A MAD Tennessee Tea Party

Hello to all of you Mad Tea Party peeps, my name is Sonya, welcome to my little blog spot on the WWW ... well I got a little tip from one of my FLYn friends Kathryn that there was a party going on and a Mad Tea Party at that, so what am I to do, but request a last minute invite from the O so famous Vanessa Valencia, so I went for a unannounced visit to her most beautiful and delightful space, I didn't get it, don't get it right now, but I bet I will, cause there on a ton of peeps out there who do. It is about 6AM or so here in Tennessee (US) and I'm waiting for the sun, so I can snap a quick pic of my Tea Party Table and I'm thinking of making cookies ... WOW!. Maybe you can do a Tea Party for two ... but a Mad Tea Party 4 ONE was just as FUN!

O so EASY fruit TEA

1 frozen can of pineapple/orange juice

2 quarts of brewed tea

1 cup sugar or sugar to taste

Mix in gallon pitcher

add ice and ENJOY!

Mad Tea Party 4 ONE was just as FUN! So I decided to mix it up a bit ... plastic goes so well with fine china.

Plastic goes so well with fine china, and until today ... the china tea cup has never seen tea

I'm gonna leave it out all day, Thanks to Vanessa 4 this chance to play ...

How do you approach a random tea party in the early morning or the middle of the day ...

with much quiet caution ... I would say ...

This was so much fun ... but I'm afraid ... I must run 

looking forward to my cup of Tea

MY 100th post - A LookN 4ward ............... Blog Break Celebration

Gonna take some time to look back on this gift of life, so I can look forward with more meaning & purpose .... when this sonyamacdesigns spot returns on Monday July 5, 2010 ... I'll be shareN & giveN more. I'll be more transparent, so U can see me ..... Here's a tentative list to look forward to ... first of all I'll be shareN how U 2 can learn 2 listen 2 the voice of GOD in YOUR life ...  I'll be shareN pics of the new Rock the Ranch Renovation project (we'll be starting over with the completion of the bathroom renovation), I'll be shareN images of my work, I'll be giveN away some stuff ... I'll be shareN the how, when & what I've learned, & applied from this awesome Kelly Rae Roberts Flying class ... I'll be counting down the days to the publication of my first online magazine ... Inspired Studios ... a real page turner, that's just the beginning ... there is so much more ... single Mom of 2 ... working 4 HIM 2 inspire U.

Summer Has her own school

My little friend Summer has her own school and she let me know last night that today was portrait day for her school and since her name is Summer, I just had to say yes ....

LUVing fb BUT ....

I LUV FACEBOOK but FB is 4 sharing not publishing (2 make public) This is why KRR keeps waving the CAUTION flag ... http://www.facebook.com/terms.php

www.facebook.com

www.facebook.com

17 minutes ago · Comment ·  · Share

Sonya McCllough

you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on or in connection with Facebook ("IP License"). This IP License ends when you delete your IP content or your account unless your content has been shared with others, and they have not deleted it.

15 minutes ago ·  · 

Sonya McCllough

Royalty-free=NO money 4 U & me

7 minutes ago ·  · 

It is still FLOODING

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges ... The floods this pass spring, got some folks really thinking & this is what I heard, about water creeping n, it's unlike fire,it can not be put out, it moves swiftly & quietly, even n the night. The danger is ever more present long after the water has stopped falling from the sky. If you can't get you're head above it ... yes - you too will die ...
Did some crazy stuff last summer to rescue two of these children from being SUBMERGED & tomorrow, I may ask you to help me rescue another.

What HOME means 2 me

I too am participating in Victoria's Pin it forward event and 2day marks the day I am to share with the world, exactly What Home Means 2 me. I'm looking forward to Collage Clearinghouse post tomorrow & Tiff from SimplyModernMom handed me my challenge with a simply beautiful post yesterday, so let me get to it.

  Check out my Pin board at the pin spot to see more images of what Home means to me.

Home is Church on Sunday, every single day of the week,

a simple place of retreat, no stockings to wear, not a single burden or care ... just relax and simply be there.

Home is Sanctuary, the most private space, u gotta get there a place of peace & joy, enjoying the quiet noise of wonder so your inner spirit may soar.

Home is cornbread and grits, anything Sonya wants to fix no excuses, just some true Tennessee giving, picking tomatoes to share ... the true southern living.

Photo by http://www.moderustic.com/

Grill N Geraniums

A NEW way to grill the sonyamacdesigns way, getting validation n in this kRoberts e-course, there ain't nothing wrong with being me, ...  yes I'm different, ...  I love deeply, extremely intense & intentional liveN ...  cause life, any life ain't no accident.

