things to do on an ordinary wednesday...

breathe...

When life is foggy, path is unclear and mind is dull, remember your breath.  It has the power to give you the peace. It has the power to resolve the unsolved equations of life.

-Amit Ray, Beautify your Breath - Beautify your Life

read...

We read to know we're not alone.

-William Nicholson, Shadowlands

smile...

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile,

 but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

-Thich Nhat Hanh

fur and diamonds...

in the process of clearing out some no longer wanted items, i came across this fabulous fur collar.  i thought i might sell it in the vintage section of my shop.  but, while it sat around waiting for me to take pictures, sudden inspiration hit.  don't you just love it when that happens?

i fiddled around with it for awhile until i figured out a way to make it work.  i paired it with a pretty vintage rhinestone button.  i seem to have an abundance of those, as i am always drawn to sparkly things in antique shops.

i added some pretty papers and turned it into a very glamorous one of a kind book.  you can find it here if this book speaks to your inner diva...

no. 828

number 828.  yes, i'm still folding cranes.  i'm ever so slowly working my way towards 1000.  if you've read this blog for awhile, you'll know that i have been doing this for 5 years or so.  and that i don't give up.  i never give up.  

i've been rather quiet, i know.  it's been a different sort of year.  one that has required some soul-searching.  and that's not the sort of thing that can be shared.

i just got back from a "leaf bopping" trip to upstate New York.  it's so beautiful there in the fall and i haven't been there in the fall since we moved to Virginia 11 years ago.  it was just my beloved and me and it was quite relaxing.  we had a very nice visit with our family.  and a lot of nature time.  we hit it just right...the leaves were at their peak...oh, the colors!  and the weather was simply lovely.  we spent most of our days outside soaking up the warm sun and enjoying the leaves and the water and of course, apples.  we brought back two big bags of apples and i am dreaming about apple crisp right this minute.  i may have to make that happen when i am finished here.

    

 just before i left, i had all of my hair chopped off into a cute pixie cut.  i'm not very good at selfies...so you will have to imagine it for now.  i love it...it is sooooo easy!.  i have received many compliments on it from family and strangers as well.  quite a few women have told me how much they love my hair.  i think they are secretly wishing that they can be brave enough to try this.  i know because i wanted to do this for a long time and i finally got brave enough to try it.

today i am home, unpacking and doing laundry and taking pictures for my shop.  i finished a fun book that i will show you sometime this week.

  just wanted to say hi... i hope you are having a lovely autumn...

words to ponder...

she seems so cool, so focused, so quiet, yet her eyes remain fixed upon the horizon.  you think you know all there is to know about her immediately upon meeting her, but everything you think you know is wrong.  passion flows through her like a river of blood.  she only looked away for a moment, and the mask slipped, and you fell.  all your tomorrows start here.

-neil gaiman-

ch-ch-ch-changes...

ch-ch-ch-changes...you know...like the Bowie song.  what a year it has been so far.  it's been so busy around here, i've barely had time to process all of the changes taking place in our lives.  this past week brought a flurry of changes, but also a feeling of "ok, it's all falling into place now and everything is happening as it should ."  for lack of a better way to say it.

i snapped this quick picture of my twins this morning as they headed off to their second day of college.  and yes, this is what they are wearing.  i think the goggles are super cool, don't you?  they are both enrolled in a welding program at a local college.  both of them taking welding...i know, crazy right?  it's a twin thing i guess. 

 they zipped off to school in their newly acquired little and quite cute volkswagen beetle.  it doesn't look old, but it is (that's the beauty of southern cars).  they purchased it together just a few days ago.  many hours of hard work for both of them preceded that purchase.  one more step towards adulthood.  and one more thing for mama to worry about!  

as if that wasn't enough going on for one little old monday, my older daughter had her first day of school too.  graduate school that is, where she will be both teaching and working on her advanced degree.  just two weeks ago, my husband and i took the 11 hour drive to leave her in hot and sunny Florida...home of the gators...both real and of the mascot variety.  one of my hardest moments this summer was turning around and coming home without her.     

since we were already in a college state of mind, my hubby decided this would be a good time to pursue his advanced degree.  he will be juggling his demanding "fuller than full time" job with classes.  which is exactly how he did it the first time around, so he's prepared for it.  and besides, he likes a good challenge like that.  in case you were wondering, it's kind of cost effective to have four college students at once.  scholarships, grants and financial aid.  oh my!  

since i didn't get a first day of school picture for the other two...here's a little picture from the twins graduation.  they may look sweet, but don't let them fool ya...they are rebels...the whole lot of them.  just like their mama : )

jake (the baby - ha ha) recently started his second year of high school, busier than ever with all of his music pursuits.  that's him on the left, taller than all of us now and taller than this picture which was taken months ago.  the only changes for jake are the never ending purchases of bigger shoes and longer pants.

and me?  i'm just rolling with the changes.  holding down the fort.  keeping little old Dexter company while all of his kids go out into the world.  and that's enough right now.  more than enough...

simple...

it's been a long time since i've written anything on this blog and there's no easy way to get back into it, so i'm just going to keep it simple.  i don't have anything much to say today.  really, i just wanted to say hi.    

though life is definitely not simple lately, i am still plugging away, doing what i do.  i found this beautiful little brass buddha statue and it sits on my work table presently, bringing a bit of peacefulness to my day.

i hope to have more words for you later, but for now...hello...i've missed you...i hope you are doing well...

peace and happiness...

such a dark picture...  it has been raining on and off for days now.  it is making me feel a bit dull, so i set out this little string of lights i had in my closet.  just for some added light.  and perhaps a bit of magic.  it's been so long since i updated this blog...it is surprising how swiftly the weeks are flying by.

