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Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Rainbow Designs

I love rainbow designs; I like seeing the different colors on various products. They seem to brighten things up.

Years ago, I had made a new design and showed it to my daughter who was in middle school at the time. She told me, Mom, that's what the LGBTQ uses. I wasn't sure what she meant. I was just making a design of the rainbow, like I had done before.

Needless to say, that didn't stop me. I've made a bunch more rainbow designs since then. And I want to say, that rainbows and rainbow colors are for everyone; just in case there was ever any question. Sometimes kids can attach extra meaning to a thing, and adults can too. So again, it's okay to wear rainbow colors and designs, and to enjoy the rainbow colors on whatever they are on. You get to decide if any design has any kind of meaning to you.

I had fun creating the rainbow peace sign hand. I used my own hand as a model, put on a latex glove that was tight fitting, placed my hand into the rainbow paint colors and made a peace sign with it. I filled in the unprinted areas, and voila, my peace sign hand print looked cool!

Here it is printed on stickers. Zazzle, the print on demand company I work in association with, offers seven different sticker shapes. This design can also be purchased on magnets, mugs, canvas tote bags, tshirts, aprons, hats, throw pillows, posters, mousepads, pin on buttons, keychains, coasters, postcards, necklaces, sweatshirts, address labels, and guitar picks. Zazzle has even more products to choose from. Many designs can be easily transferred to a different product, once you are on the product page.

Abstract rainbow hand peace sign stickers
by CherylsArt

Since different people can come up with different meanings for different things, I decided to use the rainbow colors to represent recycled spirits. It's a take on a recycled symbol, incorporating the rainbow colors. I believe in reincarnation, so it made sense that we are all recycled spirits. This unique design is currently printed on canvas tote bags, hats, and tshirts, as of the date of this writing.

Recycled Spirit canvas bags
by CherylsArt

Some of my rainbow designs are more spread out, color wise. Here I used the rainbow colors to fill in guitar shapes I had drawn. Here it is printed on address labels. Additional items include pens, mugs, clocks, and more.

Colorful Guitar Collage in Colors Address Labels
by CherylsArt

I especially like how the word Peace looks, using cutout font letters on one of my rainbow background paintings. Here it is printed on tshirt ornaments. There are a total of five different ornament shapes to choose from on Zazzle.

Colorful Rainbow Peace Word Red Ornaments
by CherylsArt

Here a basic rainbow blend is printed on six inch rulers. It is also available on the 12 inch ruler size as well.

Rainbow Blends Colored Ruler, Choose Size
by CherylsArt

I hope you enjoyed this sampling of my various rainbow designs. You can visit this link to check out all the rainbow designs that I currently have in my CherylsArt store on Zazzle, here: https://www.zazzle.com/store/CherylsArt/rainbow. You will also find rainbow polka dots, mosaics, hearts, Easter eggs, love hands (sign language), teddy bears, butterflies, and raindrops.

I have purchased cards, stickers, canvas bags, address labels, business cards, and more from Zazzle. All of the products have been printed on quality materials and the colors look great. Zazzle has a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee, that states: "If you are not satisfied for any reason with any qualified* product you purchase you may return your purchase for a replacement, credit or refund within 30 days of receipt." Restrictions apply to some items, like face masks and stitch files. They go into the details on this on their Return Policy page. You can find the link for that at the bottom of the product pages.

Thank you for visiting. May you have a blessed day.

Cheryl Paton

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Monday, June 8, 2026

Dance Life Review

If you like dance then this documentary is for you! Dance Life is an original series which follows 10 aspiring senior students at the famed Brent Street Academy in Australia. Brent Street is a performing arts school where the goal is education with the emphasis on becoming a professional dancer.

Brent Street offers jazz, hip hop, tap, ballet, singing, acting, musical theater, contemporary in their curriculum. You will be delighted to see all in the series though dance is the focus. The audition scenes are reminiscent of the iconic dance auditions in A Chorus Line, Fame and FlashDance.

