Thursday, May 16, 2013

FMS86 and a Baltimore Oriole

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Happy Thursday, peeps!  The weekend is almost here….I am getting ready for a yard sale, so I may be MIA for a day or so, LOL!  I loved the Freshly Made Sketches sketch this week:

My friend lent me a stamp of a beautiful rural scene and my first attempt was to color it in with Copics….did okay, until I got to the sky.  It’s now in the trash.  So I decided to just stamp it in one color, which in this case was Riding Hood Red, and I stamped it on the new Epic Day This & That paper….there was a page that had a farm ledger on it---perfect for my image!  I turned the sketch on its side:

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Can you see the ledger entries here?:

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Cool, huh? I added a country check border on one edge and added a little “gratitude” tag:

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and a little farm label at the top:

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I love the RHR and Baja Breeze combo…so going to miss these retiring colors!  Any questions?  Give me an email holler!

You never know what will keep Cassidy occupied for 15 minutes or so….yesterday it was peeling “strings” off the rhubarb I was cutting from the garden…..crazy kid!

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Finally, humor me here…..if you don’t care about nature, birds and spring, you can ignore the rest of this post.  My family knows that around this time of the year, my ear is subconsciously cocked for the sound of my favorite bird, the Baltimore Oriole.  I have loved it since I first saw a picture of one as a child….maybe it’s because it was orange.  I finally saw one in my yard a couple of years ago and I actually heard it before I saw it.  I pretty much know all the birds in my little piece of heaven and what they sound like and I knew I hadn’t heard that call before!  Anyway, I can be in the house doing chores or stamping, and if I hear that sound out of the corner of my ear, I leap like a crazy woman for the door, with my binoculars in hand, and search the treetops until I find him!!  Yesterday was THE DAY!! I kept hearing him but I just couldn’t find him…..I must have run outside in the rain four or five times, but I FINALLY SAW HIM!!! Not once, but twice!  I don’t have any pictures, because it was pouring rain and I don’t have a telescopic lens, but what a thrill….he was back & forth between two trees quite close to the house, so I got to see him nibbling on maple whirligigs and something in our pine tree.  Usually they are very shy and stay away from the house!  SO….in honor of my Baltimore Oriole sighting, I made another card using a digi vintage BH&G cover image from 1934 (10 cents a copy!)….same sketch as above, a wee bit of stamping on the front, and definitely not one of my best cards, but a nice way to commemorate my nerdy birdwatching success:

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Thanks for visiting today!!!

16 comments:

/p said...

Love your Baltimore Oriole. How can you possibly think it's not one of your best cards. If it makes you happy -- it's your best!

I love following your blog, although I hardly ever comment! Thanks for all your inspiration and it's been fun watching Cassidy grow!
/p

Denise Willerton said...

FABULOUS card LeAnne ~ Love how that DP worked perfectly in the card! and as for the nerdy bird watchers, I guess I'm in that club too....this is exactly what Dean & I do as well, binoc's are always by the patio door, so the dash to grab them is simple! Enjoy your day and the bird watching! *smile*

Amy O said...

What great cards, LeAnne! I love that Epic Day dsp with your farm themed stamp -- how perfect! And those colors work so well together. Your second card is such a great image. And I love how you flipped the sketch upside-down. I hope your Oriole comes back and brings some friends with him.

kel said...

great card! where do u live? i'm in maryland but have maybe seen the oriole once!!!

Bonnie said...

What a wonderful stamp! It reminds me of all the time I spent on my DS and BIL's farm. And I totally understand about running outside to spot a bird! And Baltimore Orioles are very special! I don't believe I've ever seen one.

Linda said...

Thank you for telling us about your oriole. When I grew up, we always had a pair nest in the big cottonwood at the bottom of our garden [which was on a slant:-)]. I always loved seeing and hearing them. Their nests are an architectural marvel.

Like /p, I always look forward to seeing Cassidy. She's close to the age of my youngest grandson, so it's fun to keep track of what she's up to.

Bev J. said...

Love both the cards and Cassidy is so cute stringing the rhubarb! I would like to know the name and maker of the stamp-I love it as we are former dairy farmers! Will email you. Thanks!

Linda Callahan said...

Perfect combo of colors, DSP and image! Great card! And hooray for the return of the Oriole :)

Carol L said...

I don't think I've ever seen an oriole, but they sure are pretty birds! Great cards today too!

Erika Clark said...

I love both cards! The ledger lines are REALLY cool on the first card, I love country themes. And the Oriole! How cool! They're my home state bird, and I miss them. I'm here with the whippoorwills and owls in the mountains now :) I had a big Barred Owl fly across the front of my truck - twice - this week! And I did get his picture :) Have a great weekend! Erika

Elisha said...

I love both of your cards! The pairing of the farm ledger paper and the rural stamp is perfection! Another blogger I follow has an orange oriole feeder - her orioles only eat the little cups of jelly (grape?) that she puts in it! Good luck in future sightings!

Elisha said...

I love both of your cards! The pairing of the farm ledger paper and the rural stamp is perfection! Another blogger I follow has an orange oriole feeder - her orioles only eat the little cups of jelly (grape?) that she puts in it! Good luck in future sightings!

Jaydee said...

LeAnne.... YAHOO... I am so pleased your Oriole is around and your card is perfect to honor these gorgeous visitors.
Hugs
Jaydee

Kara said...

so glad you spotted your favorite bird! my husband and his mother would have a contest every spring to see who could spot the first robin. they continued this tradition until she passed away last year. such a sweet little tradition they shared together:)

Linda Suarez said...

Great cards LeAnne! I love the rustic farm scene - reminds of when I was little and lived on a farm. Yay for the Oriole! So glad to see you at Freshly Made Sketches this week!

Rita W said...

Oh how fun! I have an obsession with cardinals and get way too excited when they arrive at my bird feeder. ;) Love your farm card; that strip of ledger DSP is PERFECT!