SIBLING WEEKEND

My Son and his Wife (James and Kimberly Bulls) added a swimming pool in their backyard. They invited brothers, sisters and spouses for a "Sibling Weekend". Since I am the Mother of these five children, I was invited too. We had a wonderful weekend. I have circled "Char" (my nickname)　

Stone Footprints of the Past

Every year my Family meets at the cemetary of our Ancestors for a cleanup. Here is a newspaper article of our last visit:




Stone footprints of the past bond Turnbull descendants to the future Saturday

Published: June 4, 2010

A determined and excited group of the Turnbull Descendants Family Clan will gather at 9 a.m. Saturday as they have for 15 years, at the Horse Arena on the gravel road, which intersects Freeny Valley and Buffalo Hill Roads, deep inside the Stuart Ranch in Northern Bryan County, five miles east of Caddo.


It is the staging point of the group's annual trek through bois d'arc brush and across steep creek bottoms to the 140 year old Turnbull Cemetery. Their assignment:Resist and drive back nature's relentless assault on the cemetery one more year. When weather and logistics threaten a year's effort, the participants are reminded to rely upon their Choctaw character, a mixture of tenacity and patience.
Don't give up.


In addition to the maintenance work for the cemetery through a contact by Turnbull descendant Jim Power, Dr. Keith Strevett of the University of Oklahoma Engineering Department will join the group to do a GPS mapping survey of the cemetery in conjunction with his son's Eagle Scout project.
Also, when the workday concludes about 1:30 p.m.
the task force will reconvene at the Caddo Café for a well earned late lunch at the eatery known for its spareribs, owned and managed by Shelly Parker.
Parker says she is happy to put some extra slabs on the grill for the Cemetery Crew.
The Turnbull descendants are truly grateful to ranch general manager Terry Stuart Forst, Secretary Jana Lucas and local residents Donald Keel, also a Turnbull descendant, and former ranch employee Rick Bagby, for their cooperation and invaluable assistance above and beyond.
Hopefully Rick will be joined by his daughter Deavena and Rick's wonder dog Copper. Jana is especially vital for helping give our hopes wings.


Each year new participants are welcomed who undergo the rare experience that is like no other. This year the "cousins" will welcome new to the group, Sandy Van Der Linden.
Approximately five miles east of Caddo, the jumping off point leads the voyagers where it might appear no one has been before. As the annual event has grown into a wonderful tradition, the faithful come to honor their Turnbull ancestors and to reassure them they aren't forgotten and have not slipped unnoticed into the pages of history. At times many of these early Indian Territory ancestors were too busy living history to write about it. Some of it still remains to be written as more is learned; what is known must be preserved until it can be put into proper perspective by the present descendants.


Despite the group's annual visit to rebuff the rages of time and the challenge of changing seasons, some of the magnificent tombstones in the cemetery show the effects of more than 140 years of assault by the elements.
Moss filled inscriptions have blurred their readings.
The sandy soil invites some of the tombstones to turn, bow and sink as the years have accumulated since their setting. The earliest marked graves are dated 1874 and 1876.One hundred and twenty man hours of intense labor one day in June each year now sets the cemetery apart from the environment.


Same time next year, first Saturday in June, they will be there, God willing the creeks and springs cooperate.

WHERE IS BENIN?

It is time I got back to my blog. I have been so busy and have had a lot of distractions since the last time I posted.

My oldest Son, Bobby, had a heart attack and was in the hospital for a couple of weeks. I am happy to add that he is doing very well after his doctor implanted a couple of stints.

Then my Daughter-In-Law, Marilee (Bobby’s wife) had major surgery and was in the hospital for a week. She is recovering very well and doing great.

I have recently been elevated to “Power Seller” in eBay and have been extremely busy working in my store - revising my listings and making other changes to keep up with new rules. I enjoy selling on eBay and I have learned a lot of “computer stuff”.

An exciting thing happened to me. I was contacted by the U.S. State Department and asked to furnish (loan) a buckskin dress for the Art In Embassies Program. I did this once before when Madeleine Albright was Secretary of State. I loaned a buckskin dress and accessories which went to the U.S. Embassy at Baku, Azerbaijan.

At the time I was contacted, I didn’t have a new buckskin dress which disappointed the Curator and Ambassador. Then it occurred to me to offer my own dress for a couple of years. So, my dress has arrived at the U.S. Embassy at Cotonou, Benin.

The Republic of Benin is a country in West Africa. The seat of government is in the city of Cotonou and the new Ambassador is James Knight, who was appointed by President Obama.



Here is my dress now displayed in Benin:

My New Friend

I forgot to tell you about my new friend. His name is Jet and is a year-old lab. I adopted him at the Animal Shelter in May and at first I had a few problems with him. He would not get in my car, I had to lift him and put him in. He seemed afraid and shy.

But things have changed since then. I can't get ready to leave without him wanting to go with me. He jumps in and enjoys going to the post office with me. He is rather spoiled...he will only get out of my car at the door he is closest to. Sometimes I have to go around the car and open the other door and then he will get out.

He follows me every where I go in my house...just like a shadow. Here's Jet:

BB's Birthday

I have been extremely busy lately revising/updating my eBay store and have neglected my blog. My little Great Granddaughter had a birthday in August and I just have to show you what I made her - a little buckskin dress and moccasins made like the big girls wear:

More About the Holabi Rosettes

I have a kinda funny story to tell regarding my new idea - the Holabi rosettes. I had a Buyer purchase some of them and he sent me an email stating that he thought his wife would like them to sew on to her jeans. Of course it pleased me that he bought them....then it occurred to me:

Normally jeans are washed and dried in the dryer. I suddenly was concerned so I stopped what I was doing; got a pair of my jeans and sewed a Holabi rosette on the leg. I just laid it over the front of the leg, sewing it to the front and back of the leg. It was too hard to do it on just the front.

I put it in the washing machine, with soap, on "regular wash" and washed it. I was holding my breath when I took them out after the full cycle had run. I was pleasantly surprised that it looked o.k. after the wash.

Then I put it in the dryer and dried it on the regular cycle...and again to my surprise, it looked o.k. I was afraid the leather would shrink and the glitter would come off. But neither happened. I am sending pictures of the washed and dried Holabi rosette.

Now, I may suggest that they can be used to decorate jeans. The next thing I have to do is take it off of the leg that I sewed together so that I can wear my jeans.






This was taken while it was still wet.

My Dear Blog

Dear Blog:

Have you been missing me? I have been so very busy that I have neglected you. I decided that I must visit you today. I just recently received the status of "Power Seller" in eBay and it has taken all of my spare time this past two weeks to maintain that status.

Here are some things I have been working on:

Medicine bags; Deerskin clothing, purses and moccasins.










To me the most exciting item is the Holabi Rosettes that I have created and am getting ready to list. Holabi, in the Choctaw language, means "false" or "lie". The reason I chose this name for my rosettes is that they are just printed designs that I originally created for beading, but I have not beaded them. I didn't want to use the word "faux", a French word, to label a Native American item. I printed them and painted a fine layer of glitter paint over them that makes them sparkle and look like they are beaded. Here's a sample and how I used them:






To me, this is helpful for Mothers and Grandmothers, like myself, who want their children to have beautiful Native American regalia, but cannot afford the time or money to create them. Also, they are great for just about anyone to embellish their Native American clothing.

Well, I have spent about as much time as I can spare for today. I will try to post more often.

Please visit my eBay store for other Native American items.
Click for Store