Two fer one . . .

We have been very busy at The Humble Arts! We are celebrating our Red
White and Blue Summer offerings which have just been uploaded AND we have started a group blog:
Our Humble Arts Blog
which we would love for you to come and visit.
There are too many goodies for me to recount to you at this late hour but be SURE to click on our banner to the right to bring you right to The Humble Arts. You will be glad you did!


Here's a preview of our RWB on HARTS:

Tagged by Jenna Louise

I have been tagged by a wonderful and talented quilting friend, Jenna Louise of Quilt Crazy Gal. Jenna is just now venturing out into the wonderful world of blogging. we have shared in many swaps and pleasantries the past few years through a special quilting group we are in.
I am tickled to see her blogging and hope that you take a peek now and then at her site.
So, here are 6 unimportant things about me:
1. I can pat my head and rub my tummy at the same time.
2. I can pinch the heckfire shoot out of my Luscious with my toes. I am so romantic.
3. I recycle everything that I can
4. I can play guitar, mandolin and banjo by ear; can't read music
5. I love the scent of freshly cut grass
6. I enjoy watching birds in my yard and try to identify all that are new to me.

I am supposed to tag 6 more folks but since I am on a lunch break and need to go back to work, I will try to remember to tag a lucky duck later.

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It's Official

Yep, that's right, folksies. I am officially excited! Now, I tend to stay in an attitude of pleasant expectation. I know that every day I can expect good news and bad news. Being in an attitude of pleasant expectation removes the edge. Today, I am officially excited about our teensy little veggie garden.
We have planted several varieties of veggies and in the process of still planting more.
Look what I found to get my imagination and taste buds going . . .



Little crookneck squash and a small head of cauliflower! We have more of the same but I only will bore you with one pic of each. We also have some blooms on the cucumbers, tomatoes and the brussel sprouts and broccoli are looking promising. The lettuce is also setting some nice firm heads . . .
The blueberry bushes are LOADED - a particular delight considering we are all out of them. Last year we had a late freeze and it killed all the blooms.


For all of us that enjoy gardening, this is the beginning of what it's all about. I garden for the joy of it ~ I revel in the beauty of the flowers and shrubs - and there is a distinct beauty in a veggie plot.

And now for a shot of one of my favorite weeds - comfrey. Comfrey is actually considered an herb. It grows wild on roadsides and fields. Old Timers for generations called it "Knitbone" for

it's medicinal value in healing. It is also great as an addition to one's compost as an agent for breaking down the materials more quickly. It is also highly favored by chickens as a treat. It helps their eggs have stronger shells.
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Here's a preview of next month's RWB on HARTS:

Another Post because it is Wednesday

I realize that I just posted about those nasty 8 legged freaks. You can read that below this one if you want to get spooked about spiders. However, I had mentally committed to doing a Show Me Wednesday with my good friend Cathy of Hazelruthe fame. I didn't get pics because I do eat off of mis matched china. I decided (please forgive me Cathy) in adding a re run here of a post I did last fall. Here it is:


We eat off mis-matched china dishes.

I am not saying it is Larry's fault.

When I was just starting out on my own, living in an efficiency apartment in S.C., I used to frequent junk stores. I purchased my furniture, pots, dishes there. Nothing matched. I would laugh and call my decorating style 'Early Poverty". Today those stores are called Antique Stores and I still look for old fashioned junk stores.

I am not saying that this is Larry's fault.

I like mis- matched cups and saucers, luncheon plates and soup bowls. I enjoy serving sloppy casserole meals on old trenchers discarded by greasy spoon diners.
I have Grandma's fine china way up high in a cupboard. A lovely old set of Haviland. Now and then I find a matching piece. I used to serve special people, on a special occasions special meals on these treasures. But then I had children and I stopped that. Melamine was good enough for those little ankle biters. I didn't have to worry about dings, chips, cracks or little bare feet getting sliced open by an errant sliver of china or glass.


I am not saying that this is Larry's fault.

Occasionally I find an exceptionally lovely plate or saucer and I bring it home. I like to think about the sumptuous feasts served upon them, what polite dinner conversation would have been parlayed. Please note that this is important to me because for far too many years as a single mother I would hear "Josh is letting spaghetti noodles hang from his nose again, Mom".
Where am I going with this, you ask? You should know by now that I ramble. My mind is always doing that!

I am not saying that this is Larry's fault either.

I didn't mean to get attached to a crazed plate which cost a mere 49 cents at the local thrift. It wasn't worth more than that, truly. It was old enough to have the gilt almost nearly rubbed off. There was a hairline crack, so faint only a collector's eye would have discarded it. I would eat delicious chicken salad sandwiches, with chips and a dill slice on the side from it. Even a humble P B & J sammich tasted better when served on this dish. It was my favorite 49 cent plate.
Larry used to work as a short order cook years ago. He has an appreciation for the thick diner discards I serve him suppers on. His face absolutely glows with fond recollections of slinging hash. He does the dishes now that the kids are grown and gone. We don't have an automatic dishwasher. Who needed one when I had children? They knew Mom would inspect their handiwork - but Luscious? well, who would need to supervise him? He of the slick diner floors and heavy hammy hands?



