Baby , Baby , Baby

Nana , Nana , Nana ~ My youngest daughter told me Friday that Jake's going to be a big brother. Can you believe it , 3 babies on the way. I'm so happy for all of them.
We don't have a due date yet , will let you know after she sees a doctor.My SIL is due in July and my oldest daughter is due in Nov.

The picture above features a panel from the comforter set my SIL is decorating the nursery with. I'm planning to do a canvas painting of this sun for her.

Happy Day to You !!

>>> My Farm <<<

Well , it's not quite a farm yet. Although I hope to have a small farm soon.
I love the idea of self-sufficiency , fresh veggies , eggs and meats. My Paternal Grandparents were farmers and I loved the farm , except for one mean old rooster.
My Uncle took care of that rooster one day after he jumped me , twist of the neck and off to the chopping block , chicken for supper.

I would love to take credit for all the work , but I must confess it's a family community garden. My Mom , daughters , sister , brother , hubby , son-in-law all help with plowing , planting , weeding , gathering in two gardens. We have one at my house and one at my Mom's. So that's way it looks like a small farm , we grow enough for several families.

The photo above is Curious Jake and his mom , planting pumpkins. We dug holes for the seed but he decided to pour them out all over the ground and just give them some water (LOL).

My oldest daughter and I picked strawberries this week. I've been been busy making strawberry jam and freezing some.

Hope your weekend is Great !!

~How Does My Garden Grow ~

My garden is looking pretty good. The cabbage and broccoli are starting to head , we should be harvesting them toward the end of this month.
The potatoes and onions are looking real good but it will be a while before they are ready.

I planted 3 types of tomatoes. The grape tomatoes are starting to bloom , so hopefully we'll be eating some of those soon. It will be July before the others are bearing.

The corn is trying to come up , we need a good soaking rain so the seeds can sprout.

I planted okra , but it hasn't sprouted yet. I'm planning to plant greenbeans and squash between the corn as soon as it grows about a foot tall.

So this is How my Garden Grows !

The scarecrow women and twine fence with the plastic bags and foil pans , seems to be keeping the critters away.Wish they would keep the weeds away (LOL).

***** Happy Mother's Day *****

May your day be Blessed with Hope ~ Happiness ~ Hugs !!

BeLieve * ChaNge * DreAm

I was the winner of this wonderful collage , created by Groggy Froggy. It's so colorful and has inspiring quotes. Thank-you Lisa , I'm so happy I won it. It will hang in my studio and inspire me , when I find a beautiful frame for it.

I HoPe EveryOne has a CrEatiVe WeeKenD !!!

Frogs , Snakes and a Painted Turtle !

In the last week or two , Jake and I have been exploring nature.

We saved a painted turtle that was headed for the highway. We took him to the branch and released him there.

Where's the bullfrogs ? I kept pointing to the frogs , but I don't think Jake saw them until I downloaded this photo. They do camouflage well on the creek bank.

And speaking of camouflage , checkout Mr. Green Snake , my cat was trying to catch him.

The weather here has been very cool for May , I'll be glad when it warms up again.

I've been busy creating the collage for my Giveaway and working on the altered mermaid book. I haven't worked on the book in awhile , had to get my swaps finished and the garden started. The garden looks wonderful , will post some pictures of it later this week.

WOW ! One Year of Blogging !

Today I celebrate my blogiversary , it's been 1 year.


1 year ago today I wrote my 1st blog , it was titled Feather Blessing.
I wrote that Jake and I had been outside playing and I found a feather , hoped
it would bring a special blessing.

I believe that special blessing was the blogging community , I've met some
wonderful souls through this blogging adventure. So many unique , kind
and beautiful people willing to share your wonderful ideas , daily
happenings and adventures.

