... hitting "pause" for fall ...

Since this day took me out and away from my paintbrushes (still working on the completion of my faux stained glass panels for my home - project how-to soon to be shared!) ... I decided to save a bit of time to "pause" and take in our newly arrived season ... autumn :)  A toast was in order - - Oh, yes!  My Pumpkin Spice Latte was finally in my grasp!  Close to $5 for a coffee ... this doesn't happen too often for me!

 While picking up the french loaves for dinner (courtesy of Sam's Club - $2.77 for TWO "arm-length LOAVES!  Why bake?!), I browsed the racks of seasonal recipes and crafty, gift ideas,

selecting a few mags to peruse for my "Hit Pause and Enjoy the Moment" episode at one of my favorite spots ...

 ... along our town's riverbank.

(the leaves are just beginning to change across the water ...)

I love this time of year -- I love taking walks with my kiddos ...

 ... finding treasures on our way ...

 ... and taking in the beauty of God's artistry ...

 ... and receiving "hearts" from my little guy ...

 And, if this day could not get any better ... I opened my mailbox to find the latest This Old House.  Another of my favorites in my hands before the buses came!  So, I nestled in on the porch with a cup of Chai and honey (never mind that my dining room was still covered in paints and a load or two of laundry still remained  - but they will still be there ... seasons and moments will not).

I flipped through the pages ... sprouted new ideas ... made my husband roll his eyes (I don't think he appreciates my ever-growing renovation plans - can't imagine why???)... and breathed in the scent of this beautiful season.

... when inspiration hit for a companion to that french bread ...

2 T. olive oil
1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 pkg. baby carrots, roughly chopped
5 russet potatoes, cleaned and diced w/ skin
5 c. chicken broth
5 T. butter
5 T. flour
1/2 t. chicken bouillon
2 c. milk
1/4 t. ground pepper
1/2 t. sea salt
3 dashes of cayenne pepper

Heat olive oil in stock pot on med heat.  Add sliced smoked sausage and saute.

Remove sausage from pan to bowl lined with paper towel - set aside.

Add chopped onion to pot and stir briskly to deglaze.  Once onions are caramelized, stir in carrots and potatoes.   

Add chicken stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for approximately 10-15 minutes, checking tenderness of potatoes. 

 

In a separate saucepan, melt butter over low/med heat, add flour and chicken bouillon, and stir briskly for approximately 2 minutes.  Add milk and continue to stir occasionally, allowing the mixture to thicken.

Add mixture to stock pot and stir.  Simmer on low for 5 minutes.

 

 

 

(Isn't that one beautiful looking loaf??  And to think that I have another one for french toast in the morning!! 

Life's good.  :)

And ... bon appetit!

A tasty offering to celebrate the rustling of crimson leaves on baring branches, the warmth of hand-knitted cowls on chilly days, the scent of burning wood on starlit nights and the sound of dulcimers and flutes in all their sweet splendor.

And, I leave you with the words that struck me speechless today ... as they hung on a banner in our Sam's Club, of all places!! ... the words rang true and grabbed my heart ...

It's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived.

 - Helen Walton

... funny to be reminded of life's truth while shopping bulk at a discount club!

Happy Autumn :)

A story of a boy and a space of his own...

There lives a boy with a clever smile and eyes that melt his momma's heart, who tells tall tales of wilderness hunts and adventures along the streams. 

Even at a tender age of 2, this boy was fascinated with animals of all shapes and sizes ... trips to the zoo were legendary (and hard to leave to go home) ...

and walks around the neighborhood became scavenger hunts to find birds, squirrels, chickens and ducks. 

His fondness for animals is only a glimpse of the size of his heart.  His compassion and thoughtfulness is seen by even passersby, as he strives to be a "good helper" by holding the door for others and brighten people's days with a kind word in passing or a remembrance of how one is feeling. 

Because this little boy enjoyed other's company so much, he spent very little time in his bedroom.  He chose instead to turn the living room into his playroom, which resulted - on most days - of "sighs" from his momma and bins of toys stored beneath furniture.  Racetracks of cars covered the carpet ...

and window blinds became token garage spots for the collection. 

"My room," he declared, "is only where I sleep."  A room redo?  Why the need?  He liked the blue walls ...

his book and sports collection

and his stuffed-animal, deer mount on the wall.

So, he never minded the ever-changing bedroom of his older sister's ... that is - until most recently. 