Watching the students share their experience, their talents, their ambition along with each individual challenge connects the viewer to the student and to the outcome of their journey. Dance fans of any genre will enjoy this series and it will leave you hoping season two will happen.

Brent Street And America's Got Talent

In 2024 Brent Street fielded a contemporary entry which earned the Golden Buzzer by Howie Mandel and they progressed through the final rounds.

View the golden buzzer performance here >> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skDe7owal_E

The Movie

The documentary definitely leaves one wanting more. Much more! Unfortunately Dance Life is only five episodes, but the good news is the movie was released in April of this year. The movie can be rented on Amazon Prime. Amazon Prime members can view the documentary as part of their subscription.

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Sunday, June 7, 2026

I Cried Writing This Song - I Am Your Silence

Inspiration to write lyrics can come from the oddest places for me. Nearly 99% of the time, I write in the moment I decide to write. I might have an idea of what I want to write about, but I rarely know exactly what I want to say until I sit down and start putting words together.

Truth be told, I don't actually put anything on paper (I used to back in the day), I type everything into the Notes app on my phone because inspiration doesn't always wait until I'm sitting at a desk.

The story behind I Am Your Silence spans several days.

I was watching television when a conversation came up about silence and quieting the inner self. Topics about personal growth, character, and understanding ourselves have always been my favorite topics. They capture my attention almost immediately and are the kinds of things I naturally seek out.

At one point, I paused the television because I needed to run downstairs for a quick errand. I was in my bedroom, where I do most of my writing, and as I stood up, four words suddenly popped into my head:

I Am Your Silence

The moment I thought of them, I knew there was something there. I quickly opened the Notes app on my iPhone, typed in the title, and went about my day. That was the last I thought about it.

Over the next several days, the title drifted through my mind now and then, but I still hadn't decided whether I was going to write anything about it.

Then, on June 5, my husband and I went to Costco to run a few errands. It was nice to get out for a while. I spend a lot of my time writing, so a simple outing felt like a welcome change of pace.

While we were sitting in the food court having a light lunch, I opened my Notes app and thought I would see if anything would come to me from that title that had been sitting there waiting. To my surprise, the entire first verse poured out while I was sitting at a Costco table.

My husband laughed and said, "You really can write anywhere."

I laughed too because he was right.

If I'm feeling inspired and connected to an idea, it doesn't really matter where I am. The words either arrive or they don't.

Later that evening, I decided to see if I could finish the song. I never force myself to write if I'm not feeling it, so there was no guarantee it would happen. But I understood the concept I wanted to explore, and little by little, the rest of the lyrics came together.

The video of the song itself explains the idea far better than I ever could in a simple summary.

At its heart, I Am Your Silence speaks to the emotions that run so deep we cannot find words big enough to contain them. Sometimes those emotions come from grief, loss, longing, or heartbreak. Other times, they come from overwhelming joy, love, gratitude, or wonder.

The feeling may be different, but the experience is the same. We reach a point where language simply falls short. Thus, "I Am Your Silence."

I wanted to write about that space.

The place where emotion becomes larger than expression.

The place where silence takes over because words can no longer carry the weight of what we feel.

I also wanted to capture something deeply personal about those emotions. No one can truly see them the way we experience them. They exist within us in a way that is uniquely our own. Others may understand pieces of our story, but the full depth of what we feel belongs only to us.

The production side of the song is subject to intense scrutiny. The sound has to match the intention of my lyrics. The sound production aspect can be exhausting, because I'm very picky and specific about the sound, layers, and emphasis I'm looking for.

As I reflected on the finished song, I realized there was another layer to it that I hadn't consciously intended. Beyond the silence of emotion and the absence of words, there is something almost spiritual woven through the lyrics. A quiet reminder that some of life's most profound experiences are meant to be felt rather than explained.

When I listen back to the song now, I hear that element in it.

