Geckos

One of the things we did when Double A and The Bean were here was go to one of those paint your own pottery places.  Those little buggers are really creative and talented, and I'll show you their stuff after they get it.  It wasn't done being fired before they left, so I had to pick it up and mail it to them.  Double A wasn't sure she wanted to see a picture before seeing the actual final product, so I'll just wait a bit.  I can show you what I made, though:

It's a little sleeping gecko.  It has to be asleep as there was no way I could accomplish eyes.  The eyelashes were almost too much for my feeble skills.   I like the way she turned out, and it was fun to hang out with the girls (and Dad...not sure how much fun he had), and do something creative.

Here are some gecko shoes to go with my gecko plant hugger.

I think I've shown these before, but they're still cute.  Plus, blue and green, how can you go wrong?

I think these are cute, but they also remind me weirdly of armadillos.

I am frightened. Hey, JG, here are some black sandals for you!

Adorable.  And a little mischievous looking.

Less adorable, but I like their tails.

Are these cross-stitched?  I think they might be.  Hmmm...who could I make cross-stitched gecko shoes for?

 

This is actually purse material, but how cute is it?  This would make cute shoes.  Or a skirt.  Or a purse, obviously.

Now I must go water plants so my little gecko continues to have somewhere to live.

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!  I know it's not a happy day for everyone.  Single people can find it depressing, married people can find it to be a pain, and those who have lost loved ones or who are lonely in any way can find it absolutely painful.  My hope is that the day was nice for you in some fashion, and that you were surrounded by love no matter your relationship status, and especially if you are missing a loved one on this day.  I figure, no matter if you love or loathe the day, at least it's a good reason to eat chocolate and look at shoes.

The calendar got into the spirit with this interesting pair.  The platform is weird, as is the heel, but I like them well enough.

Valentine's Day seems to be one of the few days when the calendar goes with a theme. You might remember this pair from last year's calendar.  I love the deep, rich red of this pair.

I've been posting on the Olympics all week, so haven't shared my socks with you, but I have been wearing them.  And photographing them.

Somehow these uploaded in the complete wrong order, and I'm feeling to lazy to fix it.  These are the pair I wore yesterday.  Conversation hearts!  I also like them because they aren't just crazy amounts of pink and red.  Purple and blue need some love too!

I have no idea who gave these to me.  (If it was you, will you please tell me?)  Which is a shame, because they are my favorite.  As such I wore them today, on the actual day.  I love the adorable little  froggy.  I'm not sure whose gian lips have been kissing my feet, though...

This is the pair I wore on Wednesday.  Very dainty, they are.

OK, back to shoes!

These are crazy.  How  high do you think those are?  I'm pretty sure I would fall off and break something.

Now this is my kind of Valentine!

Very thematic, but I actually like them.  They look like a Valentine's box turned into a shoe.

Awww...Valentine shoes full of candy!  (or so I presume)  Someone got crafty with their Valentines.

Wow.  Someone needs to step away from the hot glue gun.  Just put it down, and back away slowly.

Also wow. These are also crazy, and yet still not as cracked out as the conversation heart shoes.

The hubby and I celebrated with sushi, frozen yogurt, and Harry Potter at home.  Some might think that is boring, but to me it was perfect. 

Hope your day was full of lots and lots of love, no matter what kind. The Beatles said, "all you need is love."   Yep.

Books 2 and 3

My journey through the Harry Potter audio books continues.  I finished Chamber of Secrets this week

and started Prisoner of Azkaban immediately after.

 

As I'm sure you've gathered, I love these books.  I've read them a lot.  Before each new book came out I would reread the entire series, and since the last one I tend to read all 7 about once a year.

 

Chamber of Secrets is the book where we are introduced to Dobby, the house elf.  Did you know that there are shoes with Dobby on them?

 

 

You do now!  Despite these being Gryffindor shoes, and therefore awesome, the half of Dobby's face peering out of the left shoe just creeps me out.  I'll just wear the right one and hop around on one foot.

 

 

Crocheted Dobby is way cuter!  I kind of want to find this pattern and make my very own Dobby.

 

Prisoner of Azkaban was definitely my favorite book for a long time.  It might still be, although I think Deathly Hallows may have edged it out.  I like that we get to learn more about Harry's parents in this book, especially his father.  We also learn about Harry's father's friends, who created the Maurader's Map, a magical map that looks like a blank piece of parchment until activated (with the words, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good") and then shows all of the school's secret passages and where each person present in the school is located as you are looking at the map.  Little wonder this map also appears as a theme on shoes.

 

 

Edited:  I realized after I posted that I had included this picture.  Clearly these shoes do NOT have the Marauder's Map on them.  But they're still fun.  And since it's a map of the castle, these sort of kind of work.

 

I know I've been showing a lot of baby shoes lately, but these were too cute to pass up.

 

 

There must be a baby in my life who needs these and a crocheted Dobby toy...

 

I'm listening to books in the car during my commute.  Sometimes I find it difficult to get out of the car when I get to church or home because once I start I want to keep listening, even though I know exactly what is going to happen next.  So, that's my car book.  I also always have a book on my phone that I read while waiting (Dr's appointments, etc.), a book on my nightstand, that I read before bed or when I have a spare moment, and a book (or 2) on my desk at church that I never seem to have enough time during the day to read like I should.  Being in the middle of 4 books at once is awesome.  I'd have more if I had more time.

 

 

Amazing Preschool Teachers

As the post title suggests, we have some awesome and amazing preschool teachers here at church.  We have a program for 3 year olds, 4 year olds, and Kinder-ready, and our entire staff is really wonderful.  I'm giving them a shout-out today, but they deserve it every day because they are so creative, patient, and loving with our children.  Today I could hear one child having an absolute fit about something, and the teacher dealing with him just kept using the same calm voice to talk to him and help him until he calmed down.  They deal with temper tantrums, transition issues, separation anxiety, children on the spectrum, and much much more.  I know they get frustrated a lot, but I have to commend them on how they handle both themselves and the children.  I try to take tips from watching them interact with their students.  I know I'm not always as patient as I could be, and I know I get frustrated too easily, so they are all wonderful role models.  In honor of them and the work they do, here are some creative, hilarious, and somewhat weird foot crafts for preschoolers: