"I'm almost sad we lost."

"I'm almost sad we lost," one mom told me after the East Limestone Indians lost their first round playoff game.  I understood how she felt.  Football season is long, brutal and filled with drama.  It's also fun, exciting and filled with friendships.  I would have liked for the boys to win but I dreaded the tough team that we would be playing in the second round.  I'm glad that our returning players will not have to risk injury for the coming year. 

This was the first time that East Limestone made it to the playoffs since moving up to 5A so it feels like a big victory to our community.  We needed something to cheer for after the tornados in April.  Every year, the team has become stronger and better.  Looking forward to the upcoming season!!!  GO EAST!! 

This is what a happy football family looks like after a big win!

 

Our son Warren, #73, celebrates the winning touchdown with the team.

Great season #73!

We're so proud of the man you are both on and off the field!

Friday Night On Happy Hill

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Things that have made me happy this past week:

1.  Fresh paint on my Adirondacks.
2.  The blue clematis blooming in the garden that was a gift from my friend Glenda.
3.  Mike's Hard Cranberry Lemonade.
4.  My cat curled up on my lap.
5.  Going to Camp Happy even if it was just for a work day!  The river is fully up!
6.  The color turquoise.  I could write songs about how much I love it!
7.  My dad finally scheduling knee surgery.  He's so stubburn.
8.  Three days off this past week!  Thanks Judge Jeanne!
9.  The best of Janis Joplin on my ipod.  Even inspired me to create some Janis art. 
10. My son making the 1,000 lb Club!  His power clean was 235 lb, bench 320 lb and squat 450 lb.  I have to brag that only 7 football players for the coming year are in this club and Warren is the only sophomore to make it!  Congrats to the other players!

My Gifts

I have many talents.  Not bragging really.  Everyone has their gifts.   

I make cool things out of upcycled metal.  I am able to treat even the biggest A-holes with kindess.  (Thanks to years of kill 'em with kindness training by my mom).  I'm an expert in decoupage.  Tim tells me I'm a great kisser.  I make awesome guacamole.  I run a household that includes one lawman, one 255 lb. football player, three dogs, one cat and lots of teenage guests with ease.  Maybe I don't run it flawlessly but no one starves and the Health Department has not closed us down yet!

Of course there are things I can not do well.  Many actually.

I'm a terrible singer.  I can barely ride a bike.  I let clutter build up.  I can't knit.  I can't crochet.  I can't sew.  My omelets never turn out right.  I'm pitiful at math. 

And of course blogging.  I suck at blogging.

But I want to be great so here I am again.  Give me another chance okay?

My cat Square promises he will help me just as he is doing right now.  I'm so blessed.  :)

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Things that have made me happy this past week:

1.  Spending the $25 Michael's gift card I received this week.  Much thanks to the Warren Family!
2.  Golden Fluid Acrylics, especially the Green Gold color!
3.  Finally receiving my son's football pictures.  (They were taken in August).
4.  Riding with the sun roof open and music blasting.  Thank you Lord for a warm weekend!
5.  Shopping and lunch at the Atlanta Bread Company with my wonderful mom and sister-in-law!
6.  Steinmart's 40% off all red dot coupon.  The clothes were basically free!
7.  Getting caught up on my Soul Restoration class.  This class has been the greatest blessing to me!
8.  Thursday night $1.99 margaritas at Burito Express.
9.  My hubby washing dishes and vacuuming the floors and sofa!
10. My son Warren cleaning the basement for our family.  I love cleaning men!

Happy Romantic Gift!

I was reminded today of a very romantic loving gift my husband gave me when we first began dating.  It was a Happiness Hotel Muppets glass.  I know, I know...it's not your typical romantic gift.  Here's the story:  Growing up I had this AWESOME Happiness Hotel glass from The Great Muppet Caper movie.  It was a promotional glass from McDonald's.  I loved this glass.  It made me so happy.  It was the beginning of my "happiness" craze.  I drank from this glass almost every day.  I loved it so much, I took it to college with me.  That was my mistake.  It turns out not everyone had the same respect for my fabulous glass.  The boyfriend I had at the time BROKE it!!  On purpose!!  Of course that was the end of him.  Not long after I began dating my wonderful husband.  I told him this sad sad sad story.  Unknown to me he began searching antique stores and flea markets (this was way before ebay) and finally he found a Happiness Hotel glass!  We he gave that glass to me it was just proof that he was the one!