And yes, I cried while writing parts of this piece.

Not because it was sad, but because it touched something difficult to describe, something that lives beyond language.

I hope you enjoy I Am Your Silence. It has become one of my favorite songs I have ever written and produced.

Thank you for listening.

🎵 I write and produce story-driven lyrics. Vocals and music are digitally produced (I am not the singer). I digitally direct and arrange the video and recording.🎵 ©2026 DragedaPoemsLyrics (B.T.C) - All Rights Reserved - Original Lyrics Authored | Sound Recording: Produced With Digital Assistance (Vocals and Instrumental) 2026. Licensed Digital Composition (Commercial Rights Held).

I produce all my videos myself as well, so I can paint the picture with the words. Plus, I'm just really fussy and a bit of a control (ish) person, lol.

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Saturday, June 6, 2026

The Incredible Edible Egg Holiday Review

June 3rd is known as National Egg Day. The holiday was founded by the American Egg Board in 1996 to focus on the importance and versatility of eggs.

The Egg Came First

The practice of eating eggs has been around for millions of years. Early man first found eggs in birds nests and found them edible. Later, domesticated hens gave them chicken eggs.

Americans generally rely on chicken eggs as their primary source, but other cultures around the world eat pheasant eggs and those of the quail, the goose, the gull, and turkeys. These other ‘bird’ eggs are popular, offering a slightly different taste from chicken eggs.

Comparisons of Various Egg Sizes

The average Large chicken egg weighs about 2 ounces and measures 2.5 inches in length.

The Dinosaur egg is about 1-2 liters in volume and equals roughly 15 to 20 chicken eggs.
The Ostrich Egg is football-sized and equals 24-25 chicken eggs
The Emu Egg is about the size of a papaya and equals 10 to 12 chicken eggs.
The Goose Egg is approximately 3 times heavier and one egg would equal 3 chicken eggs.
The Turkey Egg is half again as large as the chicken egg and equals up to 2 chicken eggs.
The Duck Egg is about 1.5 times bigger than a chicken egg.
The tiny Quail Egg is about the size of a large marble and it would take 4 or 5 quail eggs to equal one chicken egg.

How Many Ways Can You Fix Eggs?

An estimate of the number of egg recipes available today is too numerous to count. Eggs are one of the most versatile ingredients in the world with maybe 80,000 ways to prepare or use them. The favorite ways for breakfast possibly include fried (sunny-side up, over-easy, over-medium and over-hard), boiled soft or hard, scrambled and poached. From the basics, you can get fancy with everything from a plain omelet to a fancy Western Omelet, all the way up to elegant Eggs Benedict or Cloud Eggs.

There are three main egg celebration days:

World Egg Day held on the second Friday in October
Winlock Egg Day happens on the third Saturday in June each year.
National Egg Day is June 3rd.

The Incredible Edible Egg Commercial

The long-running egg commercial used by the American Egg Board (AEB) in the 70s to the 90s to promote the eating and use of eggs is still remembered by many to this day!

So, have an egg or two on June 3rd to celebrate this delicious food holiday.

National Egg Day
June 3

*The National Egg Day review was written and compiled by Wednesday Elf

Egg Cookbooks and More.....

The Egg Cookbook: The Creative Farm-to-Table Guide to Cooking Fresh EggsCheck Price The Perfect Egg: A Fresh Take on Recipes for Morning, Noon, and Night [A Cookbook]Check Price OXO Enhanced 8” Nonstick Frying Pan Skillet, Ceramic PFAS-Free Cookware, Stainless Steel Handle, Eggs & Omelets, Dishwasher & Oven Safe, Storm BlueCheck Price

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Friday, June 5, 2026

Cold Therapy Ice Pack with Flexible Grid Design for Back, Shoulder, Hip, Knee or Neck

Many years ago I purchased an ice pack for my back. It has a grid design that has small squares of ice instead of one big lump of ice or gel. That design allows the ice pack to be more flexible, mold to your shape to easily wrap around the area that needs cold therapy. It will even wrap around an arm or bend around you neck & shoulder area.