Second grade is a step up in maturity, you know - and a "man" needs his space.  :)  A space that is all his own ... and a reflection of who he is ... and if one was to ask this endearing, little man who he is, he would reply, "an Outdoorsman."  :)

A band of merry elves created the team that transformed this room ... just as in his big sister's room.

His momma worked night and day with the help of his pappy, grammy and daddy .. a true team effort.  Mustard and beige and soft chocolate were the earthy hues ... and dad passed down his Palominos to an eager boy ready to claim them.  A second-hand bookcase ($20!!) was reclaimed in the matching mustard hue that houses the boy's chapter books, trophies and a spectacular woodland find - - a true deer skull with antlers.

This space has become a room of his own, surrounding the boy with the things that he loves ... and a cozy nook for reading or watching movies.

It was with teary-eyes that his momma put the final touches on his new room, as it became quite clear that her little boy was growing up.  But, as much as he clamours at the chance to head out with big guys to shoot archery or go fishin', he would always hold a place in his heart for his momma - for he said so :) ...

... my cup runneth over.

While we try to teach our children all about life,

Our children teach us what life is all about.

~Angela Schwindt

... a tale of a bedroom redo

Once upon a time ...

there lived a little girl with long, wavy locks tied-up with ribbons and sweet eyes as green as a woodland forest.  She spent her days in an assortment of ways; from playing house with her dolls and caring for her baby brother to picnicking with her momma and painting & crafting to her heart's content.

This little girl was blessed with a large family who all loved her deeply.  Each summer, she would travel with her father and step-mother to an enchanted place called Kiawah Island, where the sun glitters upon the waves, sea trinkets wash ashore and nature - both green and wild - all reside in splendor.  It was while she was building sandcastles and savoring ice cream cones that her momma decided to work on a surprise for her little girl's return.

Within her bedroom, pencil lines were drawn and paint buckets were stacked ... all to reflect the scenery of how her momma's days appeared since her little girl graced her life 7 years before.

Her days seemed to hold sunshine that actually smiled down upon her, warming her spirit when she watched her daughter play.  Her happiness soared through the clouds and danced upon spring trees, budding with the new life that was brought into their family with the birth of her second child, her son - making her daughter a Big Sister.  A role by which she will mature to protect and guide her little brother, just as the trees in the forest do for its furry and feathered friends.

In evening hours, as the sun settles in for the night and casts its deepening shades of fuchsia and orchid to the sky, her momma says her prayers for her children under starry skies twinkling their star dust and the Man in the Moon winking his wishes for sweet dreams.

As the years passed, the little girl, as all little girls do, began to put aside her dolls for new found interests ... cheerleading, music, teen heartthrobs (most notably, JB!) and her passion for C-O-L-O-U-R (Thanks to the girlish boutiques of Justice and the like ... Oh, dreadful me....).  So, with great pain and heartache, her momma answered her little girl's request ...

 ... and said "goodbye" to the days of dolls and princesses, and "hello" to vibrant colour and Justin Bieber.  ("sniff, sniff")

 

 Alas ... to her momma's relief, she grew tired of the ever present "GLOW" of her bedroom.  Perhaps, it was the nearly 2 months that she spent in rainbow hues healing from surgery that changed her palette (there is always a silver lining, isn't there??).  So, a promise was made between the two ...

A super tidy room in exchange for a FINAL room redo.  And, they hugged on it.

Soon, the time had come upon the now teenage girl with long wavy tresses (sometimes flatted with an iron!), whose green eyes still pulled on her momma's heartstrings, to head down to Kiawah on her much anticipated vacation. 

Paint colours were agreed upon...

Second-hand furniture was purchased (Craigslist is her momma's close friend :)...

And, her dear Pappy jumped on board to make their vision a reality!

The idea?  Vintage with an old Hollywood/Traveling flare. 

Is that such a thing?

First thing first was to close up a shared doorway with her brother's room.  The baby brother had grown into an adorable 7-year old that did almost ANYTHING to gain his big sister's attention ... which usually resulted in her yelling down the stairs, "Mom!  Nathan's in my room again!"  ("sigh")

This was an exciting task for her momma, as she learned how to build a wall with POWER TOOLS :)  During which time, her delightful son would advise his Pappy that "I don't think that such a good idea, Pap.  Maybe you should do that."  HUMPH!  No faith!! 

