You can find her work at @jeanskaiyou or at “Unfinished Sketchbook on Substack.
Jean S. Kaiyou Sketches 2
Filed under drawings
Tuesday 5-5-2026
This tree is at Harvey’s nursing home. I have no clue what it is. I’m amazed at the huge green ‘fruit’ hanging from some of the branches.
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Mango.org
Speaking of fruit, Brian received a gift when he was out walking yesterday afternoon. A lady who runs a Thai food shop stopped him. (He really likes that place, but her hours run such that, since we don’t eat lunch, we basically can’t go while she’s open.) She gave him a mango (a yellow one), just to be nice. We shared it for breakfast this morning and I don’t see how a fruit could taste better. It was perfectly ripe and very sweet. Absolutely delicious!
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AND, speaking of how NICE people are here in Chiang Mai, when we were at the cafe this afternoon, the nice lady server I gave the earrings to brought me my mocha. She had noticed that I always get up soon after my drink arrives, and get two napkins – one to fold under the glass and the other to wrap around the drink. (The glass gets wet and I can’t do my sketches or finish my painted sketches with wet fingers. ) Today without a word, my drink had a napkin folded under it, and another napkin wrapped around it in such a way that she had ‘TIED’ it to stay on the glass. She is really spoiling me. (The other two servers, including my guy I had the water fights with) don’t do that, so I’ll just enjoy the spoiling when it happens. :0)
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AND – a special treat while I was at the cafe – a lady stopped by my table, looking amazed. Then she had a delighted look on her face. She asked me if she could take a picture. She did, and thanked me. I told her I was just trying to teach myself how to draw and then painting the sketches. Before we left, I stopped and thanked her for making my day. 🎨
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These are new painted sketches.
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We went to visit Harvey this morning. He was comfortable and calm, but basically wanted to watch TV instead of talk with us. We confirmed that he is reading his book – not whether or not he’s using the reading light he asked us to get for him – but that was the whole of the conversation today. I’m thankful he was content and interested in the pretty ladies doing something similar to a QVC channel.
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Acoustic Guitar
I’m making a bit of progress on relearning my basic chords. I can now play “A” and “E minor” without referring to anything and they sound okay. “C” is still a disaster – I can hear my teacher from the Dark Ages telling me to “keep your flesh off the box, dahlin'” as my strings are all flat and muffled. I’m trying to learn to change my grip so my fingers will stretch, and push hard enough, but the fingertips give out before I can get the clear sound I want. I keep practicing really short sessions several times a day, trying to build up my callouses so I can practice longer…
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The Today Show
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Fabulous Fabric Art 3
Sisan Carlson Quilts – Feat. Marilyn Davidson
Sophie Standing’s Textile Art – Facebook
Village Quilters of Lake Bluff – Lake Forest
Filed under Embroidery/Sewing Art
Monday 5-4-2026
Suzanne Daley – @suzannedailey.bsky.social
I LOVE the light in this photo and all the different shades of green. What a beautiful place to spend a lot of time!
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Brian was better today, so we went to the gym this morning. He’s still not 100%, but he was exercising, eating, and we went to the cafe to spend some time this afternoon. He wanted to take a long walk in the sunshine. “Long walk” means MILES in “Brian-speak,” so I opted out. I’m so glad to see him perking up.
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I finished several painted sketches today. I’ve been doing the base painting here in the condo and then taking my colored pencils and other detail finishing supplies in my art backpack to the cafe. I had gotten way ahead on sketches, and I’m almost out of space to do new sketches in this book, so I’m doing some catch up.
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123RF.com
I’m having to pick and choose what I will do with my time these days, running out of time long before I have done all I wanted to do. Frustrating to be so spoiled that I can’t decide which thing will bring me the most joy to do next….
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Quote Fancy
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Jean S. Kaiyou Sketches
I found the fabulous work of Jean S. Kaiyou on Substack. She uses all types of media, creating beautiful sketches in all.
You can find her work at @jeanskaiyou or at “Unfinished Sketchbook on Substack.
Filed under drawings
Ryosuke Art 2
I think this artwork is absolutely amazing. There are no words to describe the light and shadows and the depth of the work. I’ll just sit here and drool.
