~*Look At my MUD!*~

Well, it rained all day yesterday and is predicted to rain again this evening.... it is misty right now ~ but I wanted to show you some of my garden FUN! I have PLAYED in the yard quite a bit over the past couple of weeks... and thought you might like to see.

Now, before I show you, let me just say... this is PLAYING & FUN! My Mom will be coming for a visit on May 4th to help me with the front of the house & help me keep it more 'professional' LOL. Here is what it looks like today. Nice MUD, huh?



Looking from our front door... (I didn't do anything here... this is all natural)...



Now for some FUN!

Remember, we live in the country. The previous owner used what she had as planters. We have a couple of feed bins and even the kitchen sink! I moved the sink to the pump house and put it atop a couple old cream cans we had. It sits next to the fish pond & will make a cozy spot. The shovel hanging from the pump house is a garage sale find ~ the perfect size from Trinity when he wants to help Mom. The long stick we believe was used as a walking stick... we found it in the barn.



Nothing is left untouched around here when I am playing! This ol' tree is in the yard behind the lil' house (my future studio) and the pump house. It has a hole in it... so, I added a little dirt & some plants. They did good last year... so why not again this year?



Oh... and I have to tell you about this! I recently purchased this AWESOME birdhouse from Jenny of countryrustic. She does fabulous work! She is very sweet & professional. Tony built the little shelf for the house to sit on. I then had him put a bottom on it & we made it into a 'Bed and Breakfast'!



One last picture for today.... more later after things are blooming. We have many Redbuds here & they are all looking so beautiful....



Well.... I hope you have enjoyed my garden tour. There are so many other spots in the yard I want to show you... but they will have to wait for the seeds to start sprouting. For now... I'm off to stitch on those cross stitch models a little more. They are getting closer to being ready.

Many smiles to you...

Betty

~*Another Charming Finish!*~

Patti Gagliardi has another awesome finish for the 'Tulip Doodle' I offered awhile back. You might remember the sweet hang tag she made from the doodle ~ cut from vintage sheet music.... well, this is what she has done with it now ~



Her use of color is perfect!



I love the finish on the back too!



Thank you Patti for sharing your finish! You did a beautiful job! I love to see the works created from my designs.

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My friends, I have so much more to tell you about & pics I want to share. Over the next couple of days, I hope to show you the works from my yard. Yup.... I've been outside for the past several days working dirt & getting sun burnt. It has been great fun! Also, I am working on the models for my next patterns. There are plans for two new cross stitch patterns and one needle punch dolly pattern. Please keep watchin'.... it shouldn't be too long a wait.

Many smiles to you,

Betty

~*Spring Thyme Doodle*~

Hello My Friends! Oh, the sun is shining so pretty this morning! Not only that, but I have my computer back! Yes, that means I can now get back to work on my cross stitch patterns! Yippee! However, because the sun is being so friendly..... I have some work to do outside too... and Trinity has two soccer games this evening. It is sure to be a fun week ... and hopefully a productive one too.

May you all have a week of happiness & joy with lots of sunshine & promise!

Many smiles to you,
Betty

~*What a Fun Day!*~

This was such a fun day! We did a lot of driving.... but it was so nice to spend the whole day with my hubby's full attention. We headed to Belton, MO to pick up another go-kart. Some of you may remember, we have a track in our yard and now own 6 karts. These are racing karts & great fun ~ our entire family is into them and pretty much all have at least one kart. Hubby found one on Ebay for a good buy... so had to add to the collection. He promised that we could eat lunch out and find some places that I might like to stop at along the way.

We had also planned to stop by Pleasant Hill, MO to check in on the remote control race track he was interested in also. Yes, my husband has a HUGE collection of remote control cars too.... along with an indoor race track for them. That is a whole other story.

By 3:30 this afternoon, we had the go-kart and had stopped to visit the rc track.... but hadn't found any good antique/junk spots at all. I was feeling a little disappointed... but still having a good time. It is not often enough that I can just sit & chat with my best beloved buddy. Leaving Pleasant Hill, we took a wrong turn and were thinking we were lost. This is about 2 hours from home and not in an area that we were familar with at all.

We reached another town called Greenwood. We turned the corner onto Hwy 150 & I spotted flag after flag. You know, the red, white, and blue ones with the word OPEN on them.... the ones that are hung in front of antique stores. Oh my goodness! We hit the jackpot of antique/primitive Heaven! By this time it was after 4pm... and the shops close at 5pm on Saturday.... but I still quickly ran through three of them. They were so wonderful... and each were filled with the kind of things that I love! Two of them even had hand dyed wool for rug hooking!

Let me just say.... if any of you are in the area, you should stop! They are having a Garden Show on May 2 & 3.... as well as other events throughout the year. Here is the link showing each shop...

Greenwood, MO

Of course, WE are going back.... SOON!

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On another happy note.... my computer should be back tomorrow. My dear step-son had to re-build it for me. (He is a sweetheart!) As soon as it is back, I'll put up another freebie doodle for ya!

Many smiles to you,

Betty

~*May I have a Drum Roll.... Please?*~

It is time to announce the winner of my lil' prairie dolly give~away!

