Tag: writing

Going Home Again

Going Home Again

Posted on by Mama

smalltalkmamalogoThey say you can’t go home again, but I’ve never put much merit in that old adage. After all, I go home. . . all the time. Of course, it’s not quite the same — I’m older, family members are absent and most things don’t look as they did way back when (except my bedroom, which is a completely different topic), but it’s still home and it’s a good place to be.

That being said, I gotta tell ya, I’ve been seriously missing my bloggy home at Small Talk Mama. After the complete crash last fall, throwing in the white towel and dabbling in a new blogging venture for a few months, I just kept thinking of my home [page] and have decided to return.

No, it won’t quite be the same — posts have been lost, comments obliterated, my focus has shifted a bit and I’m rebuilding from almost scratch — but with all these changes there is still enough of Small Talk Mama, with it’s bright yellow sunflower, warm orange colors and a focus on family, to keep calling it home. I’m doing a bit of spring cleaning and rearranging to the old girl but her essence is still the same, so I hope you agree that Small Talk Mama is still a good place to be.

Secret Subject Swap — My Nobel Prize

Secret Subject Swap — My Nobel Prize

Posted on by Mama

Welcome to a Secret Subject Swap. This week, 14 brave bloggers picked a secret subject for someone else and were assigned a secret subject to interpret in their own style. Today we are all simultaneously divulging our topics and submitting our posts.

My Secret Subject is:
You’ve won a Nobel Prize. Which? Why? What did you do to deserve the honor?

It was submitted by: http://berghamchronicles.blogspot.com

Hmm. . . this is a toughy. I guess I’ve never dreamed of winning a Nobel Prize. Why would I? I have too many other fish to fry just trying to raise a family, keep up with the laundry and keeping food in the fridge. Whew, just makes me tired thinking about it. But that being said, I do have dreams; and so why not go with me to the land of farfetched ambitions for a couple of minutes and let’s just see what this Nobel Prize might be all about.

On 27 November 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament, giving the largest share of his fortune to a series of prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and Peace – the Nobel Prizes. http://www.nobelprize.org/

Since we’re dreaming here, let’s pretend I was just awarded a Nobel Prize in the literature category; because well let’s face it, I’m probably not nearly humble enough to win the peace prize and the other categories are way out of reach. As described in Nobel’s will, the literature prize is intended for the person who, in the literary field, had produced “the most outstanding work in an ideal direction.” So let’s see what I’ve done. . .

For my literature prize (and I mean no disrespect to actual Nobel Laureates), I’ve created the most outstanding work of literature in the children’s book category (remember – dreaming). It’s titled: Sammy and Guinevere Take a Very Long Vacation. It’s a book with simple, but smart animal characters that travel the world and explore time changes to unravel the real history of the world and all its civilizations. It’s a cross between, The Secret of Nimh, Animal Farm and Pete the Cat, and the kids are just wild about it. It’s a book that teaches the real truth about people, governments and injustices throughout time without being judgmental or condescending.

Sammy, one of the main characters, is an elderly little white terrier rescued from the pound by a kind family (yes, that happened); and Guinevere is a little green parakeet (also true). They accidentally discover a time traveling portal to the world among the mess under the bed of the little girl who loves them, and the two companions and countless side-kicks travel to and fro on countless adventures. Each time they return home, they recount their stories to Betty, a sweet old white cat, and a young artistic ferret named Picasso. Together the cat and ferret write and illustrate the lessons learned and keep all the knowledge safe from the neighbor’s evil German shepherd (no reference to certain evils, but our neighbor’s dog was really mean).

So what do you think? Sounds great, right? Well, I’ll let you know when I’ve completed my masterpiece and you can nominate me for the prize.

*****

If you want to read more of the fun, here are links to all the sites now featuring Secret Subject Swap posts.  Sit back, grab a cup, and check them all out. See you there:

A Pair of DIY Projects on Parade

A Pair of DIY Projects on Parade

Posted on by Mama

Today I’m sharing a couple of recently completed DIY projects for the September Sapphire Even Day Blog Challenge (I’m going to call it the “Even Day Challenge” for the rest of the month just so I don’t leave anything out). I love a good deal and I love furniture, so taking something from trash to treasure is a great deal of fun and/or rewarding for me. Believe me, I’m not above pulling out an old chair or chest of drawers from someone’s road-side trash pile.

These two projects are just small little things that were quick and easy to complete. For most of my furniture pieces I use sand paper, flat paint and soft wax. With these three tools I can quickly redo a table, chair or cabinet from start to finish; adding the extras is where it takes time, attention and a bit of product testing.

Project #1 – Pair of BEEutiful Children’s Chairs

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These wobbly white children’s chairs cost $7.00 for the pair, and with the tightening of a few screws, a coat of paint and the addition of a beautiful bee graphic from The Graphic’s Fairy, they became a great resale product for an antique store. You can read the whole story on how I transformed these cute little things on my blog. Just one word of advice, experiment with your own chalk paint BEFORE you start painting.

Project #2 – Monogrammed Side Table

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I had this little table hanging out around my house for about a year before I decided to give it a face lift. It had been outside, inside, held pumpkins and mums, and had been just plain ugly the entire time. With the purchase of new living room furniture, I decided it would find a final resting place as a side table (but it still needed major help). I actually used flat black spray paint on this project because of all the spindley things — getting a smooth coat of paint on that was not something I was looking forward to doing with a brush. Before I sanded and painted, I put my Cricut machine to good use and cut a monogram letter out of sticker paper for the top. After spraying the entire piece, I peeled off the sticker, sanded some more and waxed the entire piece. . . and it really was just about that easy, and quick (once I decided its fate).