I recently woke up with my hip hurting. I have no idea what I did to cause damage or strain, but I was unable to put my full weight on my leg without being in a lot of pain. I tried all of the normal things I do for aches and pains: hot Epsom salt bath, heating pad, heat patches, sitting more than standing, leaning against my counter top for support, etc., After days of continued pain, I finally did a Google search for recommendations. It suggested ice and I immediately remembered my ice pack for my back that stays in my freezer. I grabbed it, laid it out of my chair and sat down. When I stood up 30 minutes later, I was pain free. Amazing! Apparently I needed the ice for inflammation.

I don't know why I didn't think of the ice for my hip. I certainly use it for my back, but it just didn't occur to me without the suggestion. Regardless, I was extremely happy to get the relief and I got busy cooking a big breakfast for my family. It was so nice to be able to move without pain again.

I had to repeat the ice pack therapy each morning for a few days, but the pain has not gotten as severe as it was that first day I was desperate enough to take advice from Google.

All of my life I have heard people say, "I don't have time to be sick" or "I don't have time to sit down". I am here to tell you, sometimes your body makes its own demands. As for me, I don't have time for the pain so I am grateful for my wrap-around ice pack!

Ice Pack with Grid Design

Comfpack Ice Packs, Flexible Reusable Ice Pack Wrap for Knee, Hip, Shoulder, Neck, 13.4 × 8.6Check Price

The ice pack I have is no longer available, but I found one on Amazon that is made almost exactly like it, just a different brand name. One difference that could truly make a big difference when wearing it is that my ice wrap has only one strap. This ice wrap has two straps. I already know I would prefer the two strap option so one strap would go around my waist while the other strap goes around my leg to keep it in place for my hip.

One more note, I noticed in the professional image on the right that the ice pack is against the models skin. I have always worn light weight clothing under any ice pack. For me, the ice applied directly to my skin would be unbearable and there is not a layer of solid fabric on the inside of the ice pack. Only the mesh as shown below.

Comfpack Ice Packs for Injuries Reusable with Elastic Strap, 60-Minute Long Lasting Cold Therapy with Ice Grid Gel Design, Flexible Reusable Ice Pack Wrap for Knee, Hip, Shoulder, Neck, 13.4 × 8.6Check Price

Thursday, June 4, 2026

Benefits of a Cordless Leaf Blower

Our backyard deck is surrounded by trees, and we like it that way because it makes it private during the summer.

During the spring and early summer, we get a lot of debris falling from the trees. So, I'm cleaning the deck almost every day.

I bought this cordless leaf blower so I wouldn't have to drag out my extension cord for my electric one. I chose a battery-operated blower with a 20V rechargeable battery. The gas-powered seems too heavy and noisy, and they require regular maintenance.

This is lightweight and easy to handle. It allows me to move easily around the deck. It is simple to use, just attach the battery and turn it on. This is also perfect for blowing off the sidewalk after mowing the lawn.

Some other jobs I use it for:

Clear dirt from the steps going into the house.
Drying the outdoor furniture after a rain.
Clearing a light snow from the steps or the car.

Battery technology has improved over the years. Current models will provide enough runtime to complete cleanup tasks in the yard or around the house. You'll find some models that come with two batteries, so you will always have one charged.

I'm very happy with the performance and convenience of my cordless leaf blower.

You will find many models and styles on Amazon.

Leaf Blower, Electric Cordless Leaf Blower with 2 Batteries and Charger, 2 Speed Mode, Lightweight Leaf Blowers for Blowing Leaves, Lawn Care, Patio Cleaning and Dust MZK Cordless Leaf Blower,20V Battery Powered Electric Blower for Lawn Care, Electric Lightweight Leaf Blower for Blowing Leaves, Patio Cleaning and Dust(2 * 2Ah Battery & Charger Included),LF40D13 EGO POWER+ Leaf Blower, Cordless Electric 615 CFM, Includes 56V 2.5Ah Battery and Charger - LB6151

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Wednesday, June 3, 2026

Play-Doh Flower Sets for Mom

Here's a super simple, super affordable gift idea for mom on Mother's Day or any day of the year. It is a small Play-Doh set by Hasbro called Tulips and Daffodils.

