Embroidering the beautiful fall season...

I decided at the start of the fall season that I was going to make sure to look around and take in all of the beauty of the changing leaves and the cooler weather...

Then I decided to make a collage and write a Haiku to honor all of the beauty that I was taking the time to see...

I think it is so important to take just a few moments (even if it's just a few seconds) to look around and be thankful for what we have. One of our parents at the school that I work at passed away suddenly last week in her sleep. It made us all stop and really think about what is important in our lives, and what are the stupid things we worry about that really, really, just don't matter.

With Halloween just around the corner, it means that the holiday season is sneaking up fast. Take the time before the year is out - to stop, look around, and really be thankful...

Beads, beads, and more beads...

Well I am FINALLY almost finished with my latest collage! I have been working on the embroidery and beading for over a week. For some reason, this collage took longer than my other two. I'm not sure, maybe it was just balancing work, school, or fall activities but I am glad that I am almost ready to take some photos of it and share it...

The collaging part took me a little longer as well. I would do a layer, then leave it lay on the dining room table for a couple of days so I could look at it. (This, I know drove my husband nuts - as the cats were fascinated with the beads. They normally are not interested in getting up on the table but for some reason, they really wanted to get into those beads.) I am completing the last touches on it this evening and hopefully can post some pictures of it by the end of the week. Blessings to all...

Cute little Cheeky Monkeys...

A couple of weeks ago the girls and I went to the Yankee Peddler Festival in Canal Fulton. My cousins were in town from Buffalo, NY and were meeting us there. My family has been going to Yankee Peddler for years and I wanted the girls to experience it as well. While I was a little disappointed at what appeared to be a decrease in vendors, we did find Carol Beuhner's place "Rose Creek Cottage" and her adorable "Cheeky Monkeys". . .

For this I was SO GRATEFUL as I had promised the girls that they could get something while we were there. Most of the vendors had beautiful things but not a lot that a couple of little girls could play with and really love. We were almost getting ready to leave for the day when Fiona spotted this monkey. Are they not just precious? Fiona picked out the pink one and Alexa the purple one. I am not that good at html but Carol does have a blog if you look at my "places I like to visit" scroll down to Rose Creek Cottage and click on the link. She is the creator of Ragamuffin dolls and also makes beautiful jewelry perfect for preteen girls. Have a great week!

Beauty in an Old Growth Forest marks the end of summer

Earlier today I was organizing the last of the pictures that I had taken of different things this past summer. I had almost forgotten about the trip the girls, my nephew, and I had taken up to Hartwick Pines State Park when we were at the farm in Michigan...

Hartwick Pines is a 300 year old + forest in Northern Michigan. The park is run by the state with lots of hiking/walking trails, a visitor and education center. This park also has a living history museum on the logging industry in the area. Lots of chipmunks and birds...

I was able to convince the kids to take the longer trail that led to a chapel in the woods. This was no easy task as it was almost 90 degrees that day and very humid. Even with the shade and nice breeze it was still very hot. But the hike was well worth it...

The chapel had no lights in it. The alter was a beautiful wooden alter - simple but peaceful. The cross was a simple cut out in the building and this picture really does not do it justice. I tried taking one with my flash and it lit the chapel up very well but then you could not see the cross. I love how the trees color it against the darkness of the building...

I have no idea what kind of mushroom this is but I have never seen anything like it before. It looked quite striking up against the tree. I hope you can take some fond summer memories (and pictures help too) and keep them with you all winter long. Have a Blessed weekend!

Getting some work done...

I was finally able this week to get some more dryer sheets painted. You will have to excuse the quality of these photos - the lighting in my dining room is not the best and I was too impatient to wait until morning when I would have had better lighting. I painted two dryer sheets with the colors of fall in mind...

The other two I painted pink and blue/purple. Pink is Fiona's favorite color and Purple is Alexa's favorite color. I have an embroidery design in mind for the blue/purple one already. But for right now I have to work on finishing my fall leaves...

I would like to do an embroidered collage using leaves as my focal point. I wrote a Haiku about the season recently and I would like to use it in the collage. Here is a peek at the leaves...

I hope everyone has a wonderful fall -type weekend. Full of crisp nights and beautiful color. The girls and I are meeting family at the Yankee Peddler Festival in Canal Fulton Ohio tomorrow. We are excited; perfect weather for arts and crafts, colonial traditions, good music, and really great food!

Letting Wonder Settle In...

I love flowers: I love to draw them, I love to pick them, I love to try to grow them. But most of all I love to embroider them...

There is something so wonderful about a flower; the many colors, their daintiness, or the boldness of them. I love how lots of vintage things can resemble a flower too...

But most of all, I love that flowers remind me of how wonderful the world is we live in. There is nothing better than a vase full of fresh flowers sitting on the kitchen table. Or having the girls bring me a handful of flowers picked from the field. It amazes me that God created something so beautiful for our enjoyment.

Lately, usually when I am driving somewhere, these inspirational verses have been popping into my head. I've actually started carrying a small notebook with me so I can write them down as I think of them. I have been visiting Grace a lot at My Year in Haiku (I have to learn html so I can insert the link but for now if you look at the places I like to visit on the left you will see her link). Her blog is a wealth of inspiration! I've been doing a lot of combining collage, embroidery, and poetry lately and I'm really enjoying it...

I hope everyone has a great week, and remember to look at the flowers (or the sunrise, or the fall leaves...) and see the wonder in all that is around us.

A Collage for Baby...

My friend Amy had a baby girl, Julia, earlier this summer. She lives in New York so I didn't get to see her until last weekend when she and Julia were in town visiting with family. Julia's room has an "under the sea" theme...

I wanted to make her something that she could use for Julia's room, but I also wanted the gift to be able to grow with her. I wanted it to be something that she could look at forever...

I've been trying to look at everything with new eyes lately. I'm trying to see the beauty and wonder in all of the plain everyday things that we take for granted. I wanted to let Julia know that as she grows she must remember to look around at all the wonder in the world; the sunrise, the dew on the morning grass, the dog curled up on his favorite chair...

If we all took a little time to see the wonder in our own lives, we would be a lot happier and a lot more grateful for everything that we have. Even during tight financial times we should be thankful. I'm trying to be more thankful...

I hope everyone has a truly Blessed holiday weekend. The leaves have just started to change colors here - a couple more chilly nights like tonight and the oranges and reds will soon be popping out!