Filed under drawings
Sunday 5-3-2026
“Sunrise over Lake Superior from Grand Marais” – Bryan Hansel – Substack
Isn’t this glorious?
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Brian is trying really hard NOT to get sick, so we didn’t go to the gym this morning. He is resting and loading up on Vitamin C. We shared a Thai breakfast this morning of a rice porridge dish called, “Joke,” a combination of rice, chicken and nice spices all mortared and pesteled into a nice dish. We had a side of watermelon. I’m not sure if we’ll go to the cafe this afternoon or not.
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Two latest painted sketches.
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This is for everybody, but especially for Donna, who takes almost as much interest in the puzzles as I do. The border doesn’t show here, except for the black part under the cheetah.
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I’m moving from guitar practice, to puzzle, to blog post, to painting and then back again. It’s been a very nice morning. I will plan on adding my exercises with water bottles this afternoon since we opted out on the gym this morning.
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TheLawofAttraction.com
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want 6
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under CUTE!
Saturday 5-2-2026
Happy May! I hope this month brings you nicer, calmer weather, some flowers pushing up confirming Spring, and lots and lots of smiles.
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Two latest painted sketches. I tried to show in this one that it doesn’t matter what kind of shop it is, the people use lots of plants to make it inviting.
I’m into a fun pattern now, where I paint some sketches at home, then take them to the cafe to add details and finish them, then do more sketches.
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Yesterday at the cafe they were taking pictures of drinks for some kind of promotion. I wasn’t in the way and they allowed me to watch. They would make a drink – for example, a pretty one with purple froth on top. Then they would go outside and find some tiny purple flowers and greenery to add to the top of the drink before photographing. It was beautiful and fascinating. They saw I was taking an interest, so they started looking at me for at thumbs up when I liked what I saw. 😁
I used Google Translate yesterday to thank the lady server there who has been so kind to me. She watches for ‘my spot’ to open up, for example. She came and got me recently and helped me move my stuff! Anyway, I thanked her for being so kind. I told her I had made some wooden earrings and wanted to give them to her as a gift for her kindness. I thought she was going to cry. It was a really nice moment.
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We are going to visit Harvey this morning. The nursing home sent Brian a picture of him READING! He wasn’t using the reading light (it was in bed with him) but he was reading again for the first time in a long time. We’re hoping to encourage that today, show him how to use the light again, if needed, and hopefully brighten his day.
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I’m practicing with my guitar – though progress is painfully slow – and learning one chord at a time now. I’m learning “A”, picturing it in my mind rather than referring to diagrams, and doing as well as I can placing my fingers as near the frets as possible, continuing to work at it until I get a good, clean sound. I do this several times before my fingertips start yelling at me. I’m building callouses as I practice. 🎸
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Notable Quotes
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want 5
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under CUTE!
Fabulous Fabric Art 2
Karen-Turner-School of Stitched Textiles
Lorraine Turner – Salico Horses
Filed under Embroidery/Sewing Art
Thursday 4-30-2026
Newest painted sketches.
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Weight Loss Progress Report – April 30, 2026 –
As of this morning, I’ve lost 92 lbs and 89 inches. I was to lose 3 more pounds and then hold it steady there. I’ll still eat two meals a day, watching my portions, but I won’t have to obsess about not being able to eat any particular kind of food anymore.
Another good thing – with my lard loss and exercising, I now take 1/2 of one blood pressure pill every other day, keeping my numbers under control, where I was in danger of real trouble when I first moved to Thailand. So that and my thyroid pill (I had mine radiated due to Grave’s Disease several years ago) are my only prescription drugs now.
My focus has now turned to adding more movement every day –
- I’m walking a mile on the treadmill every day – trying to increase my speed and the incline percentage as I can while concentrating on my balance
- On alternate days I do either a session of yoga stretches or exercises with water bottles.
- I’m taking the stairs in my building coming down routinely. I’m going UP when I’m not carrying anything.
- I’m putting on some heavy beat music on my computer, putting on my headphones, and dancing to a couple of songs at least every other day.