i have been straightening and rearranging a bit in my studio.  this morning i gave it a much needed dusting.  you have to clear the dust every once in a while.  in more ways than one.  i snapped a quick photo of the books i am reading right now.  interesting...apparently i am seeking peace and happiness.  not a bad thing to be seeking i guess.  i have begun doing yoga as a way to ease the tension that collects in my shoulders.  i have done yoga before, but not for a long time.  i had forgotten how relaxing and calming it really is.  although, at this point, i would not want to be seen doing yoga, as i am not as flexible as i once was.  but time and practice will help with that.  hopefully.

i picked up this magazine at the bookstore the other day.  an impulse buy.  i was actually looking for something else when my eyes landed on this.  the gilded symbol on the front with "let it go" drew me in closer.  i picked it up and leafed through it for a moment and i was hooked.  i actually haven't read it yet.  i'm waiting for a moment when i can sit back and relax with it for a while.  those type of moments have been scarce lately.  maybe on mothers day?  

my sweet husband surprised me with this envelope last week.  the "bird lady" came to work and gave him these.  the "bird lady" is a bird owner who comes by the Boys & Girls Club to volunteer.  and to donate her spare feathers.  he knows how much i love my feathers.  i love that guy for always thinking about me.

my favorites are the green ones.

other than reading and playing with feathers i have been keeping very busy.  creating new journals and other nice things for my shop...always working on something.  i created a new journal for myself, as my other one is all filled up.  a new style.  i always experiment by making one for myself first.  i like how this turned out.  i think i will be making more like this.

a page with kind of a zen feel to it.

my husband installed this chandelier for me last weekend.  i found it at Ikea...it's all sparkle and crystals and just so pretty hanging in my dining room.  i have wanted one almost forever and i finally made it happen.  why did i wait so long?  

of course, there was a spot on the ceiling from the old light, so I decided to paint the whole ceiling.  that turned out well...so now i want to paint the walls...a nice fresh white.  that is next on my extensive "to do" list.  the china cabinet in the background is getting a good clearing out too and some of those things may find their way into the vintage section of my etsy shop.  as soon as the sun comes out  long enough to take some nice pictures.

other than that i've just been busy with my kids and three upcoming graduations.  three!  it is strange to have three of them heading out into the wide world all at once.  all seeking their own magic...  i'm so proud of each of them.  but, i still have one left to savor and he is doing some great things with his music right now.  i told him he will need to record some of that for me before he leaves in a few short years.  i'm going to need some music when they're all gone.

so...that's it for now.  i just wanted to say hi and i hope you have a peaceful and happy mothers day...

willpower...

you have no idea.  it was a struggle to take these pictures.  three cookies left.  three teens coming home from a hard day of high school later.  the way i see it, there were only two options.  a)  eat them all.  deal with aching stomach for the rest of the afternoon.  b)  save them for my teens.  be adored by my teens for the rest of the afternoon.

so which option did i choose?

well of course i saved them for the teens!   that's a no-brainer.  i much prefer being adored to an aching stomach.  yep.    

but i did include the recipe for you.  in case you would like to test your willpower...

Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

1-1/4 cups butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 cups uncooked oats

Cream Filling

Preheat oven to 375.  Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.  Add egg and vanilla and beat well.  Combine flour and next 3 ingredients in a separate bowl and stir well.  Add oats and stir well.  Add to butter mixture and stir until well blended.  Drop by rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart onto greased baking sheets.  Bake for about 10 minutes.  Cool on pan for 2 to 3 minutes.  Remove cookies from pan and allow to cool completely.  Spread 1 tablespoon of cream filling over the bottom side of cooke and top with a second cookie right side up.  Makes about 18 cookie sandwiches.

Cream Filling

1/2 cup butter softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons milk or cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl.  Beat with an electric mixer on low until combined, scraping bowl.  Beat on high until light and fluffy.

eat.  enjoy.  share them with your kids : )

writer's block...

my thoughts have been all over the place these days.  i haven't been able to settle on anything to write about in this space.  i think it's all of the changes that are happening with the kids and what that means for my life. 

as i wrote on the very last pages of my journal this morning it got me thinking about endings and beginnings.  i'm a firm believer that endings are not endings at all, but rather, time to begin again.

   a fresh start.  new experiences.  different, but exciting.  and perhaps a bit unsettling.  i guess i am feeling like i'm in between somehow...in the process of figuring it all out.

but i'm not unhappy.  i am moving forward.  i am doing all that needs to be done and more.  i am still creating...always creating...that is an essential part of life for me...but, i am trying out some new ideas and experimenting with different materials.  i have been decluttering like a mad woman...a little every day and some days a lot.  everything about that just feels so right.  it's hard to describe, but it's a release of sorts...of life's unnecessary baggage.  i'm itching to paint my walls a nice fresh white.  i am trying out a "capsule wardrobe" which seems to be all the rage these days.  i got rid of most of my wardrobe in the decluttering process and i'm slowly and deliberately building a new one.  i'm dreaming about the future and far flung adventures.  my house looks different.  my closet looks different.  my future plans look different.  and even though i'm still the same old me, i feel different.  really, it feels a bit like magic.

*****

And suddenly you know; It's time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings.

-Meister Eckhart  

how do you spell love...

piglet - "how do you spell 'love'?"

pooh - "you don't spell it, you feel it."

-a.a. milne-

the sky seemed like it was on fire this morning.

  the mornings have been like that lately.

it makes getting up early worth it.

  

january almost over.  already.

christmas was wonderfully simple this year.

all of the family birthdays sweet.

the house has been filled with music.  a new guitar.  a ukelele on loan.

we were snowed in for a few days this past weekend.

  i didn't take any pictures of that.

i spent all of my time baking cookies.  reading books.  looking out the window.

  eating cookies : )

more soon...