Finding Inspiration in Coffee

An artist friend of mine (we go all the way back to high school) hosts an art journaling blog.

Now, I am not an art journalist. Yes, I do keep a journal, and have off and on for years, but its pretty much about writing, and not art. So when my friend asked if I would be a guest host for this year, I was completely confused and unsure what I could possibly contribute.

I think perhaps I've started to "get" it, though, and am thankful that she has made allowances for those of us that prefer to let our cameras capture the art in life.

Twice monthly, she asks for us to either journal or photograph in response to a specific theme, the year's overall theme being in collaboration with Monday Mugshots, so the posts also need to incorporate mugs or coffee in some way.

In response to the theme "What if..." this is what I posted:

 What if... about a year into my tenure at Boyd Coffee Company...

What if... I had taken that job offer in Colorado...

Would he have hunted me down as he says?

Would my last name start with a "T"?

Would my interest in antiques, papercutting, stitching have been encouraged?

Would those two Littles (see their silhouettes on the mantle) be mine?

Would I be ever grateful to a coffee company for playing matchmaker?

What if...

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Antiquity

 "How cunningly nature hides every wrinkle of her inconceivable antiquity

under roses and violets and morning dew!"

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Heartfelt

The sweet, sweet days of being the Mama of a First Grader equals

Baby-Food-Jar-Covered-in-Crepe-Paper-Tied-with-a-Ribbon-Candleholders 

for Mother's Day.

Made even better by the quite persuasive creative writing assignment 

detailing why I happen to be the most "inportant" Mom in the whole world 

(translation follows the photo)...

"I think my mom is the m-

ost inportant mom in the 

whole world! She's inportant

because she's a stay at home

mom. Also, she lets me have

TCBY. of course she is the

nicest mom ever! In

addition she makes the best

birthday cakes. That's why 

I ♥ my mom!"

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Out of the Way

Not ones to get out and about that often, we nevertheless jumped at an opportunity to spend Mother's Day weekend in one of the high desert areas of Eastern Oregon.

Just a few hours' drive from our home, yet it felt like we were on an entirely different planet. All rolling hills of dry grasses and tumbleweed, with trees few and far between. This part of our state holds a beauty that is at once stark and sumptuous.

As we traveled along the mostly deserted roads, I kept expecting to see John Wayne or Michael Landon come riding over the next hill.

Our final destination was Treo Ranch, a family-owned estate that has converted from farming to hosting guided bird hunts.

This being a shared family weekend, the important parts were taken care of first, like a BB Gun safety course taught by the biggest gun safety stickler you may ever meet... my Farmboy.

Followed by the fun part... assisted balloon shooting for the littles.

And supervised balloon shooting for those with a little more experience.

And then the big boys got to go have a little fun while the rest of us stayed at the lodge and did our own thing.

Such as stalking an abandoned farmstead with my camera...

Yes, ladies and gents, these places do still exist in the dry landscape of Eastern Oregon. I wish I had a dollar for every abandoned old house we saw on our trip. I also wish I had the time to take pictures of each and every one of them.

If only those walls could talk.

By far the coolest discovery by the little people, was the triple-heaping mound of spent shotgun casings leftover from years of bird hunts. They don't leave that plastic out in the fields, but carefully bring it all back from their expeditions to gather in one place.

Thank you, Tim and Ericka, for inviting us to join you for a truly memorable weekend.

As we headed back home, I had to make sure to capture a Mother's Day 2013 photo with the two sweetest Pieces of my Heart.

In keeping with tradition, there was one last stop to make on our way home. Despite rain and chilly weather on our side of the Cascades, we simply couldn't resist the siren-song of gigantic ice cream cones.

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Pink

Other than a brief period of time, when I was in 7th grade, pink has sat pretty far down on my list of colors. Not that there's anything wrong with loving pink, mind you, it just doesn't usually strike my fancy.

I don't necessarily avoid pink, but I certainly don't gravitate toward it either.

And then I had a little girl. Raised in a world mostly devoid of pink things, she nonetheless became enchanted by its allure.

And in so doing, she has forever changed my view of the color. I won't be racing out to embrace pink for myself... it still doesn't feel like "me" in any way, shape, or form, but... it is now intertwined with the essence of Her.

Ruffly, sassy, frilly, soft and sweet. There's just no getting around it, so I might as well find delight in the way she delights in pink-ness.

It does help that she often pairs it with country girl things, like ear-protection at our shooting range...

and fishing poles... and John Deere sweatshirts.

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The Coolest Picture I've Ever Taken

My friend Karen + a Handgun in the Woods + Perfect Timing = Captive Muzzle Flash.

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*NEW* Always in My Heart

This sampler is a continuation of the sampler series I made a few years ago to honor my Great-Grandmothers. Now I’ve moved to the next generation, designing this sampler to pay tribute to my Paternal Grandmother.

My hope is that at some point, when you inevitably find yourself grieving for the loss of a dear one in your life, that one of these samplers will strike a chord and serve as a therapeutic way to help carry on their legacy. I know that for me, as I stitched each one, and to this day, as I look at them grouped together on my wall, it is with warm fondness and affection. Somehow, stitching their memory onto linen has served as a balm; a tangible and lasting memorial to their lives.

Included with the pattern is a complete upper and lower case alphabet and number set so that you can customize this sampler to honor the life or death of someone you love.

There is also an instruction sheet telling you my method of inserting a photograph into the finished sampler.

Stitch Count: 104 x 109
Model stitched on Picture This Plus 32ct. Mello

Using flosses from The Gentle Art: 0420 Gold Leaf, 0440 Maple Syrup, 0460 Grecian Gold, 0540 Brandy, 0560 Nutmeg, 1130 Wood Smoke, 7005 Old Red Paint, 7016 Chamomile, 7018 Woodrose, 7059 Pumpkin Pie, 7061 Caramel Corn, 7082 Piney Woods

This design is now available in my etsy shop, and will be going out to my distributors and the shops on my automatic shipments list soon. If you prefer to bypass etsy and order directly through me, you can send me an email: beth@heartstringsamplery.com
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Cuteness Overload

I won't bore you with the entire song selection, but simply couldn't resist sharing a couple of clips from the First Graders' debut school musical performance.

There he is, right under the basketball hoop, with his class of 30, along with the two other First Grade classes. I guess that makes about 90 cutie pies all in a row...

First up, a little song and dance...

followed by a group recitation complete with motions...

and if you watch only one of these, by far my favorite, is this one...

The almost-Kindergartener rated the concert "Two Thumbs Up".

I wholeheartedly agree.
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Its Friday...

Wishing you Long Chats on the Telephone,

Sunshine and Blooming Flowers,

Yummy Popsicles,

and Freedom from Inhibition.

Happy Weekend, Everyone!

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Stitchy

Every so often, I like to search etsy's Vintage category for "cross stitch".

Click on the photo below to go check out the treasury I just made, full of lovely x's.

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