And the winner is.....!!!

Well lookie there! Even the bears are all lined up in anticipation of the winning name for my Pink Wednesday giveaway!! They kind of look like alien bears, don't they? They're what I've been working on all weekend. Four traditonals, one Truly Silly and two Silly Bits of Whimsey!! This is what happens when I keep my rear end in one place instead of running around the universe! Running around the universe will commence once again next week.....AKA Flourishes! Ha!

Okay.....enough silliness.....the winner is: #35 A Thing for Roses!! Yay!! Toot! Toot! Streamers! Confetti! Giggles and clapping! Party in a blog post!! Wahoo! Oh yeah, enough silliness. ha!

Thank you so very much for every little post left on my Pink Wednesday blog!! I appreciate all of you taking the time to peek in and for leaving such sweet notes. You're a blessing!

Have a fabulous week ahead!! I have a kajillion things and seven bears to finish. Hey, and it finally stopped snowing!!! That in itself is a blessing. We're headed back to SPRING!!

Warmest bear hugs, Aleta

A sense of humor!

Mother Nature pulled a fast one on us last night! I woke up to an inch of snow and it's still snowing!! Yesterday everything was oh so pretty and green with pink ruffled trees, and tulips and hyacinths blooming. Today everything is plaster with white snow. ACK!!

It's easy to have a sense of humor about it though when you know that by late afternoon it will all be melted and the glorious color will return. Mother Nature, you certainly have a wicked streak!

Warmest bear hugs on a snow covered spring morning! Aleta

A Pink Wednesday Giveaway!!

A pink pinwheel, a pink candy box and sweet little birdie be-ribboned in pink!! It's a Pink Wednesday Giveaway!! Wahoo!! I know. It's about time!! I missed the 100th post giveaway so I'm trying to make up for it with a few extra goodies. More sweet little pink things will make it into the box.....for now though, what you see is what you'll receive. Pink Wednesday goodness in a box!!! Life is GRAND!! Yay!!

All you have to do is post a note on this blog entry that says: "I love Pink Wednesday!" Pretty simple, huh? Please make sure there is a way I can contact you if you win, whether through blog or e-mail. I will draw a name on Monday, March 31st at 9am!!!

Warmest Pink Wednesday bear hugs, Aleta

P.S. I'm sorry darlings, the Lisa Kaus painting in the background will not be included in the box.

Spring on Mt. Pleasant

All colors of spring greenery are starting to appear on Mt. Pleasant. The crocus are long gone but the daffodils continue to bow their ruffled bonnets in the breeze. Bleeding hearts are sending up lush feathery fronds. I have a woodland garden here on Mt. Pleasant with dappled shade. This is my new challenge!


With each home I have had new garden challenges. If you've been reading my blog for awhile you've seen pictures of my semi-tropical garden in our Oregon home. Well, palm trees and tropical colored flowers just don't lend themselves to the serene beauty that is Mt. Pleasant.

You will find me knee deep in garden books in the evenings now. We'd like to encircle the property in planting beds. A grandiose idea considering we have two acres!! Three years. Five years. Ten years. Mt. Pleasant is a work in progress!!


Warmest bear hugs, Aleta


P.S. Pink Wednesday presents a blog giveaway!! Do peek in if you have a moment.

Pink bunnies, a bear and a chick!

Happy Pink Wednesday!! Well, here they are! These were supposed to be at Flourishes Celebration of Spring. They're almost finished.....I just need to heat set the airbrushing. I'll take their pictures and list them tomorrow on my website.

Working in the studio again has been a good diversion for me. We had sad news on Monday and I'm missing my sister. I've found the best way for me to pull out of a blue funk is to work or clean. I cleaned yesterday after I dropped my sister off at the airport. Today, I worked!

Everything will right itself eventually. Some things will inevitably get worse before they get better. Just think how clean my house will be and how many bears and other projects will get finished!! You know me, always the Pollyanna looking for the silver lining!!

Warmest Pink Wednesday hugs filled with bears and bunnies and a chick, oh my! Aleta

A Flourishes Hangover

I awoke this morning feeling dazed, confused and puffy. Puffy? It must have been those two Lemon Drop martini's I had with dinner last night. Ha! ;o) Actually, I think it had more to do with all the excitment (okay, perhaps not the puffy part) of Flourishes first event yesterday.

I have a really well functioning replay button in my head so it's easy to recount the days happenings. Funny how the replay button only works on things I WANT to remember. ;o)

People started parking in the drive about 20 minutes before opening. They waited so patiently in their cars while we scurried about bringing in fresh flowers and attending to last minute details. In my haste to make everything just right, the thing I failed to do was to take pictures of everything all set up. (Insert a very sad face here.) Sigh.

The first two hours were crazy!! Crazy in the best possible way!! People familiar with the previous business here, Willow Nest, knew that if you wanted first dibbies you had to be an early bird. After ten o'clock the crowds came in waves. Very few and then a bunch. Very few and then a bunch. This carried through for the rest of the day and made it easy for everyone to take turns running in the house for a break. Well, okay, not running IN the house, rather, running INTO the house. Ha! Still, at days end, we were all exhausted.

Now comes sorting it all out and making sense of it. The business of figuring out what went well, what did not and moving on to the next event. The only negative comments that were overheard were the comments about the lack of my bears. Quite honestly, that bit of information surprised me! Unfortunately, I was so focused on making everything just so for my vendors that I neglected to finish my own work. None of my new bears, bunnies or chicks made it to the show. They're upstairs in my studio waiting to be airbrushed. Bummer. I suppose the upside to this is that I will have inventory for my website and the April show!! That's not such a bad thing. :o)

Warmest bear hugs, Aleta

Tweaking Displays

Just one more day to go!!! Everything is coming together just as I had imagined it would. Antiques and artist handwork.....a divine combination!!

One little side note here. I've received lots of e-mail about Flourishes online sales. As much as I would love to reply to each note, it is just not possible right now. This became quite clear the other night when I accidentally deleted a whole page of e-mail notes. I was tired. It was late. Delete buttons happen. (sigh) So, if you've written a note and not received a reply....it may be one of the ones that was accidentally deleted. Bummer. Please send along a note again and I will be sure to get back to you the first of next week.

Oh, gee whiz.....I got a little sidetracked there. Online sales? No. That would require me to triplicate myself. I am a mere one chickiedoodle!! To get the goods you have to come to one of my events!! ;o)

Now it's off to the races. It's chicken day!! Running here and there and everywhere for all the last minute details!! The chicken dance anyone? Ha!!

Warmest bear hugs, Aleta