These Days....

So much has been going on these days that it's been difficult to get anything of real importance done around here. What do I mean you ask? Well, I'll tell you...but remember...you asked!



Lately...there's been some stirring amongst the HUG! The HUG is getting bigger by leaps and bounds but the members of said HUG will tell you that it's all fun and games...I beg to differ!



There's been some shenanigans...some jokery...some tom foolery...

Hmmmm...Andy thought it was funny until I put him to work sweeping the kitchen floor for putting holes in one of my boxes!



There was the day that "Sunshine" joined the HUG...and there was a welcome committee of sorts...there was cake...I'm wondering who baked the cake?

And he brought along a pair of beautiful shoes he said his former "Mum" Karyn made...they fit one of his new friends well I see...they all seemed rather impressed. I couldn't believe all of the chatter...have you ever heard a group of bears chatter non stop before? It's very noisy and it makes me roll my eyes. For goodness sakes...it's just a pair of shoes!

And then there was tea! Oh my...tea and cookies and cupcakes? And no matter how many times I begged them to hurry up and clean up their mess, they went right on chattering and talking into the late hours of the day. tsk, tsk.

It was a good thing it was a smaller and more exclusive party really...can you imagine?

I mean really? Oh my...

My kitchen's just not big enough!

Faces...

"You use a mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul"~George Bernard Shaw



I thought that I would share some faces with you. I want you to see what I see deep down inside through that "window"...right into the soul. Can you see?

Our faces show our joy, our pride, our silliness, our heritage, our love and sometimes our sorrow. They can be so endearing. They truly are the windows to our soul.



Keep smiling!

Michelle:)

It's Spring! So Where Have I Been?

Well, let me tell ya! I'm not quite sure! I've been here but not completely! I don't think I've been myself lately and so much has happened in such a short time! And yet...it feels as though it's been forever since I've been here last! As always, I apologize...following something such as a blog is no fun when the blog writer is no place to be found! Will you ever forgive me? Oh how I hope so...



As I said, it's been a very busy time and as most of you know by now, we've finally welcomed our sweet little granddaughter "Paisley" into our family and we couldn't be happier both for ourselves and for my daughter who has proven to be the most attentive and beautiful mother I knew she could be!



With that being said, I am happy to show off a few quick snap shots of our sweet girl who is now nearly 2 and 1/2 months old already! Can you believe it?

Little Miss Paisley has a very proud "big cousin"! Here she is shortly after she was born with our other sweet granddaughter, Cierra, who was very anxious to meet her!

As it is so often, along with the happiness comes sadness and shortly after our baby girl was born we said our goodbyes to my husband's father, Lloyd who silently passed away in his sleep. His three children, my husband Darren and his sisters Valerie and Karen and their families all miss him terribly and the last couple of months have been very difficult as they tend to his affairs. To help them along in their grief, I took one of their father's favorite suit jackets and three of his ties and made three special teddy bears...one for Darren, one for Val and one for Karen. As emotional as it was to make them and then to give them, it was a special way to honour the memory of a man who was full of faith and kindness and who had worked incredibly hard all of his life. I used a beautiful photo of Lloyd as the hangtags for each teddy and the ties were used for the foot pads and collars. A small bit of comfort I know but I'm sure it helped.

Well, in regards to my work...in spite of the fact that I've been spending as much time as I possibly can outside in the garden these days....bears have been made and put into my Etsy shop but I'm not very good at announcing it these things lately! I promise I'm working on it! For the time being, I've popped a few photos over the the right there! See? Yep...that's what I've been working on over the past two months. Not much I'm afraid but at least I've been keeping my foot in the "teddy bear making" door!



I've got so much to tell you but I think I'll stop here for now...that gives me a really good reason to come back as soon as possible! You will be here right? Please say you'll be here...you're very important to me:)



Happy Spring!

Michelle:)

Spring Cleaning and All That Is New...

Spring is a time for newness, for change, for cleansing the soul as well as the home and it's a time to reflect on things that are important and to put things that are not so important on that perverbial "back burner" until another time.



I know a lot of us bloggers take a moment to apologize to our beautiful followers for not keeping an updated blog. And I know that a lot of followers decide that it's time to move on and I completely understand. I hope that anyone who has decided to stick it out with my blog will understand that there are so many other things I need to do and concentrate on right now and that both of my blogs have been put on that "back burner" until I can find the proper time to make them what they should be.



