School Carnival

The school carnival is history for this year. It seems to grow smaller each year, this is the first time since we have lived here that it was one day instead of two. The weather was cool, but otherwise great, there was a large crowd, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. We enjoyed a meal of brisket, potato salad, baked beans and cornbread, with some tasty desserts, and then a few games of bingo.
Two of our great granddaughters were royalty candidates this year, Haley for carnival queen, and Harley for carnival princess. We did not have high expectations for Haley since she is a sophomore, and the Senior girl (almost) always wins. We felt Harley had the better chance since she is 8th grade, and the winner is from the class who earns the most money for their class. Anyway, if it were a beauty contest, they would both have won their respective crowns.

So much for expectations. Haley was crowned carnival queen, but the 7th grade out-performed the 8th in earnings, close race, and so Harley did not quite win her crown.
Naturally we are very proud of both our girls. They were poised and gracious both in victory and defeat.

Grandma in the yellow house who is proud of all her grandkids

Doll House Fun

When Haley and Harley were little girls (they are now teenagers) we made mini-doll houses from 1/2 gallon juice cartons and oatmeal boxes. Haley's has survived pretty much as she made it (helped) but Harley's is missing most of the furniture. You can see Haley's picture on her bedroom wall. Her sofa and chair are made from pill bottles, the fireplace is scrap wood, the decorations are beads and mini silk flowers. The lampshade is a toothpaste tube cap.
The very first house we made was a bear house, with little plastic bears, and was done up like a fishing cabin with a patio, picnic table and bbq grill. It did not survive the many playtimes, but it provided hours of fun for them. The next one was a mouse house made from a large shoe box. Mama and Papa mouse are still living in the house, but baby mouse has disappeared again. His little cradle is empty. The first time he disappeared he was gone 3 months and we all thought it was permanent. But I got up at 3 a.m. one morning on the way to the bathroom and stepped on him in front of the door. We found no evidence that the dogs might have had him, no teeth marks or wet spots, so we decided we have a ghost that likes to play tricks. He was back home with his family, but a few months later he disappeared again, and this time he has not come back. As you can see Mama and Papa mouse look very sad.

The next project was another shoebox house but this one has no inhabitants. It looks like a small apartment even though the front door is a very fancy cutout from a catalog. The table is made from a chess piece and the tea set is beads.

Here is a close up of the fancy front door, toothpast cap lampshade and sofa from a plastic bottle cut to shape.

The next room is made from wood, 1/8 plywood cut and fitted together, with one side folding down to make the room accessible. The furniture is all hand made from plywood, wood scraps, and fabric remnants. The large lampshade is 1/2 of a ping pong ball. The books in the bookcase are tiny pieces of styrofoam covered with pieces of pink card cut from junk mail.

The girls have outgrown dollhouses for now, but there are two more on the way to being old enough for them, D'Anna and Serenity. I say for now, because I began making them after retirement age, it is never too late to do childish things. I have wonderful times with the grandchildren in a miniature world.

Grandma in the yellow house, who still likes the dollhouses.

Weekend in Electra

Small town America is alive and well. We went to Electra, TX Saturday to visit Jack and his family, and had a great time. Sunshine had to take Harley shopping in Witchita Falls for a dress and shoes for her entry in the school carnival Princess pageant, so she volunteered to take us and leave us at Jack's. Haley and Harley's friend Amber went with us also.

Didn't start out well though, just across the river and maybe 3 miles into Texas we had a flat tire. Harold and Sunshine changed it, and we made the rest of the trip on the "donut" tire.

Electra was having their annual town-wide yard sales event, so we went to several and found a few bargains. D'Anna got the most of them, 2 new babies, a stroller for them, a story telling bear, and several clothing items including pj's, house slippers and some other things to wear.

Sandy fixed us a delicious lunch of bbq brisket, potato salad and a vegetable, and we had birthday cake for dessert. D'Anna will be 3 on the 9th, which is also Harold's birthday, and he will be waaaaay more than 3. (smile) Jack made Sandy cry at the end of the meal when he proposed to her. She did say yes midst the tears. They have been together almost 3 years, so since they plan to stay that way it is time.

This is Jack, Sandy, and D'Anna on their front porch.

When Sunshine and the girls got back they showed off the new things. Harley tried on 18 dresses, and then bought the first one she tried. They went to several shoe stores and between them Haley and Harley tried on more than 3 dozen pairs of shoes. They came home with a pair of sandals each, with lots of sparklies and 4 inch heels. Ouch. Glad I don't have to walk in those!

We had a good time and met some nice people so it was a successful trip.

Grandma in the yellow house was happy to see family and even happier to be back home..............