- I’m trying to use opportunities to get extra movement in as they arise – for example, today we needed to get cash for tomorrow, but our regular ATM wasn’t working. We walked to another one, and then took the long way home, stopping to visit my Koi fish on the way back.
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StockCake
I’m consciously trying to ‘up my game’ on my sketches, trying to do some I wouldn’t have considered before. I’m sketching every day, particularly since we’re spending time at the cafe, with Brian working and my sketching, reading, and watching the traffic, so I have dedicated time now to concentrate on what I consider more difficult challenges. Drawing every day, doing the best that I can, and then having the fun of painting my drawings, is filling a good part of my day with joy.
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Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want 4
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under Uncategorized
Wednesday 4-29-2026
@dcfitzgerald.bsky.social
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I’ve had a good, busy day. It’s just after 4pm on Wednesday here, and I have been going non-stop the whole day. It has been glorious.
When we aren’t going to visit Harvey, I’m starting to paint one of my sketches when I get back from the gym and breakfast with Brian. While the paint is drying, I’m answering email and blog post comments, then doing a session with my new guitar. This morning I then did good yoga stretches, then did another layer of painting, another session with the guitar, and then it was time to go to the cafe. I did some good sketching – starting out at one place and then getting to move to ‘my spot’ to spend a good while. Brian, who was already wearing a sweatshirt over his tee, was too cold, so we came home.
I’m starting a new sketchbook (#3) very soon, so I got that ready this afternoon.
I laughed when I started trying to work with my guitar this morning. When I first learned to play, my teacher, who was from the deep south, would say, “Keep your flesh off the box, dahlin’.” You’re supposed to put your finger TIPS down close to the frets, resulting in a nice tone. When you “put your flesh on the box, dahlin’,” the sound is completely deadened. I was, indeed, puttin’ my flesh on the box, dahlin’ this morning – the neck of this guitar is quite wide for me, so I’ll have to work on techniques to get my hands and fingers to stretch to position them correctly so my chords sound like music, rather than noise.
It has been around 60 or so years since I played and sang at my high school, at my college, and at “The Dust Bowl” in Tulsa, a place where folk singers were welcome, so to say I’m starting over, learning the chords, finger positions, how to use a new style capo, is an understatement. There’s a YouTube site that helps you tune your guitar, another that shows basic chords and finger positions. When I’m ready, YouTube also offers songs with lyrics and chords! I basically play by ear, so this will help me out a lot.
My fingers hurt after only a few minutes, so I’ll do a session, rest and do something else, and then do another session, building my knowledge, calluses, and hopefully learning the proper finger positions so I can actually play some chords.
This is a wonderful way to learn. I have absolutely no pressure. No deadlines. No one will hear me croak or play. The insulation in the building is good so my neighbors won’t hear me. I am really, really happy to try to add back making some music to my new life.
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Newest painted sketch
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Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Fabulous Fabric Art
Anne von FreyBurg – Colossal
Fabric College Class at Road 2 CA
Fammomg Sparks
Filed under Embroidery/Sewing Art
Stunning Waterfalls and More By Brook
Mt. Washington, Maine
Philmont NY
Philmont NY
Poestenkill NY
These stunning photos are all by Waterfalls and More By Brook – @hhs761.bsky.social
Filed under Waterfall gifs
Tuesday 4-28-2026
Newest painted sketches
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We had a challenging visit with Harvey this morning. He thought I was his mom and that Brian was his dad, even though we tried to correct him. He also announced that the nursing home had served everyone ‘dog’ with mashed potatoes for dinner last night; specifically, ‘your dog’ meaning his parents’ dog, Gypsy. He said he recognized her, but they were getting low on food… We took the reading light, and he seemed to think that would work well. We’ll see if he actually uses it.
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The rest of my day was super wonderful, though. On the way home from the visit with Harvey we stopped and found a used acoustic guitar! The shop owner through in the case, and Brian gave me a capo and a pick.