Okay, I do apologize and I do plan to be back "full time" posting and updating my blogs very soon.



Now, what have I been up to you ask? Well, slowly working on bears...I keep thinking I have to give it up but like my sweet hubby says, "you know you can't give it up...it's in you to keep going" and I agree. I might want to give it up and you've all told me that you've felt the same way on occasion and that I shouldn't give up...let's just say I'm going to "prioritize" a wee bit for a little while.



You see, aside from the fact that it's spring and I want to get my house in order as most of us do at this time of the year, my baby girl is about to become a new mother for the very first time! And with that came a trip to her house way up North to help her get ready, to throw her a baby shower and to spend some quality time getting to know her all over again. It's been over a year since I last saw her and when I arrived at her house to see her for the first time with this beautiful belly, it was a glorious momma/grandmotherly kind of feeling! I can't describe it any other way. For the entire visit with her, my eyes constantly welled up and I had hoped that while I was there, her little girl would make her way into the world so that I could be a part of it. Unfortunately, it didn't happen for me and I had to come home. She's been told over and over that she will deliver early even having to endure shots of steroids to strengthen her little girl's lungs and several impromptu hospital visits in case she came too early. I suppose it's a good thing that I report, to you, that our little granddaughter, Paisley, is still warm and snug inside Momma's tummy and with her due date being March 22nd...she could be here any time now...perhaps even on my birthday on Friday! Grandma would love that so very much! What a wonderful birthday gift that would be:)



Anyway, as you can see, my mind has been elsewhere not to mention the fact that I, along with everyone else it seems, suffered from the most horrible sinus infection and cold known to mankind during all of that time...okay, I exaggerated...only a little bit though. It was a bad one...I don't get colds often and that one was a doozey!



So, with all of that being said, I, again, apologize for not updating as often as I should have. I may not be back for a little while again as that baby could come any day now and then my mind will most definately be elsewhere. I do appreciate your visits and wonderful comments! They make me smile and inspire me:) And they keep me going!



Now, one more thing I want to mention! A few months ago, I had the privilege of making a sale to a wonderful lady who has since become a very dear friend. Usually, when I make friends online and I have a lot of them...they're so very far away and the chances of ever getting to meet any of them in person are very slim. This time...not so...she's only an hour and a half away from me and we're meeting up at the end of the month and I am tickled pink and so is she! Karyn, also a bear maker as well as a doll maker, and I have so much in common it's crazy and we're enjoying talking bear talk and getting to know each other so meeting up at the end of the month will be the "icing on the cake" for both of us! And to top it off even more...we're going to do her first ever bear trade! I'm so excited I can hardly wait! My new little friend "Sunshine" is a beautiful new bear made by Karyn last week and I can't wait to meet him as well. Karyn chose two of my tiny primitive bears which I'm going to continue to work on after this post!



To get to know Karyn and her work, yourself, you can find her amazing bears and dolls in her ETSY SHOP! She and her husband are both artistic in so many ways as well as musically gifted! They're a lovely couple and Darren and I look forward to meeting them both!



Here is a photo of my soon-to-be new bear friend "Sunshine"! Thanks Karyn!

Next time I post, I will have some happy news! I'm thrilled to be able to share it with you! Thanks for stopping by and Happy Spring!

Hugs,

Michelle

Lovely Memories...

In keeping with the Valentine's Day theme, I thought I'd share a special treasure I found on one of my "hunting" trips recently.







We came across this fabulous little "Autograph" book and at first, I thought that it would be like any other old "scrap" book I sometimes find...empty! Perhaps the former owners had nothing to say or nothing to "keep" that would be treasured by future generations? Perhaps they didn't want to record their special memories?



Fortunately, this time, I was wrong! When I picked it up and opened the the tiny cover, I was pleased to find lovely notes or "autographs" written to the owner of the book, Walter on every single page! Walter appears to have been a very popular young man in his teens or perhaps early 20's in the 1930's.



The 1930's were undoubtedly an important time in history. The Great Depression was in full force with World War II breaking out at the end of the decade. During that time, the average family had to struggle to survive at a time when jobs were scarce and money was hard to come by. Luckily, something that was free was friendship, faith and love and this book is a great homage to a time when people relied on that faith and friendship to carry them through such tumultuous times.