I have a "dish garden" out back, a graveyard of bone china so to speak. People think I am clever. But Larry knows better. He KNOWS better.

Yesterday evening after he washed, I went in the kitchen to dry and put away. My beloved plate was in the drainer. I was as oblivious as Larry until I found the offending chard in my palm.

Now that was Larry's fault.

He buried it out back amongst the hen and chicks,morning glories and late blooming cosmos. And that is why Grandma's Haviland is hidden.

But don't tell Larry.

I do not like 8 legged freaks

Good Morning, Folksies
As you have been reading my blog, you have come to realize how much I love my seasons. I particularly enjoy spring and fall, for obvious reasons. There are two things I do not like about these two seasons. Spiders. And more spiders.
My fear of spiders go back to my days spent in Florida where they grow to be the size of sanitation trucks. You Florida gals know what I mean.
Now I realize that spiders serve a purpose. They keep the ecology thing going. But to me they are truly 8 legged freaks. And do you know they have lots of eyes? Like they see you coming and going, waiting, watching for that special moment to make their presence known to give you the heebie jeebies.
Yesterday morning as I was sweeping the kitchen floor, I noticed a slight movement near one of the doors. I looked a little closer and saw this brown hump back SPIDER trying to hide in the corner. Slowly backing up, never taking my eyes off of it, I grabbed a can of WD-40. It was almost empty but I was able to get a freezing squirt out. While it flailed around on it's back, I then sprayed with a can of spider kill. A steady stream ensued. I watched with morbid fascination as it tried to flip back over on its eight legs, scooting across the floor on its back. It was too large for me to want to feel the crunch under my slippered foot (note to self: it is time to begin wearing heavy tennis shoes in house.) It died, I swept it up and away.
Generally, when I tell Luscious that I killed a spider and it was big, he guffaws and says, how big could it be? I always remind him that I am not a big person and this one was so big it could have carried me away. He never believes me. Well, boy howdy, did I have proof when he came home last night. You know how spiders always look smaller when they die because they shrivel up? Shuddering here again, just thinking of them.
I took this picture for hubs so that he could get perspective. That is one big freak. I am still looking around to see if he had friends. That is the only real thing of spring and summer that I dislike. Why can't they be satisfied staying outside where they belong?

Wet and Wild Spring

We have been having such a nice l- o- n- g cool spring and it has been filled with spring showers and loads of storms. Which spells out wonderful spring garden.
This past weekend I have been working some in the garden, clipping, weeding and enjoying the pretty things that have revisited me again this year. I am also trying to figure out which ones didn't make back and what to put in their place.

Here are some pics. Once the summer dog days get here, it won't look nearly as pretty!

I also worked on a Wisteria that I am attempting to grow into a standard. Takes a lot of clipping. Poor thing kind of looks like me when I was a little one and Mom would trim my bangs. Remember those days? Yikes!

I love the graceful sway and bends it is taking. It is difficult to tell in this pic but it is over 6 foot now. You can see the clipplings on the ground beneath it. This particular wisteria hasn't bloomed yet this year. I have some on an arbor gate that bloomed fragrantly and profusely last month before the leaves came out. It is quite a heady fragrance.

Luscious and I have also been trying to get a garden going in between the weather. We start a lot of our seeds indoors beginning in end of Jan and February and as the weather warms up, we introduce them to the great outdoors and get them acclimated. Last year, in an effort to keep the deer out of the garden, we decided to make a stick fence. What fun! This year we have had to re tie the sticks and Luscious put some rabbit wire around the bottom of part of it ~ to keep errand ground hogs, rabbits and turtles out as well.
Here is what it looks like at this moment:

Hope everyone enjoys this cool wet spring as much as I have. Before too long, it will be a memory and I will be wiping the "dew" from my face. (Southern women don't sweat. We get "dewy". Yeah, right. I sweat like a hawg.

All my Grandchildren are Dogs

Happy Mothers Day to all the Moms of the world. You have probably made your
journey to the mecca of your childhood today. It is a good thing to honor
our parents. It doesn't seem to matter how old we are, if our moms are still
alive, they can reduce us to blithering thumb sucking snotty nose idiots with one
look. That is their job. It shall always be their job. Moms never take a vacation.
It is a 24-7 job for life. Let me elaborate.
I happen to live up the hill from my folks. I am past 20 plenty years of age. I have grown children, all in their twenties. They are all neurotic and dysfunctional I am sure. They survived my cooking and my logic which is only logical if you are me. Which means that I am a Mom of some standing. Hooray, I have done my job. Yet, my own Mom calls to remind me to lock and double bolt my doors and to let me know that it is raining. Like I said, 24-7.

