Just Walk Beside Me...

I just returned from spending a weekend in my hometown celebrating my 25th high school reunion. This was only the 2nd reunion I've attended and attending both of those has made me regret not attending earlier reunions. We spent 3 days attending various events and it was a weekend FULL of laughter. My husband, who was not in my class or even from my state, enjoys my class reunions and hanging out with my classmates. I believe without a doubt our class is one in a million!

As I was driving home tonight after church and remembering the weekend's events our class motto suddenly came to mind. I remember just over 25 years ago writing down the words of a slogan I'd seen that stuck with me, and was later adopted by our class as the motto when I nominated it:

"Don't walk behind me, I may not lead.
Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow.
Just walk beside me, and be my friend."

It struck me just how true this motto is for the majority of our class. No we haven't all kept in contact the past 25 years. Many have moved away. Even more have stayed.  Some have no interest in the reunions. But there are connections despite the years and miles that just can't be explained. Some classmates I visited with at the reunion I haven't seen nor spoken to in 25 years. Some I have kept in touch with, and some I keep up with on facebook. Still others I didn't even recognize and had to ask who they were!

There are many photos I missed taking, particularly the night of the class dinner. Somewhere in the evening I sat my camera down and didn't pick it up again until just before we left. I got busy visiting with old friends and missed many photo opportunities. I regret the missed photos, but I don't regret taking the time to visit at all.

I don't know if it's because we were a small high school in a small rural town or exactly what it is that makes us share the bonds that we do, but I know there's an unexplainable bond that just seems stronger each time this group meets. It is my hope that as the years fly by that bond doesn't weaken but instead remains steadily growing stronger. I have found that friendships from my youth remain intact and added to that are friendships with those I did not hang out with in high school but am enjoying getting to know now.

The West Plains High School Class of '89 Reassembled 25 years later:

 

 

I attended school in West Plains throughout my childhood, however I moved from one rural school to another just prior to 3rd grade. I was reunited with my Kinder-2nd grade classmates once we reached high school. This photo reminds me of being reunited with my South Fork pals way back then. Joby and Tom are part of the South Fork group:

 

 

Nikki and I were friends in high school and later worked together when I lived in Missouri many years ago:



Jesse and Christy and I all worked at McDonalds after high school. Christy worked morning and Jesse and I were on the closing crew. If I remember correctly Jesse was one of those responsible for my closing initiation involving a sink full of mustard! Yuck...but fun memories!




I have fond memories of freshman PE when Karmen and another classmate were determined to teach me to do a back handspring. I was never successful but they made the attempts fun. Karmen is the backbone of our amazing class. Without her I'm not sure our reunions would go so smooth. She does a fabulous job of organizing and making sure everything comes together.





I am sure the greatest laughter of the weekend was spent during our class scavenger hunt. Teams were formed and we raced all over town as 15 clues led us to places that no longer exist but in our memories and photos. Our team, Andy's Angels, all crammed into my suburban and succeeded in beating all the other teams by almost 300 points!




An example of one scavenger hunt clue that took us to where the old Imperial Bowl used to stand and where we acted out bowling for the camera:




One of my favorite reunion events is our class float trip. Our trip is always led by Kurt and his wife and they are an absolute riot. Here they are ducking as we made our way under Patrick Bridge:





I have yet to find a place in Texas I like to canoe as much as the rivers back home. My husband snapped this photo of me taking a picture as we floated downstream:




This is just a small sample of the memories made. I sure look forward to what the 30th year reunion will bring!

I am very proud to be a class of '89 Zizzer!!!

Fashion Fun

You may already know that in January of this year I began a new venture and opened an online clothing boutique. I am having so much fun with it and selecting clothes to carry!!! Recently a family I had met on a couple of occasions through a mutual friend began attending the same church I do. Because we had met in the past it was easy to strike up a conversation. My new friend is gorgeous and I teased her that she should model for my online store: A Moment in Tyme. Then I asked her seriously if she would consider modeling for me. She accepted immediately, although she was a bit apprehensive. She had never modeled before and we had so much fun capturing images. I look forward to working with her a lot more as new inventory continues to arrive. She's a natural!

Meet my new friend Amanda! Leave a comment letting us know you stopped by and I'll make sure Amanda reads them as well.

 

 

For more photos of Amanda's modeling or to order the clothes she's wearing, check out A Moment in Tyme at www.a momentintyme.com

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty Angel

On a shopping trip last year I found a skirt I fell in love with. I didn't buy it at the time but after leaving it on the rack I could not get it out of my head. I did look at the label (Pretty Angel) and remembered the name. Since that time I've found more and more Pretty Angel fashions and I love love love the look!


I grew up fairly poor and fashion sense didn't exist in the life I lived. I wore what was handed down or I could afford and that was it. For years I wore baggy bulky clothes in an attempt to hide my "too skinny" "too boney" frame, labels I adopted from what others said to me.


In my 30's I began to see clothes in a new light and discovered the baggy bulky clothes I wore just didn't help me at all. I began to embrace my size and shop accordingly. I still didn't find a look that was just "me," until I found "Pretty Angel" fashions. Their clothes have a flair of vintage, are so feminine/pretty/romantic who can help but love the look and feel?!


For my 43rd birthday my husband bought the skirt I left hanging on the rack months before. Since then, I have begun to offer Pretty Angel fashions and other similar styles of clothing in my own online boutique "A Moment in Tyme."


Pretty Angel remains my favorite brand I carry and I continue to be drawn to those styles for my boutique.