 

This is not a new video but watching the Muppets perform Bohemian Rhapsody never ceases to make me smile!

MUPPETS ROCK!

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Things that have made me happy this past week:

1.  Warren.  He really could be number one every week.  He's such a joy in my life!
2.  The truth cards I created in my Soul Restoration class.
3.  Vintage linens
4.  Bruce Springsteen's Working On A Dream album.  I played it all day in the studio.
5.  New set of Sharpie markers in bold colors!
6.  Gold Leaf.  I learned you can apply it with Mod Podge in journals.  Cool.
7.  My son's football banquet that was our largest ever.  Over 500 people!
8.  Taylor Warren receiving the Coach Cav award.  He's been a great mentor to my son.
9.  A friend saving me her cookie tins and can lids. 
10. Giving up caffeine!  Actually this made me unhappy for several days but now I'm happy to be on the other side! 

Here's a picture of Taylor Warren and my Warren after the banquet.  Taylor is graduating and he wants Warren to carry on his jersey number.  So this fall Warren will be changing to number 73. 

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Things that have made me happy this past week:

1.  State Holiday- no work for me!
2.  New issue of Cloth Paper Scissors.
3.   The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
4.  Fish Tacos and margaritas with friends.
5.  Dancing with my Lab, Magic.
6.  Snow melting, finally!!!
7.  Talking to my Dad's players from his first football team about this week's E.L.H.S. banquet.
8.  Saturday morning breakfast date with my husband.
9.  My new Anthropologie sweater throw that I purchased at 75% off.  Score!
10. Friendship Youth and their all night laser tag trip.  Jody rocks!

Here's a picture of my dad from his coaching years at East Limestone. 

Happy Art Day!

I'm taking a break from my Soul Restoration class today to catch up on a few orders and art projects.  One is for my own home. 

For Christmas I created this to go above our TV:

Unfortunately it is so large, I have no place to store it.  Also when I took it down, I really missed having an art piece of this scale in my living room.  Then inspiration hit!  I didn't have hangers on the back.  It was just leaned it against the wall.  So I can create a piece of art on the backside to enjoy for 11 months of the year and then just flip it around for Christmas!  Yeah!

Now the next question, what to create?  Tim said the center of our home should reflect Happy Hill.  So I am going to re-create on a large scale this Happy Hill art piece I gave to my parents and brother's family a few years ago:

This piece repeats the names of the family members that live in each house on the house body but I think I'm going to use some reclaimed ceiling tin for the houses on the one I'm making now.  Check back to see how this turns out!

What Am I Seeking?

This is the question I asked myself last evening.  It's part of my Soul Restoration class.  I honestly do not have a complete answer for this at the moment.  I know the "right" answers.  I know I should be seeking to live in God's will.  To fulfill the plan He has for me.  Getting there is another story.  Thankfully I know a patient, loving and forgiving God!  I'll let you know as I discover my answer.

Rachel's Big Adventure for God!

Sometimes you have friends that just make you smile.  Our friends, Dave and Melinda, do just that.  Their joy and kindness is contagious and you always leave them wishing you had just a little more time to spend.  Saturday, they had a great send off bonfire party for their daughter Rachel.  Today she arrived at the International House of Prayer in Kansas City to serve as an intern for three months.  IHOP (no they don't serve pancakes) is a 24/7 house of prayer amoung other thing.  Check out more about them at ihop.org. Of course the daughter born from such love and kindness has a great deal of it herself.  God's love  flows openly from her heart and she never meets a stranger.  She will do great.  Please join me in praying for her and this exciting adventure for God that she is on! 

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Yes, I realize I'm posting Monday's Top 10 list on a Tuesday.  I've been distracted by the snow!

Here are the top 10 things to make me happy this week:

1.  Deep snow!
2.  My new journal for the Soul Restoration class.
3.  Mod Podge.  Mod Podging is a verb.
4.  Steaks on the grill in the snow.
5.  The SEC bringing home another national championship.
6.  The tip I received to attach pictures printed off your printer to cereal cardboard so they become dimensional.  Nice!
7.  Dark Chocolate Hot Coco.
8.  New sweater boots.
9.  Scrabble tiles.
10.  Bonfire party with friends.