It seems to me that Walter had a "nifty" personality and was adored by many friends but especially young women! Here are two sweet examples:

I especially love the beautiful handwriting. It was done at a time when handwritten notes and letters meant something...they conveyed so much emotion, love, friendship, hardship...there was definately more thought put into everything folks wrote down on paper. In this case, our friend Walter had left a terrific mark on those that wrote in his special book. I wonder if he beamed brightly with a smile on his face from ear to ear after reading each and every one of the "autographs" he collected over what seems like a good decade or more.







Imagine my surprise and the huge smile that appeared on my face when I came across these outrageous drawings done especially for Walter...drawings made by two young ladies from the time...







Look at that kitchy hair style!!! To draw it was a feat in itself...imagine having to style your hair that way every single day!







Ahhhh...young love...the pencil still allowing us to see this romantic moment! I wonder if young Mabel had a special place in her heart for our dear Walter?







A real treasure indeed...till the very end...







Dearest Walter...thank you.

Love Is In The Air...

Ahhhh...love! Love, love, love!

I love that I have a beautiful family who loves me. I love that I have so many wonderful friends...new and old. I love that I have had the awesome priviledge of being "mother" to some amazing animal babies throughout my life and I love that I've been given the chance to enjoy creating...bears, dolls and wonderful food in my kitchen. Everything I love so much sustains my soul and keeps me on my toes. Gotta love that!

Yes, love is in the air...afterall, Valentine's Day is just around the corner. I adore this time of the year. It's the one time where you can send out love in the form of flowers chocolates, baking, cards, hearts, candy and of course teddy bears...just to show you care!

Spread the love!

Here's some love for you! Thanks for visiting!

Have a beautiful day!

Love Michelle:)

Sharing the Love...

Hello Dear Friends!

These past few weeks have been busy days for me but not busy enough to produce a large amount of teddy bears I'm afraid! I had high hopes of creating a few new bears for the coming holiday season which seems to be sneaking up on me a bit faster than I expected. I tried. I really did. And I'm not done trying. I do have some wonderful ideas in mind but that's where they are for now...in my mind...waiting.

I did, however muster up enough creative strength to, bring to life, three new teddies over the past few days. I'm pleased to say that two of them are already spoken for...I hope still spoken for...fingers are crossed:) And the other is waiting to be listed in my Etsy shop!

Meet "Floyd" and "Eli"...two new "primitive" style bears made with vintage velvets and stuffed firmly with a great mixture of excelsior and upholstery stuffing! Both bears have string jointed limbs and have antique boot button eyes!

"Dolly" was made with creamy plush. Her face is a sweet vintage dolly head! Over the years, I've managed to collect a few vintage dolly heads and faces including clowns, bunnies and pixies! Who knows...perhaps they'll all end up wearing a bear costume? Could happen! Dolly will be listed in my Etsy shop soon!

Over the next few weeks I'll be concentrating on new things. Hubby and I are taking a much need trip away to do a little soul searching and to "recharge our batteries". It's been a rough week for him as he lost his closest friend to a heart attack this past weekend so this trip is very important to him. We're not going far...just away.

I'm also going to "expand my horizons" and take on a couple of new projects for Christmas gifts! I'm a little worried as I'm not all that knowledgeable in sewing when it goes beyond teddies but I am hoping that my efforts will be rewarded with two special gifts for my two special girls for Christmas! Wish me luck!



In the meantime, I'd like to share some love with you by introducing you to some of my favorite blogs and Etsy shops. These ladies are all very special to me. They keep me grounded and connected. I adore each and every one of them and hope that you'll visit them and enjoy their work as much as I do!

Tracy from "Tracy's Toys and Other Stuff" has a unique blog! She's an avid vintage toy collector and really knows her stuff! I love to go and visit her blog to find out about her latest treasures and to take the occasional trip down "memory lane" with her! She's also a huge and very knowledgeable antique bear collector so you can imagine that she and I have a great time discussing our collections! I've even had the opportunity to restore a few of her beloved teddies and to take part in a trade with her every so often. We've both come away with some great items!!! Take a moment to head over and visit her blog...you won't be sorry! I promise you!

Time for me to get back to reality! Have a great week everyone! See you when I get back!

Hugs,

Michelle