Random... That's Me In A Nutshell

I can't come up with a rhyme or a reason to share these things in a cohesive way, but if you know me, that's really nothing new. :)

This little guy was a most favorite find at my new favorite thrift store, he's Japanese. Favorite, favorite!

And I could just stick this puzzle in a frame it's so cute! The colors are amazing.

Hmm, frame it or play with it?

(It's from the same thrift store!)

 



 I have a new application from dictionary.com on my computer's home page... a recent word that I have enjoyed is

diaphanous: allowing light to pass through.

(and now this image of the butterfly's wings will always be tied to that word, in my mind.)



I think it's fun that at two-years-old, Evie is prone to sort things and arrange them.

I see some very sweet details in this photo I'd like to point out... (that helps me appreciate the good and wonderful gift God's given me in Philip)

• 
  
  he is covered in stickers from Evie
• 
  
  he is carrying the diaper bag and my camera bag
• 
  
  he had just told strangers that I was awesome
• 
  
  and he knew that these turtles were called Red-Earred Sliders

How she can eat in this position, I don't know... but maybe she was explaining it in this Magna-Doodle note that she wrote.

A Walk In the Woods

Philip played in the band at church this weekend. Evie and I joined him for the new Saturday night service and we didn't need to be anywhere Sunday morning. The skies were overcast, temperatures were fall-like, and the park was calling us to take a walk in the woods. Oh, if I must!

I was sorry that Philip wasn't able to come too, but was so giddy to be out on such a beautiful, crisp morning that it was okay to just be Scooter Pie and me.

Let's see... which way shall we go?

This way?

No, maybe this way...

Yes, there are mossy logs down this path...

giant oaks,

and pretty berries.

This is the reaction I got when I told her this is the bathtub of the giant that lives across the river in the castle.

It was a really beautiful morning... it makes me hungry for more Fall, and soup.

On the way home we stopped by my favorite fence of morning glories... I used to ride my bike over to see them, that was when we lived in the neighborhood as newlyweds. That's a sweet memory.

A Work In Progress

Back in the Spring we switched Evie from her crib to a twin bed... and I am still working on putting her room together in a pleasing way. I'm finding that when I change one thing, I then need to change two more to make it all work together.

Does this seem to be the way of things for you, or am I just lucky?

(I'm honestly not too bothered by this because it's fun to work on these little projects, making time to do them seems to be the real trick.)

First came this amazing rug, then we found the bed and Philip refinished it to compliment the rug.

Then came the dilemma of finding bedding that would look nice with the rug, that's when I decided to make the quilt. (That was fun to do, and one of my first blog entries!)

Once the quilt was finished I quickly realized the need for some cute pillows to go with it, and decided that I should fix my wonky curtains by adding on some of the leftover fabric. (Curtains are next on my sewing to do.)

At some point in all of this I decided that the decals on the walls were too busy, took those down and now need to retouch paint in several places. And I am slowly finding pieces to fill in the bare wall spaces...

Like the frame (above), and birds on a branch that I doused in watermelon pink spray-paint.

Found a teepee and needed to rearrange to find a home for it...

And the last funny little treasure that I found was this wire (dishwasher basket?) to corral the mass of hair-stuff and lotion on top of the bureau. This made me happier than I can say to have found a solution to that mess!

Evie gets excited when I bring something new into her room, but she doesn't seem to notice all the things I feel are yet to be done. So, I will not stew on these things. They are not pressing or important in the big scheme, but rather just an enjoyment and appreciation of this sweet home God has given us.

Chewing On Yesterday's Thoughts

Not as much to say today, still chewing on the thoughts of yesterday... thinking of how that connects with this question,

"How would we act differently if we thought more about how we look to God and less about how we look to eachother?"  

Painting With a Toddler is a Freeing Experience

Over the past several years I've had a desire to paint, but haven't done much with that desire. I really don't know much about painting and I guess I've let that, and busyness keep me from it. 

Recently, Evie and I have started playing with watercolors. The other night I had a hard time tearing myself away from our fun to get dinner started.

