grateful friday... (travels)

well, i cannot believe it has been a week since my last post. as usual these days, it's been busy. my daughter finished her last week of preschool. it was a fun experience for her, but i think we are all ready to move on to something new. we have been preparing for a big trip. our first family vacation, with just the four of us, in, oh... ever?!  we are taking a road trip... up to d.c (can you believe i've never been?), and then up further to ny. we haven't been back since we moved, and i am feeling oh so many emotions about seeing it and everyone again. i will be gone for two weeks. a good chunk of that will be out of the car, but boy am i little nervous. any of you taken a road trip with a 7 and 4 year old? i can remember the ones i took as a kid... somewhat fondly. mostly fond memories in hind sight. our motto (as parents) for this trip is... togetherness, patience, and low expectations. i don't really mean that last part negatively, i swear... just to remember to enjoy the little moments. i find if you don't expect grand things, you are pleasantly surprised by what comes. i'm taking my computer, so we will see if i can share bits.

i will keep the shop open but no shipping until i come back. be well!

etsy favorites... (pretty pretty)

floral plate, from alice's looking glass

who couldn't use a little bit of romance in their lives? these lovelies all make me swoon.

splendor in the lace, from shabby rose studio

i know it's not just me, but i love this whole movement towards a pretty feminine look in decor.

cashmere and twig wreath, by winsome hollow

the colors are so appealing, and the softness. 

deepest blue sky glasbake baking dish, from prairie seed

the pictures don't hurt either. i don't know how many times i have said "i just want to fall into that world'.

take me out tonight limited addition print, by groundwork

so, i hope that this brings a little bit of pretty romance into your day!

see you next week.

grateful friday... the spirit of adventure

today i am grateful for childhood... and the way it reminds us anything is possible. as we get older, i think we often tend to see the world and it's possibilities shrink. think back to those days of childhood though, when you truly believed that all kinds of adventure was just waiting for you. you lived in a world limited only by your imagination. i have to remind myself of this now. i am limited only by my own mind, and what i tell myself i can't do, rather than what i can.

today i have captured my children in the middle of an exciting motorcycle race. my son, the driver pauses briefly in the pit stop, while my daughter quickly gets his bike back into top racing form. they were lost in this world all afternoon. they spend endless hours telling me about the hundreds of jobs, and places they will live when they grow up. anything and everything is possible, and in their minds they can do it all.

so today, i am grateful for this reminder from my children and all children.... including jessica watson. who has accomplished something very few grownups ever will.... the ability to believe in endless possibilities and the courage to explore this great big wide world!

shop update...

some new items in the shop this evening. a little deer... the fawn will be listed tomorrow. also, a new sheep that is ready to ship (a tongue twister!). i have a custom listing for a sheep as well, if you would like to personalize one a bit more. i was planning on showing you a photo a of a black sheep i made for someone, but unfortunately my daughter has hidden my camera cord so i can't upload it. it is probably stashed with the ipod, and my credit card i had to replace last week. it is like living with a crow.

anyway, i will list the fawn tomorrow (if i can find my cord). i also have some new photos of animals already in the shop. they were spruced up a bit for their craft show appearance, and i felt they needed some new photos to show them off. i am working on a new elephant as well!

(is anyone else having a hard time with the new blogger formatting? my pics are always lined up wrong. i can't link pictures... is it just me?)

grateful friday...

this week i am grateful for 8 years of marriage, and 14 years of being in love with the same person. i am grateful for all the little moments that made up those years.... yes, even the hard ones. i am especially grateful for the three wonderful children to come out of that love.

i am also grateful for the help of family this week, so we could have some moments to ourselves to celebrate. so important, even after all those years.

craft show and shop update...

sorry to be so absent this week... i think i am recovering a bit from the frenzy of getting ready for last weekend's show. it was a lot of fun (probably too much, katy and i spent the whole time laughing). we met some really great people and i got some positive feedback about my animals. people seems to really appreciate them, which is always nice! it was a very nice way to ease back into doing markets, after such a long break (seriously long). so, i am trying to make a few more things to replenish a few sold (little elephant is one of them). the shop is sitting sad, and lonely. or perhaps, it really is off on vacation somewhere?! hopefully to the beach, i think the shop would really like that.

i will try to do some more work tomorrow, besides a special order needing finished and packed off. regardless, i will be calling my shop back from where ever it has wondered off to, hopefully it is feeling rested and ready to start anew!

(oh dear, ignore the frizz... the weather wasn't cooperating very well. i forgot in my haste to cut it off, all about the humid weather that was on it's way!)

give me the simple life...

1. My Workplace, 2. R1-11, 3. sunday breakfast table, 4. Untitled, 5. completed coop, 6. Pollen - Detail, 7. Kitchen shelves, 8. 4, 9. Girl's feet

today's flickr inspiration (and the song now stuck in my head) is all about the simple life. i think so many of us are striving for that these days. there is a huge movement of people trying to create a sense of simplicity in their lives. did this ever actually exist for people in time past? i guess that is debatable, and depends on your concept of a simple life. it is not one that will necessarily be easier but i guess, to me at least, one where you do not feel completely overwhelmed by trying to obtain things that aren't really important anyway. i have always asked myself, "will this matter to be when i am 90"? perhaps it is a cliche thought, and an unpredictable question... but maybe one we should all ask ourselves more. it is the simple moments that always seem to last in my mind, or that i hope will. what are the simple things you hold most dear?