I feel as if this is Christmas, my birthdays, my anniversary, and National Pickle Week all rolled into one. The neck of this guitar is much wider that the guitar I had so long ago, so I’ll have to completely start over with learning and being able to play the chords, as well as build the calluses I used to have on the tips of my fingers, plus I sound like a sick frog – but I don’t care. I’m ecstatic! I found a Youtube site that shows me the basic chords and I’ll practice those until I know them again. I figured out that it has been over 60 years since I played and sang in college – so to say I’m a bit rusty doesn’t begin to cover it. 🤭 I have the perfect situation for starting over. No pressure. No time limits. No one listening. Just me and the guitar, croaking together. PERFECT!
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I spent a couple of hours at the cafe this afternoon. I did a sketch for our 57th wedding anniversary which I’ll paint and take to Harvey in June. I also did a sketch for Father’s Day, plus two sketches of his favorite cartoon characters.
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Filed under Thoughts on a ________
A Wish for the Week Ahead
I can’t say enough about Nanea Hoffman. I always find something that resonates, that I needed to hear. This time I snorted when I got to the last line – “may your humor keep you out of jail.”
What she says is how I’m trying to live my life. I’m shedding everything possible that stands in the way of peace. There are things in life we HAVE to put up with, but we can get rid of a LOT of the things that annoy, frustrate, increase tension, and otherwise cause us constant grief. Getting rid of that feels so GOOD! Meditation and just sitting with my eyes closed feeling grateful is filling me up.
This is a great way to start a week, a month, a year – the rest of your life.
Filed under Attitude
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want 3
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under CUTE!
Monday 4-27-2026
“What A Beautiful World” – @abbphotos.bsky.social
This is a beautiful photo with the background suggesting it’s a painting. Just beautiful!
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I’ve had a great morning, moving from painting some sketches to working on my Cheetah jigsaw puzzle, to working at the computer, to running a couple of errands, and more. It’s a beautiful day here.
Brian and I will probably go to the cafe. He tends to stay most of the afternoon working while I usually come back home mid afternoon to write more blog posts, catch up on email, etc. before dinner.
These are my latest painted sketches.
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123RF
Soon Brian and I will find good places to search for a used acoustic guitar for me. I’m missing playing and singing. I haven’t done it for years – and in fact sound like an ill frog when I try to sing along with YouTube right now, but this would only be for ME. I used to sing in high school and in The Student Entertainers at Oklahoma State University to help pay for my schooling. I sang folk songs then, and it was a fun, fulfilling thing to do. I don’t read music and would just work songs out that I liked by ear. Now you can find songs on the computer that show the lyrics AND chords! I’m hoping we can find something at a reasonable price. It would be a great addition of my fun things to do.
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Rover.com
Today when I get home from the cafe I’ll do a good, long session of yoga stretches. I opted out of the gym this morning, feeling that I needed another hour of sleep. When Brian and I shared breakfast, I discovered HE had not gone, either – feeling lazy, he said. The yoga stretches will loosen me up and make up for my sloth this morning.
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Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Fabulous Flower Fotos
Front Range Wildflowers – @frwildflowers.bsky.social
Ilene Gilbert-Mays – @ilenagm.bsky.social
Mairead D – @mairedd100.bsky.social
Filed under Awe-Inspiring Photography
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want 2
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under CUTE!
Sunday 4-26-2026
Patty Tait sent me this photo she took of female elephant seals lying on the beach on the coast of California on a short trip last week. I have never seen anything like this. Wow. Just wow. Thank you, Patty!
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Women’s Health
A big shout-out and THANK YOU to my wonderful sister-in-law, Mary Lou Lewis, who took us with her this past week for a vicarious trip to a beach on the coast of North Carolina – and not only that – but sent terrific pictures that made us feel we were there with her. Many of you wrote nice comments about both her photos and the fact that she let us come with her. I forwarded them to her so that she could read first-hand how what she did was appreciated. :0)
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I’m just back home from spending some time at the cafe and sketching. I got my favorite spot this time and was very comfy with my pillow to sit on, my mocha to drink, and my supplies ready at hand. I did several sketches. I’m in the process of painting several of them and will probably start posting some of them tomorrow.
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Meanwhile, I’ve been working on my Cheetah puzzle. I have the border done and the cheetah is emerging!
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I got the idea of drawing some of my husband’s favorite old school cartoon characters – like some of the ones we did for our mailbox decorations – to paint and add to his ‘happy wall.’ I’ll see what I can come up with. I hope he’ll be happy to see them.
