Roo's Treehouse

Let there be peace on earth.

If there is to be peace in the world,
There must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations,
There must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities,
There must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors,
There must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home,
There must be peace in the heart.

      -- Lao Tzu (570-490 B.C.)

Changed forever.

No one forgets.

I woke up thinking, as I do every year on this day..I was at work, my son called me, we went into lockdown when the Governor came, and the SWAT team, no one in and out of the complex. We stood in mute silence in front of conference room TVs and watched, horrified, helpless, and tears flowed from every single one of us.

Everyone, riveted to the television for days, like it was a vigil, the only way we could DO something. We prayed, we gave blood, we felt guilty for being grateful for living. We called family, we hugged strangers. Rejoiced with every soul found, alive, mourned the loss of those whose lives ended.

Unimaginable pride for law enforcement, fireman, military, families of them all.

I still wonder at the indomitable human spirit, every time i think of the passengers of Flight 93.

Ached with the knowing that it was never going to be the same again.

We hope. We stand. We honor.

We pray for peace.

Peace is not the product of terror or fear.
Peace is not the silence of cemeteries.
Peace is not the silent revolt of violent repression.
Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution
of all to the good of all.
Peace is dynamism. Peace is generosity.
It is right and it is duty.

      -- Bishop Oscar Romero (1917-1980)

Image from publicdomainpictures.net, by petr kratochvil. Thanks, Petr.

Holidaze, Mail Craze and Frolickin' Ways…..

Howdddeee! It's time for the post 4th of July post! We were silly crazy at my house, because our original  plans for laid back turned into a wild 'n crazy party of 13+! Eeples, peeples!  But, the more the merrier, and there was uber good food of the fresh variety, in the form of fruits and veggies, and meatsits for those who partake of such.

But me & my bud, Nathan the 7 year old, could hardly contain ourselves over the prospect of fireworks! Woohah! (Okay really, he did better than I did. Also, he was busy trying to gnaw a rib without his 2 front teeth. That's dedication, people.)

So we made food and chaos and bellies got full and my dishwasher got fuller and then Buddy, the Wonder Dog signals its time, cause he snarfs front row and center (a dog who looks forward to fireworks, can you imagine? Of course he also sleeps on his back and snores…..)

Then, the boyz worked the 'werks….

Only, I don’t werk the camera good yet.

So, I promise, it's not a re-enactment of the civil war gone horribly awry-it really was spectac-ulicious!

 A good time was had by all, and Sunday was operation recuperation for me (2 a.m. is waaay past my bedtime!) and then...back to Monday, sometimes known in my darkest hour as "Oh humbug" Monday  (mainly, it's just that whole alarm clock thing). I made it through stateworkery world with nary a scratch (well, barely) and lo and behold, upon arriving home…I spy…..MAIL of the most exciting variety!!

Package #1 contained my prizes from Krista's Mad Tea Party giveaway, and were so incredibly fun and plentiful, I will be using bits and pieces throughout the rest of the year! Very clevah, Ms. Krista!

I feel like I scored big time, with all the treats upon bling upon confetti upon figurines upon fun!!

Thank you thank you thank you!  Please, visit Ms. Krista at TWo PiXIe DoLLs- and be prepared to be amazed at her jewelry, so unique and stunning! (Note Mr. Skelly below is not jewelry-I just promised him he could be in a shot)..

Time for another package! Remember I told you I took advantage of Vanessa's Etsy buy 1 get 1 prints Mad Tea Party sale-a-ganza?? Oh my stars upon galaxies upon multiverses! I felt like I had just robbed the Louvre when I opened her envelopage!!

("You felt like you robbed a bathroom?" Cowboy asked when reading this post. "No baby- the Louvre, you know, priceless art…" … "Ah, you mean Paris," said Cowboy, nodding sagely. Hee)

I must must must go to a place where there are many many frames and matting possibilities *STAT*! Thank you Veevala, they are incredible pieces of magic *as always, xovovivoxoxo*!!  I promise to post pics once the deed is done...

And now, envelope # 3, from a wonder of a mom, super kind pal and very twitter savvy gal, Ms. Jamie-Woo, of this sweet place:

Cuteness and wonder abounds at A Forest Frolic and I have snapped up a lot of trinkets and treasures from Jamie's Etsy - like, it's become almost as regular as my paycheck (coincidence? I think not) and all of it's fab, and sometimes I think I should just ask her to set me up a credit account, and send me one of everything she makes, as she makes them…hey, I'm onto something! (Veevala, you too dahling!)

 

The thing is, I love all of the cuteness that abounds in Jamie's 2 Etsy shops

(some of which I cant show you in case family members who may be recipients are reading!)…but unlike prints which are pretty cut and dried hang on the wall easy peasy, when it comes to crafty things, I, not being a particularly crafty girl, have to be very inventive in my rationale (to myself) for owning such cutesy accoutrement….so tell me…for example…..

Am I way off, or do these tags look lovely in a frame?

And...couldn't these tags

Be a wonderful ornamentation unto themselves, by just hanging them from a branch in a nice glass vase?

And these too cute for words tags are what started it all. I am using them to organize my baskets o'goodness (décor and more). And these glitteratti (below) are the best for sprinkling into letters and cards, or desks of unsuspecting coworkers, or interoffice mail, or drive thru windows when getting a beverage…..

I keep begging Jamie to show us more of her art journal, and please please help a girl whose own journal is sadly lacking scrumptiousness.  Dearest Twinklestars, how do you use your wee Etsy treasures? Do you have ideas for my bevy of tags and sprinkles?  I appreciate any tips you can spare!

XOXOXOXOX

PS Oh! Please note the vintage gal in her best holiday garb on my left sidebar-she's here to let you know that the Gift of the Maggi is...a Christmas/Winter Holiday party on (when else?) July 25th! If that sounds like fun to you, run, don't walk (or maybe you should just use the link) on over to Maggi's fun fun site,  Just Add Glitter and Stir and sign up! (I'll be posting more on this later,too)

Well, it's getting late...Have a happy happy day/night/week/life!