Here's a picture of the collage items I printed and attached with Mod Podge to cardboard.  Of course I had to throw a little glitter on a couple!  The shiny items have Mod Podge Dimensional Magic on top.  It's my new favorite thing!

Happiness to you all!  Happy Dee

How Many People Does It Take To Make A Difference? Answer: 1.

I am blessed to have lots of great friends.  Two friends that I meet with often are Claire and Becky.  I call them my "change the world" friends as this is often the main topic of our lunches.  We talk about how we can make "it" better.  "It" covers a wide wide wide range of many things.  Once when we had a big project going on, I told my husband "I just don't know if I can save the world today."  His response to me was, "If you can change the world, shouldn't you?"  That has become one of our key phrases to repeat to each other as we go through trials or feel like giving up. 

I tell you this so you will have a little background information on the delayed Christmas gift that Claire gave me and Becky today.  It's a book called 1:How Many People Does It Take To Make A Difference? written by Dan Zadra and Kobi Yamada.  Claire bought herself one also and we plan to work through this book together.

The first page asks what a great life looks like.  We all have different opinions of what a great life includes but most would agree that a great life includes something worth living for or maybe even worth dying for.  Part of this great life should be devoted to something bigger than ourselves.  Something that inspires you, energizes you and ultimately makes a difference in the world around you. 

At the end of our journey here on earth, most of us hope to look back and see a life that was one of significance rather than regret.  That we left the world a little better than we found it because of the life we lived. 

The book goes on to say that this great life is not something we experience, but rather a life we create.  And that is what the book is about.

Between this book and my Soul Restoration class, I should have a great start on the new year.  After all, if you have the power to change the world, shouldn't you?

Happy Thrift Store Finds

Yesterday I stopped by my favorite thrift store in Athens, the Downtown Rescue Mission. ( downtownrescuemission.org/stores ).  It is the cleanest, neatest and most organized thrift store around!  I purchased not one but TWO cute purses, one short vase to hold my art pens, two frames and a metal heart that I plan to use in art projects.  My grand total for all was $7.99!  I saved money, helped the homeless of North Alabama and saved items from the landfill.  Below is a pic of my stash. 

Happy Thrifting!

Monday's Top 10 Happy List

Things that have made me happy this past week:

1.  The new year and new beginnings!
2.  The wisdom of my magic 8ball.
3.  Matching Christmas pajamas for me, my mom and sister-in-law.
4.  Snow!
5.  Laughing teenagers in my basement.
6.  The Roll Tide ESPN commercial.  Roll.Tide.
7.  Alabama's victory.
8.  Snuggling on the couch in a sleeping bag.
9.  Glitter.
10.  A church called Friendship.

Calling All Brave Girls!!!

So my fab artist friend, Anna Braden, and I are going to participate in the online Soul Restoration class put on by the Brave Girls Club.  I think you should do this with us!  This class is for any level artist or crafter.  Come be a brave girl with us!  To be linked with our group, list DeAnna McNeill as your group leader.  What a great way to start the year!

Even if you do not take the class, go to bravegirlsclub.com and sign up for the Daily Truth emails.  Seriously, do it now!  You will not regret it!

By the way, here's the link to Anna's art page.  You should become her fan.  Seriously, do it now! 

Anna Braden Art

Happiness to you all!
D

Happy New Year!

I love the promise of a new year!  I also love that we tell others "Happy New Year".  What an awesome thing to wish a year of happiness to someone.  Fits in just right with the Happy Hill way of thinking.

I'm picturing the dream version of myself for the new year.  You know, the person who eats right, works out, goes to bed on time, is disciplined in the studio and in bible study.  The perfect DeAnna!  Will I fail in my quest for perfection?  Of course!  But along the way I will do some things right so I will rejoice in each minor success and not dwell on the big picture. 

One of my main art goals this year is to maintain this blog.  Please check back often to hear what is going on at Happy Hill and to see my latest creations.

Speaking of creations, here is fresh off the studio bench inspiration art created today in honor of the New Year.  Enjoy!

Happy New Year my friends!