Now, what their momma didn't take into account was that she now had TWO bedrooms that needed her attention ... "Oh, Heavens."  But, one at a time, she will prevail.  It was unnerving though, as this remodel had trickled its chaos throughout her house ... leaving most rooms in disarray .. 

But, day by day ... progress was slowly moving across the room ...

Her momma applied wallpaper primer to the walls marked for beadboard panels ... Panels of WALLPAPER, that is!!  A beautiful invention!!  Especially when you are working with an older home with walls that perhaps were square at one time, but were now a fighting mess with a ruled leveler! 

Her momma learned from the family's wallpaper expert, Miss Grammy, how to hang wallpaper like a pro!  To better secure the beadboard design to the swirled walls, they applied wallpaper paste to the wall while the paper was "booking"  (a term learned to mean wet wallpaper folded paste side together to activate the paste!  Easy-peasy!)

Then, Pappy - on one of the hottest and muggiest days - cut and mounted the trim work throughout the room.  Then, Daddy - after a 12-hour shift - caulked and puttied any necessary crevices to ensure a seamless finish.  This room redo was unlike any other, as it brought in such help from family, that it would never have been accomplished without their generosity.

And, finally ... on the eve of the daughter's return ... her momma put the finishing touches to the room and hoped - so greatly - that her little girl (as daughters always are in their momma eyes) would be overjoyed with all their work ...

And, as her story unfolds, her momma hopes that she will find her very own space to be a special haven to lie her head upon her pillow and dream of all the wonderment that life has in store for her.  Sleep well ... dream big ... and never lose the wistful enchantment of "chasing the clouds from the sky" or the evening magic of walking beneath "branches lit up by the moon."

I love you, baby girl...

(next to unfold ... my little guy's room!  The ideas are still churning :)

It's hard to explain how a few precious things
Seem to follow throughout all our lives
After all's said and done I was watching my son
Sleeping there with my bear by his side

So I tucked him in, I kissed him and as I was going
I swear that the old bear whispered, "Boy, welcome home"- lyrics of "Return to Pooh's Corner", Kenny Loggins

... a portrait to celebrate a couple's love :)

In my ever continuous game of playing "catch up" from my work in the studio, I realized that I had never shared with you a wedding portrait that I had created for my customer, Miss Jen :) 

Miss Jen found my work at an art show a couple years ago and commissioned me to create a personal painting for her partner, Miss Emily. 

This was inspired from my original "Sunshine" painting ...

It was great fun getting to know Miss Jen and working with her; so, I was tickled when she contacted me to help her design a gift to give her sister, a bride-to-be!  We threw around a few ideas and settled on a wedding portrait :)  I had created one similar for my wedding, back in the day! ... and it is something that I truly cherish. 

We have it hung above our bed and every so often I will take note of the wishes and signatures of our friends and family ... and pause in prayer over those who have since gone on to their great Glory in Heaven :)  It means so much to see Pap's name along side Gram Cramer's ... and Grandma Elwood's wishes of happiness ... Uncle Jimmy - - Cousin Petey ... Dear Helen Columbus.  For who are we without the love and support from our family and friends that make up our world?

Miss Jen forwarded to me a photo of the happy couple ...

and she decided on a painting in the style of "my version" of watercolor :) ...

So, I set out to complete a sketch for approval ...

With a slight adjustment made to her sister's jaw line ... we were ready to go!

I applied masking fluid to the couple's sketch, leaving only the background uncovered.  THEN, the fun began!  Playing with the washing and layering of colors is by far my favorite part because it is mood-evoked and leaves room for whimsy brushstrokes in playful light.

Then, came time to bring the happy couple to life :) 

The fluid masking came in handy again when creating the designs of her blouse.  It worked perfectly to create the intricate designs of the floral pattern. 

 

Most often than not, I find it refreshing to see that when I am creatively busy, it seems to inspire my kiddos to try their hands at something similar ...

 

 

Can you tell that Mr. Bieber has some in-house fans??

For presentation purposes at the wedding, I had added plexy-glass underneath the matting and added a foam board backing to mount everything as one piece.  This enabled the guests to sign freely onto the mat itself, without the fear of marking the original painting. 

Upon meeting up with Miss Jen to deliver her painting, I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Emily ... How fun to meet a subject of one of my favorite paintings!!  Both gals are such sweethearts and truly do bring sunshine to the day :)

Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.
-James Matthew Barrie
Creator of Peter Pan