Recommended for individuals aged 3 and up, it is perfect for gifting to mom who will be able to use the floral-scented play dough as fun crafting activity with her child. The set includes molds for creating two flowers, a tulip and a daffodil, plastic stems and leaves and a small flower-pot style planter. Find your Tulip and Daffodil Play-Doh set here, on Amazon.

It is noteworthy that this is not the first or only flower-themed Play-Doh set. If you are interested, I suggest visiting eBay by clicking this link to see all of the new, used and vintage floral Play-Doh sets that are available.

Discover the Play-Doh Magic Bloom Flower Garden set.

In my opinion, the most valuable and interesting retired floral set is the Magic Bloom Flower Garden, which is shown above. When it appears, it sells fairly quickly on reselling sites like eBay with a new set selling from $50 to $100. See for yourself the Magic Bloom Flower Garden sets available on eBay right now by clicking here.

Note, if you buy a retired Play-Doh set you may have to replace the dough though given the availability of that product in single or multiple can sets, that will not be an onerous or expensive challenge.

See you
at the toy store!
Brenda
Treasures By Brenda

MORE PLAY-DOH:

Discover Play-Doh's Airplane Explorer set.

Check out the medical doctor-themed set, which is styled after the iconic Operation game.

Love camping? They'll love Play-Doh's campfire-themed set.

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Tuesday, June 2, 2026

Purple Blue Monogram Design - Product Review

This is a purple and blue abstract leaf design on a blended yellow background. I designed it so that all of the leaves are pointing towards the center opening of yellow.

I love how this design turned out. I started out by making various leaf designs, trying different techniques. The other designs were out different shades of lavender and purple backgrounds. They didn't quite fit what I was after so I moved on. Then I decided to play around with my paints and squirted some purple on my printing area, and my eye caught sight of the bold vivid blue. Voila. Perfect!

"And they go with yellow," I thought. I painted a yellow background. At first, I had the leaves come off from one side, kind of flowing towards the center. And then I just kept going. "That's right, pointing towards the center, towards the area of importance," I thought. Then I kept filling in the outer edges, making the border look full and lush. That's it!

This design is perfect for anything of importance; i.e. monograms, name, address, letter writing - whatever the case shall be.

The first product I designed with this was business cards. All of the main information is on the front of the card. I made the back of the card, solid yellow. It coordinates with the front of the business card, and can also easily be located if the card is mixed in with other cards, by it's bold and vibrant back.

All of the text areas on any of these products can be easily customized on the provided template forms.

Abstract Purple Blue Leaves Custom Business Cards
by CherylsArt

I always purchase my business cards from Zazzle. Early on, there was a mess up on one of my business cards order, but Zazzle readily replaced them. Everything has worked out great since then.

You can choose from matte and glossy finishes for the various card typs on Zazzle, and also from various card stocks which come in an assortment of colors, textures, and finishes.

On the note cards, I enclosed the border design tighter around the center, making it perfect for a short name or monogram. The border design on the back of the note card is spread out to allow an open writing area.

Purple Blue Leaves Monogram on Yellow Note Cards
by CherylsArt

I have purchased a variety of cards from Zazzle, and they have all turned out lovely. The colors are crisp and the card stock has always been great.

I used the same idea with the border being spread out on the lined stationery. The design is the same on both sides here.

Purple and Blue Leaves on Yellow, Lined Stationery
by CherylsArt

I used the same mindset when designing the luggage tags, as I did for the note cards. One side is for the monogram, and the other side is for the contact info.