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I don't really like children. Which seems a dichotomy since I love my own.
I have one child that is married, the other two are significantly tied up. I have been told for years that I will enjoy having grands. I have seen the evidence of hard nosed gals with years of experience of child rearing. Can't wait to be free of kids, only to have a passle of grands to be disgusting over.
I don't have grands. I have grand dogs.
Let's see:
I have Annie, Misty, Elliot, Elisha and Sundance.
My quiver is full.
I can't have favorites can I? But I do. I love Annie, Misty and Sundance. I prefer Elliot and Elisha in the corner cage. They are too rambunctious for me. I love them, too, just prefer my dogs sedate and quiet.


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The Humble Arts is having another RWB auction on ebay. For the remainder of the month, our artists will be having auctions that are red white and blue themed. This week we are also adding to the RWB theme by throwing in some fun Halloween things as well. Just go to ebay and type HARTS07 in your search browser. We'll leave the light on for you.

Here is one of my listings for the week:
click here

It's me again, Margaret . . .

I have been so enjoying spring weather and also so busy creating things for The Humble Arts and ebay that I have been neglecting my blog. I know you can tell. It doesn't mean that I haven't been thinking of my online buddies. I have thought of each of my very favorite ones each day and remembered each of them in my prayers. I just seem to have had so little time to get things done that need to be done. And I love blogging. It is my outlet for myself to write down my own little thoughts of what is important to me at the moment. The essence of my day. I don't blog to please others, compete with others, impress others, imitate others. When I blog, it is a release of my little old pea brain.

Like right now, I am wanting to share more about what is important for me personally at the moment. You know, spring time is unique to each of us ~ for different reasons. I mean, I know it is about the rebirth of the earth, the sowing, cultivating and the foreshadowing of the inevitable harvest. I enjoy gardening with weeds and gleaning all sorts of spiritual truths as I do. I enjoy the beauty of the flowers, weeds, trees, the birds, the bees pollinating the blueberry bushes my brother planted 20 years ago.

What I am doing this spring is taking note of which shrubs, tubers, perrenials, runners . . . that came from my grandmothers, my mother, my aunts, my sister, friends . . . and I plan on sharing them with my daughter, my sister and my sister in law and mom. Some things need to be dug up and separated so that they not only remain healthy, but actually flourish under the gardeners skillful pruning.

For example - my Gramma Dolly's Irises (pic above) She transported these Irises from Staten Island, NY to Rockingham County, NC. They had been gifted to her and she wanted to share with her new son in law's Mom something special. That was over 60 years ago. Those irises have been moved, shorn, shared and flourished on this land since.

(black hollyhock grown from seeds that a friend shared with me!)
I also have a wonderful Rose of Sharon that I rooted from my dear Uncle's house in New York a few years ago. I wasn't sure if it would root ~ wow, it rooted well enough for me to give one to my Mom last year - a living memorial for her from her brother and her roots in New York. It has grown way more than I thought it would in just two years since I took that piece!

Gardeners love to share their seeds. It is like having a perpetual reminder of friendship. I have a few little plants in my garden that I received from a dear and precious friend in Roanoke Virginia. She let me dig in her yard in North Carolina before she moved to Virginia. She gave me dried handfuls of Sweet Annie that made my ride back home so very fragrant and each year as Annie comes to visit me again, I think of my sweet friend.

The month of Yes, You May!

It is May 1st at The Humble Arts and you know what that means . . .we are excited about our new creations being unveiled! Hop, skip or surf on over for a visit at
http://www.thehumblearts.com We loves company!

It is almost May 2 and as I sit here typing, bleary and red eyes, I have to wonder where April went to? It seemed a blur of rain and clouds of pollen to me. We had a few late freezes as usual; nothing that did too much damage to our early veggies.

I started May off with a big bang. My motherboard croaked last night as I was uploading the humble arts. Let me tell you friends, I have learned a few lessons here.
Number 1 ~ don't ever delete anything in a fit of anger, especially when you are using an old dinosaur like I was. Karma sucks
Number 2 ~ make sure your computer tech guy likes you really really well. As in bumps you ahead of 3 scheduled appts because he is a nice guy and hates to see middle aged gals who remind him of his momma crying and snuffling eptithets under her breath. I knew he wouldn't be able to resist me. He used to have a crush on my daughter.
Number 3 ~ A computer crash is a real good excuse ~ even in this economy of $3.59 a gallon for gas ~ to pop for a greasy burger from The Circle. My fellow Edenites understand this. You need a double ch'burger from The Circle(with grilled onions, lettuce and a slice of fresh 'mater, please) and hushpuppies from Dicks. We do like our drive in cardiac injector restaurants here.
Number 4 ~ Hubs has learned when to leave me alone and when to come in and rub my shoulders or put those big old hands of his over mine and say sweet things like, "you sure have some red eyes", or "do you reckon I should get you some soap to clean out your mouth?" I am a lucky woman.
I may not get my power bill paid on time this month; I still owe $1000.00 on that blasted water bill (I am whittling it down a few bucks a month) ~ but I have a new puter. YEE HAW!!!