Looking back to last May , here's a little overview of what I was blogging about.

~~~ Remember ~~~

Creativity Train
Magnet Swap
Junk Mail Swap
Planting the Garden
Nature
101 Self Portraits Challenge

It's been a great adventure so far and I know the best is yet to come.

I want to tell everyone THANK-YOU for your comments and friendship. I was truly blessed by that Feather !

As a part of this celebration , I will be giving away a altered art collage. I haven't made it yet , will post when it is finished. Each comment left during the month of May will give you a chance to win.

I've posted a drawing of some feathers I did last year , although some look like
leaves , LOL.

Wishing everyone a Feather Blessing !!

Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival ~~~ Art and Music

Last weekend we went to our local Arts and Music Festival. We had a great time.
Curious J enjoyed the solar powered boats and some pizza.
DH and I enjoyed the music and art. We saw the Squirrel Nut Zippers and Atsiaktonkie and some other bands.
Atsiaktonkie is the lead singer for December Wind , a Native American band. We danced a couple of round dances . He sang a grief chant in memory of the VT students or for anyone who had lost a loved one. His music really touches the soul.


I've been very busy this week , tending the garden and Curious J. I meant to post this the first of the week but didn't get to it.

Hope you're having a Great Weekend !

Happy Earth Day !

I encourage everyone to spend sometime outdoors today. Enjoy what Mother Earth provides for each and everyone of us.

Take a walk , jog or run !

Pickup some litter along the way !

Take a stroll through the woods !

Sing , Pray or build some rock art !

Walk around your yard and just enjoy nature !

Take sometime to think about what you can do to help Mother Earth !

Enjoy this day ! CELEBRATE MOTHER EARTH !!!

Gloomy Day ~ Beautiful Art

We're having gloomy weather today , cloudy and cool. Good day for napping.

Thought I would share one of Curious J's creations. He's 2 1/2 and already learning how to use the computer. He loves to paint , he can use the mouse to pick his colors and tools. His mom taught him how to paint on the computer last Sunday and now I have to share computer time with him. Uh-oh !

I've been working on my crow pages and charms. I did make a soulcollage last night , see yesterday's post.

Hope everyone is having a creative week !

Flags Half Staff / Moment of Silence / SoulCollage

I had to run errands and get taxes in the mail today. The Flag was flying half staff , seeing the flag made my heart feel sad. I'm going to light some sage and pray for the families , friends and the World. We need Peace , Love and some kind of understanding to make this a better world.
Sending LOVE and Healing Thoughts to everyone who have been touched or feels sadness from the VT tragedy.

SoulCollage

I've been inspired by Lisa GroggyFroggy to create some SoulCollage cards. The first card I made was a card about gardening. The second card is about bird totems.

What are SoulCollage cards ?
They 're small collages you make to learn about yourself. Grab yourself a magazine and start clipping things that speak to you. Take your glue stick and turn them into small collages. These visual cards represent energy or a voice that has something to say about your life journey. Take sometime to study your cards and learn about yourself.

Checkout this website to learn more - http://www.kaleidosoul.com/soulcollageoverview.html

Feelin Groovy ~~~~~ Hippy Swap

Since everyone is posting their hippy swap , I thought I would run this post again.


Cool Stuff , I joined a hippy swap awhile back , and Saturday I had some groovy stuff in my mailbox.Miss Robyn hosted this swap and it wasn't due to the last week of March.Mine came early and brought me a big SMILE! Anna from the UK had my name , she sent some wonderful treasures.Click on photos for close-up view.
A turquoise scarf ~ I love it , it's beautiful !
A necklace with a turquoise heart ~ it's wonderful !
Beautiful beaded bracelet ~ can't wait to wear it !
Green Elephant Keychain ~ He's a cutie ! I hope he's bringing good luck !
A wonderful wooden star ~ a great artful treasure !
Homemade paper ( 3 sheets ) - Purple,Pink,Turquoise ~~~ They're Beautiful !
Small journal book with handmade paper ~ wonderful little treasure !
A velvet pouch ~ Great place to stash that little journal.
A beautiful card with a pin ~ Dream & Imagine ~ Will treasure this always !

I loved everything in this package.Thanks so much Anna ! Our local Grassroots Arts /Music Festival is next month , I'll definitely be wearing my treasures and Feelin Groovy !!

Hip Hip Hop ~~~ How was your Easter ?

I host the Easter get together every year at my home , so last week I was very busy cleaning and getting ready .

We had a chilly Easter here in N.C , but we braved the chill anyway . Each year my family , dh's family and other guest do a covered dish dinner. Yesterday we had around 30 to attend. We eat , hide eggs for the kids and let the kids hide eggs for the adults. Then we play games , yesterday we played a bunny hop relay , duck waddle and chubby bunny. Chubby Bunny is everyone's favorite , You give each person a marshmallow and they have to say Chubby Bunny , you keep passing out marshmallows and they stuff them in their jaws and say chubby bunny , if they can't say chubby bunny , they're out.

Pictured above is Curious J dying eggs and hunting eggs. We had a wonderful Easter , I feel truly blessed for my family , friends and this beautiful blogging community. Hope your Easter was blessed too !

