36 Birthday Candles

Today was my 36th birthday...I had a lovely day with Max, and a party tonight with BB, Matt, Max, RM, Jerome, and Occy.

Yesterday we had dinner and cake at my Mom and Dad's....check out the candle box. Yikes! Guess you don't want to get any older than 36, or you'll need TWO boxes of candles!

What a lovely basket I received today from RM, Maggie Mowery, and Wendy from the Lancaster Yarn Shop. Socks knitted by Wendy, buttons, magnets, gnomes, and a pin cushion from Mags, notebook, blogging book, yarns, needles and a notebook from RM...so lovely. I was so surprised!

Here's my big, but little boy, helping with my candles yesterday...

today, Max and I made cupcakes and I applied "Uppercase Living" wall words around my house...I didn't realize two "sayings" were supposed to go together..."Dream" was supposed to be where this picture is...I guess I got creative, but now the "Dream" bit looks great in the bedroom:-)
I have had all my personal artwork that was around the house in my solo show at the Muhlenburg Gallery, so I've had a month of empty walls. It was awkward at first seeing my house so barren, but after a few weeks, I started to imagine other things, in places where the art had been. Before I could adhere these word things I was a bit mortified to realize that I needed to repaint a bit and patch about a dozen nail holes. and that was only in three small areas! Next on my shopping list is a very large plastic container to file my art pieces in. I just can't keep wrecking my walls.
Of course it's nice to display your own work, but if you plan to take it down and run it around town, your walls can really take a beating quick. especially if you have plaster walls, like me.
these wall words are really cool to see put up...although a little bit of a bugger trying to "burnish" the letters to the backing paper...it took a long time, but measuring was easy, and I like the finished look. It makes the house in those areas look more decorated, but clean too- it's just nice and tidy and I like that.

Yesterday we started out the day with a hike...we skipped stones in the river. Now that's what life's all about. Rocks, simple things, friends, family, and cake!