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Wisdom Quotes
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Dads Plus Pets They Didn’t Want
“Dads Plus Pets They Never Wanted” – BoredPanda.com – Louise Pieterse, Marila Tkachenko, Karolina Kondrataviciute, Monika Pasukonyte.
Filed under CUTE!
And Our Trip Comes to an End
Mary Lou Lewis
Thanks to the generosity of my sister-in-law, you and I have been able to feel like we’ve been to a beach in North Carolina this week, with stunning photos of sunrises and sunsets, plus photos of my beloved sandpipers and probably a mockingbird, plus a great photo taken looking down the underside of a really neat bridge. And don’t forget the sand and the gorgeous ocean!!!!
Mary Lou Lewis
Mary Lou Lewis
Thanks, Mary Lou, for allowing you to go along with you this week, to ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ at the glorious display Mother Nature was giving all of us, even though she could have been a bit more generous with higher temperatures and less wind… ⛱️ 🐚 ☀️
Filed under vicarious enjoyment
Saturday 4-25-2026
“Forest Stream” -Ali Khaliq – @khaliqali.bsky.social
Here’s another place I would love to spend some time. Want to come with me?
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Two beautiful words –
We went to visit Harvey at the nursing home this morning and just got back. He was glad to see us, was comfortable, and mostly made sense. When I showed him the picture I painted of the water gun that also shoots LED lights for his wall,
he looked at it for quite a while and finally he said, “It’s good.” Those two words made my day – quite a bit more than that, actually.
This is his “Happy Wall” now. (The poster on the right is the “Reward” one Brian did for him about three of the things Harvey thinks have been ‘stolen’ since he went to the nursing home. The poster clearly states (in Thai) that these things are NOT missing, and thanking everyone at the nursing home for their patience with Harvey. (There is one on the outside of his room door, as well, at his insistence.) Today we clipped his fingernails, and then he used the fingernail file we brought recently. He wanted me to leave my fingernail clippers – and then proceeded to slide the fingernail file between his arm and the wristband on his watch, saying it will keep the people there from ‘stealing’ them. We told him we’ll bring him some clippers, and I managed to put the fingernail file back in the book – where it was as I left it last time.
He actually told us that he had read a lot of the RG Ryan book since we saw him last, and told us he would tell us when he was ready for us to order the next one in the series. We showed him a picture of the light we ordered for him, and he seemed to think it might work for him. (It was delivered this morning while we were visiting him, so we’ll take it to him Tuesday with a battery installed and a spare.) Finally, he wanted Brian to order French fries for him, so Brian checked on it while we were stopped for a chocolate after the visit, and it was being delivered as we checked.
So, as visits go, this one was a stellar visit.
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I’m working on my new Cheetah puzzle. I have some various pieces put together in ‘clumps,’ and I can tell it’s part of the cheetah. One of the clumps shows his whiskers!
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Next we will probably go to the cafe for a while. It gives focus to the afternoon and lets us enjoy a drink. Hopefully, my favorite spot will be free. I have a problem I haven’t had for as long as I remember! With my weight loss, I don’t have nearly as much padding on which to sit as I used to, so many chairs are now uncomfortable. I tried bringing a towel to add to the chair. Yesterday I stuffed a small pillow in my art backpack and that worked really well. I think it’s funny that my new problems with my size are so different than having problems squeezing into smaller spaces without running into things or knocking things over, or sitting on a bench seat rather than a chair with arms to give me more room. Change of focus can bring a smile…
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The Today Show
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Adopted Animals 2
These wonderful photos gathered by Justin Sandberg and Leva Peciulyte.
Filed under CUTE!
Just Beachy
I have been enjoying my vicarious trip to the beach because my sister-in-law has been generous enough to send the gorgeous photos and allow me to share them with you. Yesterday I finally asked her if I could also have her permission to give her credit for these. Her name is Mary Lou Lewis and I think she has a gift for photography.
I wish I could also share the videos she has sent showing sandpipers, but WordPress has a problem with the format.
So, thank you, Mary Lou, for taking us with you on your beautiful vacation!
Filed under vicarious enjoyment
creativeartworksblog 