~~~ A Space To Create ~~~

I've been creating in my dining room the last year or so. Decided a couple of weeks ago that I should create a studio in the spare bedroom. I've almost got my dining room cleared out. You can see the table now (LOL).I've been dragging everything back to the spare bedroom This is what I've been doing since I finished those first 2 swaps. Now I have half the room to create in. The other half is a garage , car parts , e-bay items and some other stuff. I would love to paint this room but didn't want to move everything out at this time. Maybe in the the fall I will paint. I have plenty of light in this room , it has 3 windows. I used baskets for organizing everything. I do love baskets , they are handy for many things. The table was in the outdoor building , it looks rough but serves it purpose. Not a great looking studio but a good place to create.

Naturegirl was right about those caterpillars , they are eastern tent caterpillars.
We have them every year but they don't cause to much destruction. They do turn into a moth. When I was a little girl I would play with them , I would let them crawl up my arms and give them names.

I've started a new blog for the One World ~~~ One Heart altered book. Go to my profile to veiw blog. I have the before and after photos posted now. Hope you'll take a peek.

Circle of Life and Baby Caterpillars

My daughter went to the doctor Monday , they said her due date would be Nov. 28. A very close friend of hers died in a car accident in Feb , her friend 's birthday was Nov 27th. Her friend was hoping she would have a little girl when she got pregnant , so we will see if that happens. I told my daughter this was truly an example of the circle of life and maybe this angel sent her this wonderful blessing.

This morning I was gathering pinecones , sweetgum balls and moss for some art I planning to make when I came across this nest of caterpillars. They're about an inch long and so cute. Beautiful fairies in the making , hope the birds don't find them. Be sure to click on photo to enlarge and see a closeup image.

I've finally got started on the Crow pages. I've got the background done and I decided to stamp the crow. I didn't have a crow stamp , so I made one. Now I need to embellish and come up with a idea for the back page. Glad Pam extended the deadline or I would have been creating night and day last week. Hope to finish them this week and start on those charms.

Baby Boom !

Got some exciting news to share . My oldest daughter is pregnant , another wonderful blessing in our lives. I'm going to be Nana again , yipee ! She took a pregnancy test Thursday and it was positive. I'm so happy !!
So now we'll have two special blessings to look forward too. My sil is due July 25th. Curious J is going to be mighty jealous after being the only little one around almost 3 years but I'm sure he'll love having someone to play with as they grow.

Blessed with Rain !

It's raining ! Just what the garden needs , everything should start growing now. I'm going to plant a row of sunflowers this weekend . Sunflowers are very special to the Cherokee. They protect and draw the sun to your garden. They were considered sacred because they held an important job.
I sure do miss my Dad , he loved this time of year and was a great gardener. I'm sure he is smiling and happy that we are carrying on the tradition,

Robyn hosted a Hippy Swap and I received Lisa Oceandreamer as my swap partner. I have been creating a simple altered book for this swap. Each pocket holds some treasures to take you back in time. I 'm posting a photo of the front cover ,the peace sign is glittery , the photo doesn't do it justice.It was so much fun to make. Hope it makes you Smile , Lisa !

Peace & Hugs to everyone !

Planting the Garden !

It's time to start planting our garden. Last Friday we planted 4 rows of potatoes and on Saturday we planted a whole row of broccoli . We planted cabbage and onions also. These are cool weather plants and can be planted early in the season.
Will have to wait a couple of weeks to plant the seeds , need to make sure the frost is past.
My Momma and I created this silly fence to hopefully deter the deer , racoons and other woodland creatures. We made 2 scarecrow women , I think they're kinda cute. Does anyone have any other ideas for keeping the wildlife away.
Now if the creator will bless us with rain , we should have some wonderful fresh veggies.

I've finished the One World ~ One Heart Altered book and will be mailing it out tommorrow. The hippy swap will be mailed tommorrow also. Now I've got to make time to do those crow pages and start on the charm swap.

Planting the Garden / Spring Cleaning

We're planting the garden and I'm doing some spring cleaning. Will try to post some garden photos tommorrow.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week.