NEED APPLES

Know someone n Middle Tennessee that bakes with fresh apples, cause we are soon to have some. Last year we didn't get any (maybe because we only have 1 tree) this year the tree is full to the rim. In 2008 we gave away so many apples via Craigslist, but lost many to rot & birds. If you want some or know someone who bakes those little fried pies send an e-mail to me .... sonyamacdesigns@yahoo.com  use the word APPLE in the subject line ... I'd love to share.

SizzleN studio news

This photo is of the southeast corner of the little studio, I purchase this big black metal work table at the tool store ... those guys are so helpful ... I have been rearranging the studio for several months and I am extremely happy with this new set up ... this corner is used by me and the kids for good and juicy messy stuff ... I luv cardboard & this little studio is in sizzle mode (we gotta get more swim time n) & the KraeRoberts e-course has really got my mind working overtime, so much solid information, so much shareN. If feels like a neighborhood with coffee perkN at every house. I have decided to use Big Cartel as my shopping cart, after much research last night. When I woke up this AM, I kept call n em CARTEL  ... in my mind. I will feature my photography there in many different formats ... I have also decided this is the place where I will feature magazines and books published via eastwind productions ... so super excited ... so much more work to be done.

SEW N blocks - Monday Mission

Way back when, I once spoke to the O so famous Anna, about starting & running a creative business ... we are both locals to Middle Tennessee, she was so kind and gracious, now as a major force in quilting and blog n ... I stalk her blog on a regular for inspiration and to just see how she does it all with six children, that's right (6). So here is a SUPER shout out to ANNA and her quilting project for families in Middle Tennessee who lost their homes to flooding. I am not so sure how I am gonna work this project in but since I have a sewing machine and a plenty of a scrap stash, I gonna at least think about it and maybe you should too. 

A GOD wink from a puppy pile ... More than a year AGO

I searched for my strongest words and spoke them with the greatest conviction to convince them that GOD had and will provide our dog Eddie with everything she needed to take care of her eight pups. And then the tears came, as I spoke the last convicted words. Did I think my GOD would do any less for me.

little RANCH news ~ A HOT mess

The days this summer are extremely HOT and the nights vary, after all we are in Tennessee. In the early evening yesterday, the winds gathered and danced so we were reminded of who and whose they are, yes it was freighting, and this single Mom gathered her children like ..... The cool air blew in like a song and the HOT air moped out like an old hymn and we were left with a beautiful cool spring night. The perfect weather for pruning the GIANT wisteria vine in our backyard, This is our fifth spring here at the little ranch and our fifth year renovating this little ranch on a shoestring budget. We started the renovating process by removing seven layers of wallpaper, the wallpaper removal was delayed by a super clogged sewer pipe, a broken ankle in the spring of 2006 & the sickness and passing of my Dear Dad the day after Thanksgiving and oh I worked from 3PM until ... designing, copy editing and processing a daily newspaper ... 3PM was the official rip time ... for my heart.

Inspired by COLOR & COPYrights

Some things you just can not copyright, like this antique Bolivian poncho (hangs in the studio) that I purchased with my employee discount more than 15 years ago while working at Scarlett Begonia in Nashville close to Vanderbilt University. When surfing the Internet it is extremely important to use our resources wisely. GO TO THE ORIGINAL source or statue to find the truth. Such as information on copyrights. I have a really nice logo for my company Eastwind Productions, but I doubt you've seen it, unless me or someone else has shared my biz. card or biz stationary with you, I am careful when and how I publish it, since I have not allocated the funds for a Trademark ... When I started my business, more than seven years ago, a Trademark Application was a few thousand dollars ... Boy, have thing changed, now you can file that application for less than the cost of an Ipad. If you're busy online or you're planning to start a biz or launch a new product, it is best to have some basic knowledge of Copyrights and Trademarks.

Inspired by a Shed

This photo is of the north east corner of the studio. This is computer central. The studio is equipped with a Mac G4 tower, a Mac Mini, a PC laptop , a scanner, a large format printer, fax machine with intercom system, a DSLR camera with studio lights & tripod. This little studio is humming! We also have all of the necessary publishing software such as Quark and Adobe Illustrator. The computers are on a private network and we use AT&T internet service. GE touch security system & a private Business Insurance carrier. Summer Work Schedule has been adjusted to allow me time to enjoy these extra hot summer days with my son & daughter. The clean up of the little studio is almost complete. I am really enjoy n the new layout, it's makes the space work harder. The number of page hits for eastwindproductions has increased dramatically. Work n extra hard on the layout & design of Inspired Studios Magazine. I enjoyed the opportunity today to chat online with someone about Graphic Design & the talk inspired me to share more of exactly what it take to produce GOOD functional design. I worked for a major national newspaper publisher for more than six years ... for three years God blessed me to be an Ad Designer Production Manager and for the other 3 years I served as a Page Designer/Copy Editor & the person responsible for get n the entire paper to the press. WoW, there were many twelve hour shifts and I Thank God for my FREEDOM.