The skirt I fell in love with? I carry it now, but in a different color. Mine is brown but the one in my store is aqua and just as gorgeous:

A Moment in Tyme

A new venture has just taken off and I'm very excited to share it! I have found some clothing styles I absolutely adore! Where I live there aren't any stores that carry these styles and I don't often venture to the towns where I can find them easily. I've decided to make them available to others in my area who might love them just as much as I do.

 Currently my inventory is small and only available online. I am honoring my family's plan to become debt free and working on building this business with NO DEBT. To do so, I will begin small with a small inventory and build my inventory as sales increase. One day I look forward to opening a physical store!

Be watching as I add more and more fashionable women's clothing with a vintage flair!

If you love these styles as much as I do, keep checking back often as I obtain new merchandise often!

You can find these clothes available on my new website at

EGGS!!!

Friends have been told not to stand still too long in my presence or risk being painted. This has been said because of the variety of objects I have been known to paint.

This summer we began to raise chickens and quail. One day as I was washing eggs it occurred to me I should find something creative to do with them! I still am not sure what to do with the abundance of quail eggs, but I've begun to paint the chicken eggs as Christmas ornaments.

 

 

I have found that painting eggs takes a lot longer than even painting glass ornaments. I'm enjoying making a work of art from something so simple and so readily available at my house. Because they take so long, I have very few available yet and this particular egg has already sold.

 

Keep checking my website over at The Creator's Porch to see when I have new ones available. Currently there is a Santa available and a few more should be ready soon!

 

 

 



Santa Brought to Life

Head over to my new blog at The Creator's Porch to see Santa come to life in my newest painting.

2013 Ornaments

The 2013 Ornaments are here! I've been busy busy in the studio preparing for Christmas, YES Christmas ALREADY!

To see the ornaments ready so far, visit my new website (www.thecreatorsporch.com) or go directly to the ornaments here.

Dance As If....

I've found another way to recreate my photos, specifically my photos of a painting's progress. Check out the newest post over at The Creator's Porch to see my iPhone photos of the most recent completed painting in progress.

The Creator's Porch

My painting blog and website have a new name and new look!


I've created a new name, new brand, new look, new business! My online gallery, store and blog can all be found in one place under a new name. Come find me at my new place at (click to go):




You can find my new blog by clicking the website link above and following the link to Tam's Corner Bog or by clicking this link:








You can also find my new facebook page at:




You'll still find all the things you know and love about Painted by Tammy, just a new look and location!

My Favorite Fish

Our summer vacation was spent in Cozumel, Mexico. I learned to snorkel and really enjoyed the peek at life that lies beneath the surface of the Caribbean Sea. We saw so many colorful coral reef fish, an eel and a sting ray. The eel and sting ray made me a bit nervous (more in another post)! My favorite "fish" however, was my husband! I loved watching him dive far below the water's surface for a closer look or photograph of a fish. My clumsy husband actually looked GRACEFUL in the water! I was in awe, for I can not dive nor can I swim underwater. I've never learned how...and the thought of learning how makes me a tad bit nervous. I convinced him to let me have the underwater camera while he dived down so I could try to capture photos. He's not a fan of having his photo taken, but he agreed to relinquish the camera to me. Although I take tons of photos, have a side business of photography, and operate an advanced dslr camera....the point and shoot underwater camera was tricky for me!

My favorite "fish":




















Other Fascinating Fish: A starfish we found while snorkeling at the Hotel Barracuda:











These are just a few of the many photos we took while snorkeling. Check back for there are more to come!!!

Awe-Inspiring

I tend to use the word "awesome" pretty frequently, then when I'm faced with something that is truly awesome, incredible and awe-inspiring I don't seem to have an adequate word to describe it. That was the case throughout our vacation in Cozumel. I am completely drawn to the sea, inspired by it, even though at the same time afraid of it. There's something about the rise and fall of the waves, the pull of the moon on the tides, the sound of the water crashing, the feel of sand on my feet, the taste of salt in the air. It mesmerizes me. My senses were completely captivated when in Cozumel and all the things about the sea that I already knew to be enchanting were present. But added to that was a blue like I've never seen before in so many shades and hues the farther out in the Caribbean I gazed.

No More "R" Word!

 

 

 

 

I know there are many who see the posts encouraging us all to remove the "R" word from our vocabulary who think "I don't mean anything bad by it." What we mean by it when we say the word isn't the point. The point is simply that the word cuts straight into the heart of parents who dread the day that word is used in reference to their own child. Honestly I never gave it a lot of thought, until Charli, and even then realized most people don't mean anything by it. We have friends whose entire family are working to delete the word from their vocabulary simply because it hurts them to think someone might use the word in reference to Charli and that makes them sad. So even though I know you don't mean anything bad when you say the word, think about the Mom or Dad who hear the word and cringe. Then stop using the word for that reason and for all the "Charlis" who are so much more than what that word signifies.

 

Heather N Charli

My two favorite girls came to go shopping with me last weekend. Before we headed out I snapped a few pictures. I take lots of photos of my granddaughter Charli but don't get as much opportunity to snap them of her mommy too.



Pretty Girls!


Charli sure loves her Mommy!


Got your nose!


Charli Kisses!


Pretty Baby Girl

Brandon and Sam

We recently traveled to Missouri to attend my nephew Brandon's wedding. It was beautiful! Fancy trimmings had nothing to do with the beauty of the ceremony. A friend stated the wedding was...spiritual. I believe her description nailed it. From vows the couple wrote themselves, to the groom's display of love for Jesus and for his fiancee by washing her feet, the ceremony left few dry eyes in the congregation.





Even the bride's eyes were teary