? Because I can't afford to pick them up:) Sound familiar?

Anyway, the architecture photos you see on my blog, along with flowers from Arizona were quickly taken because we were on the run. I wanted to remember the images, the colors, the lines, the textures...I want to recreate these sites into my collage or paintings/drawings. You may use my pictures to draw or paint from. Enjoy them and please send me copies of your work!

ARCHITECTURE

I love architecture; especially buildings that were built so long ago. I just can't figure out how on earth monks so far long ago, built this beautiful missionary church that you see on my blog. When I went to Arizona for my husband's father's funeral (I have never been to Arizona before), my mouth gaped in awe over the colors, design, shapes and various textures I saw. As I even look at my photos, I see collages already made just by taking pictures of what has been built years and years and years ago. When I visited this church, I felt like I was in a western movie. Do you want to hear "shabby"? Oh yes, shabby chic all the way. the muted colors were lovely along with gold gilding. I will add more photos of the inside of this fabulous building.

So we artists of today are not far off from the founding forefathers of this country.

CHECK OUT THE FLOWERS OF OUR BEAUTIFUL ARIZONA

The purpose of my Arizona photography is to share with you the wonderful colors in our landscapes.

If you look hard enough, you will see loads of color combinations in our very nature. COPY those colors into your art work. Perhaps you don't even have to paint or color a flower, just load your paint brush with a chosen color, apply it to your canvas or paper or cardboard, pick up a new color after you have rinsed your paint brush, and lay that down on the canvas in another spot or next to the first color. Keep on doing this with just two colors or three colors and fill up the canvas. You will see how colors change when they are placed next to a different color. Sometimes grey can appear blue. Check it out!