Barbi Boobs, Free Tummy Tuck, and a Blog Lift!

I'm loving the new look Terra is giving the Bec Blog! It features one of my most favorite projects as a topper. Thanks Terra - you certainly have an artist's eye for design. I think it even makes me look thinner!

Well, getting down to business, all tests have been taken and decisions have been made. The oncologist and surgeons strongly suggest that a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction is in my best interest. I have a history of breast cancer and it's time to tell the girls good-bye. During surgery they will biopsy the lymph nodes for cancer. If they find nothing, it's reconstruction as planned, life is good, and I'll never have to have a mamo again! If they do find any, reconstruction is postponed until after chemo and radiation. But, given the type of cancer I bred, I seriously doubt that will happen. I have been blessed.

Cancer is a serious subject and I don't take it lightly. All of us have been touched by cancer in our lives. A friend, a loved one, a teacher, neighbor, and possibly even oneself. It's scary. It's sad.

I'm making choices. My choices. The Norman Cousins approach. The almost 40 years of studying conversational metaphysics approach. I intend to laugh myself to wellness, whether the healing manifests on this planet or transcends to another level. I'm not making light of dis-ease, I'm making light of my situation, looking for the positive, and being aware of my blessings. I hope friends and readers pop in here occasionally and leave me, if nothing else, a smile.

I Didn't Get the Memo

School Friday - pink everywhere! Kids in pink, parents in pink, teachers in pink. Boys in pink, girls in pink. Preschool in pink, middle school in pink. Pink shirts, pink shoes, pink scarves, pink pants. Pink ribbons on everyone! There was just one poor soul who wasn't in pink - ME! A fourth grader gave me a pink donut and Mrs. G gave me a pair of beautiful hand-crafted pink earrings.


After lunch, the whole pink school gathered together for a group pink picture and a big

"WE LOVE YOU MS MONTEITH"

I was totally tickled pink!!

Good luck is in the timing!

Nurse 1: (surgery recovery room) Look at this patient. She's barely awake and she has a huge smile on her face.

Nurse 2: It's unusual for surgery patients to look so cheerful when they arrive here. Especially from a bilateral mastectomy.

Becky (groggy and in a weak voice): Ohhh, thank God I'm HERE.

Nurse 1: I'm worried. There's a lot of pain involved in that procedure.

Nurse 2: Maybe it's the drugs. What could possibly be a worse or more painful situation than this?



Whew! Got out of it AGAIN!!

Altered Friends

Blessed are the friends who are patient and kind enough to let me alter them:


Altered Tracy. Precariously standing on a chair and hanging out of her office window so I could take this shot, Tracy is never too busy to crawl out from under piles and hours of work to accommodate me and one of my whims.


Altered Danielle. This friend climbed over bushes, rocks, and electrical wires to pose for this shot at a local Chile's restaurant.

Altered family: I begged, pleaded, cried, and finally had to threaten (just kidding) Beth to bring me this shot of her lovely family to play with.


Altered Boss. Rush, rush, rush, and always on the run, Cindy took a moment to sit still and allow me to take her picture.

Altered Family. This is the one I did in art class with Stephanie Lee. It shows the parents of a friend of mine and her little sister. I sent it to them for their anniversary.

Altered Maynerd. Sorry, couldn't resist. I didn't alter him, he came that way.

Altered 3rd Graders. This is my 2009-2010 class of 14 cuties on a cupboard door. It sold at auction for $1200!!

More Altering

Cotton Girls

Crying Girl

These two vintage photos were downloaded from the web. They both seemed to quietly be speaking volumes of the emotion of the times. I couldn't resist playing with them while wondering where these children were now. How had their lives evolved?

The Crying Girl is hanging on my wall, the Cotton Girls sold at auction.

Altered Photo

Ohhhh! Making these are so much more fun than cleaning house! Took yet another class, this one on altering photos with Stephanie Lee, combined with techniques taught by RachO113 on YouTube and this 'vintage' commission was created.

The substrate was a found object (another name for the one-of-a-kind treasures you can only find at garage sales and thrift stores) of a piece of slate attached to a wood back plate. HUGE wooden puzzle pieces (more 'found objects' - $1.50 for a generous bag from a garage sale!), crackle paste, gesso, paints, polymer clay, charms, chains, vintage looking stamps, topped off with bees wax.

The little guy in the pic is a former 3rd grade student who wants to be a baseball player when he grows up. Most everything in the piece is baseball related, including the tiny puzzle pieces attached to the top.

The piece is now hanging above the fireplace at the owner's house (what an honor!) and has yet to have any items falling or pealing off, nor melting bees wax!

Makin' Things

No wonder I never blog - I'm too busy makin' things. I think I'm going to continue to make things and then post them on my blog. Brilliant.

Earlier this year I took some classes in jewelry wiring plus a refresher class in stained glass. When I found my long lost step daughter (rather she found me, I was the lost one) I wanted to make something to honor my eight step GRANDCHILDREN. How did I ever get to be THAT age already? I haven't even had my own kids yet. I guess I've been too busy - makin' other things.

These are my first two charm bracelets. They were loads of fun to create. I also made the boxes! I wish these pics did them justice. IRL they are very shiny and filled with sparkles.

I hope the girls (beautiful, young women now!) like them.