Oh my goodness! First, before the winner is drawn, let me just say..... this has been astonishing! The responses, comments, and sign~ups have been breath~taking. I am so very delighted! Thank you to all of you! I have enjoyed reading the comments & finding new friends and blogs along the way.

Ok, Trinity is ready!


Wait! That basket isn't big enough! There were over 90 entries! (I wrote the name & time stamp for each on a piece of paper.... and folded each the same just to be fair!) Let's put them in a big pot instead.


Be sure to stir them around & dig deep kiddo!


"Here is the winner Mom!"

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

Pam of Soft in the Head!

Oh, congrats to you Pam! You will be getting an email shortly. Thank you again for all who have entered! Please PLEASE PLEASE keep an eye on my blog for more fun, freebies, and give~aways! Once I get my computer back (that is another story), I will be posting another doodle. Maybe it will be as soon as Friday.

For those of you interested.... there is ANOTHER give~away here....

The Primitive Gathering.... to celebrate one year! Oh..... aren't give~aways so much fun?!

Many smiles to you all!

Betty

~* Lookie! It Is Give~Away Time Again!*~

That's right! I'm going to give this lil' dolly away to a new home. She is a simple, rag~stuffed, stump, church prairie dolly that I have made with my own hands. She is about 9 inches from the top of her bonnet to the edge of her hem-less dress. She is a stump doll ~ meaning she has no legs. Her body is made of osnaburg & rag~stuffed. Her dress is a simple cotton print with a pinkish background. Her bonnet is a piece of an olde grain sack that has been tied to her with jute. Her apron? It is a OOAK cross stitch done with brown~gray, cotton threads on a scrap piece of linen. I have just simply pinned it to her dress with some rusty ol' pins. I've also tucked in a piece of sweet annie for a nice scent.



Do you have a place for her in your primitive, home? Please sign up for the drawing by leaving a comment here on this post. I will be drawing the winner on Wednesday, April 9th, 2008.... sometime in the evening. When you sign up... please make sure I have a way to get back with you if you are the winner. There is only one dolly ~ this dolly ~ being given away. I will be mailing her out FREE to the lucky winner. Why am I doing this? Because this is my year of giving! I have to keep up with my New Year's resolution.

I am listing another dolly that is similar to this one my Lemon Poppy Shoppe soon. Actually, I have made a few more... and will keep offering them on one spot or another.... but this one is my gift to one of my lucky friends.

Many smiles to you!

The Eclectic Artisans webshow is scheduled for Monday, April 7th! Mark your calendars now!

The Eclectic Artisans are a group of talented artists that have come together to offer their handmade goods for show & sale. They will be hosting a limited number of shows throughout the year.

I am very honored to be one of them! Please stop by to browse all the fine quality wares that are sure to be offered.

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Also, I'm dropping you a hint of 'head's up'! By Sunday, I will be announcing the details of my next give~away. So please be a' watchin'.

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May you have a day filled of sunshine & smiles!

Betty

~*A Thoughtful & Sweet Gift*~

Isn't this precious? Patti Gagliardi was so kind & thoughtful! She used my freebie 'Tulip Doodle' to make the scherenschnitte hang tag ~ cut from almost 100 yr old sheet music. Plus... the card has the most calming & sweet photo... I forgot to ask if she took the photo in her own home ~ but I'll bet she did. It is so very nice of her to gift this to me (I was shocked, surprised, and elated to find it in my mailbox ~ I love to get HAPPY mail!).... I'm so thankful and just tickled that she thought of me.

Patti, thank you for your kindness! :) She wrote that she plans to use the doodle for a wool applique. I sure hope she shares photos of that too!

There will be more freebies coming soon. I'm thinking of doing another contest give~away. Hummm.... what do you think? Is anyone interested in maybe a tiny prairie dolly? Keep watching.... I'm getting the itch to stir up some excitement!

Smiles,
Betty

~*April Fools!*~

No.... I'm not gonna fool ya! I hope you aren't struck by the Fools Day bug too bad today!

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I have been tagged again! This time it was from Debbie of Simple Country Blessings. It is a tag game "How Did You Get Your Business Name". Well, this is going to sound dull.... but I came up with my business name quickly & simply.... just trying to get an Ebay user id! I had drooling over all the delicious prims on the site for many months at the time.... and just thought I would be primitivebettys.... just all lower case and smacked together! Not too exciting, huh? Oh well... that is me..... simple 'ol me.

Now I tag ~

Megan 'Nutmeg' of The Magpie Nest.... a fabulous artist of needle punch and dollies!

Marianne of Stitching, tea, and me... she designs some wonderful cross stitch patterns with the business name Midnight Stitching!

BJ of Daughternature Primitive Folk Art.... a super nice gal & maker of lovely prim dolls!

Hopefully they haven't been tagged with this game before & I missed it.

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Also.... because today is the 1st.... that means update day! Please stop by to check out the newest goodies!



The Primitive Gathering



Lemon Poppy Seeds

Have a wonderful day.... with lots of smiles!