There is something very freeing about painting with a toddler, she doesn't critique my picture, she says "Good job mommy, I like your lion!"

For that matter it's also fun to sing and dance with her for the same reasons... she doesn't know yet that I'm off-key or that my dance moves are pretty lame. I am free to just have fun with her.

A few years ago I was having issues in a drawing class and I had an AHA! moment;

When I was little I drew and colored all the time, and then sometime around middle school (other than art class assignments), I kinda stopped. Why did I stop? I think what had changed was my expectations... and perceptions of how other people saw my work. For some reason, at that age I began to believe, that if you are going to do something, you better be good at it, or else people will laugh at your efforts. What a sad reason not to do something... how else will you get better? and who cares if something doesn't measure up to an imagined standard, especially if it brings you joy to do it!

When I was little I didn't have expectations of what my picture should look like, I just had fun making it.

And when did I start calling my pictures work? Another questionable thing I picked up in art school?

I think it also comes down to humbling myself and knowing I have a lot to learn. I am not good at a lot of things, but it's still okay to do them. Do it for enjoyment, not to receive approval. This is my latest lesson... it'll take awhile (a lifetime) to really learn it (and others).

How Long Was That On My Shirt?!

Okay, so here's a couple of "You know you're a mommy when_____" moments.

1. After getting Evie down for a nap this afternoon I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror. EWW! What is THAT, and how many of my errands was that there for? Thinking back it had to have been Evie sneezing on me after eating animal crackers... kinda gross, huh? It was on a black t-shirt too, so it showed up nicely. Beautiful.

2. I get ridiculously delighted about almost everything Evie does. Let me back track... we've been going to the library once a week and get new books, CDs and DVDs. Evie will get hooked on several of the books and want to read them several times a day. Once she is familiar with the book, she will "read' it to me/us, which entails describing what she sees in the pictures, and also repeating what words she remembers. Well, today when she read "Beach Day" by Patricia Lakin to me I was sort of blown away by what is either her strong memory or the beginning of word recognition!

I know, so typical, another momma who thinks her kid is a genius... you can tease me, that's alright, I'm not too overly sensitive. :) I asked if she would read it again for me to take a video, and she did.

Giant Pumpkins, Mutant Chickens and Pronto Pups

Sounds like the State Fair to me... except there are other fun things there as well.

Like the "Do Art" building that's set up with all kinds of art supplies, artsy helpers and a fun fishy project.

I ended up doing most of the decorating, Evie was a bit distracted by all the cool fish on the walls. (Why didn't I take a picture of that?!)

This pure delight was brought on by the presence (sights and sounds) of many chickens and other various poultry.

Aren't these some handsome roosters?

And what happened to this guy?

Is he truly a mutant chicken like I think he is, or is this a variety of chicken that isn't printed on wallpaper or dishtowels? 

Hello pink-eyed bunny.

Evie has developed an early interest and desire to ride ferris wheels.

And despite how enormous this must have looked to little her, there was no hesitation at all!

She led the way to the ticket counter...

and took it all in during our ride.

We also got to see some new babies!

This sweet calf must have been a bit intimidating eye-to-eye.

We passed on the donut burger...

in favor of a Pronto Pup, Evie's very first!

She liked it very much until she got down to the pokey stick.

I'm guessing the "Pronto Pup" is a regional thing, but it's a fair favorite.

One of my favorite things is to see these beautiful quilts.

The one below is a pattern I'd like to use by Kaffe Fassett (made completely with his fabrics).

There is something about this display that I find appealing...

And we just had to visit the giant pumpkins!

771 pounds!!! I remember seeing a documentary about growing these record breaking fruits (is it a fruit?) and being fascinated at how care-intensive and competitive it was.

It was a pretty day, hot, but pretty.

We were entertained by our loopy/tired little girl all the way home.

Here is the finished fish, kinda cute. But I would've found him cuter if Evie had done more of it. Because, you know... everything she does is a work of art. :)

And after an already full and fun morning, we came home to a package from LaLa and PaJoe for Evie!

They sent her these super cute Piglet and Roo! She loves them, Piglet even went to church with us this morning!