Just a little late...

Your throne, O LORD, has been established from time immemorial.
You yourself are from the everlasting past.

The mighty oceans have roared, O LORD.
The mighty oceans roar like thunder;
the mighty oceans roar as they pound the shore.

But mightier than the violent raging of the seas,
mightier than the breakers on the shore--
the LORD above is mightier than these! —Psalm 93: 2-4



Well, the busyness of the summer has kept us flitting from one activity to another, rather like the hummingbirds on the massive butterfly bush in our front yard (or should I say taking over our front step?). But back in July we were able to spend a wonderful and refreshing week with some dear friends camping on the Washington coast. While camping itself isn't exactly refreshing and wonderful to me, the beautiful surroundings were. ;-)

Travelling to the coast involved a trip through high desert--during the big heat wave no less! My little fellow had the same reaction I do in this kind of country: he looked out the window and exclaimed "Mom, we're in the desert!" Having spent time talking and building excitement about seeing the ocean, he was horrified, but calmed down once I explained. A bit like life, don't you think--going through the unexpected makes the arrival so much sweeter. After arriving, our first evening was spent just walking on the shore, recovering from a day of rushing, driving through city traffic, too much time in the vehicle. Hearing the roar of the ocean over the break wall was so thrilling for the kids.


















We were blessed to have a gorgeous sunset the first evening. After that the evenings were misty and stormy.















The first few days were spent exploring: the town itself and the beaches near Westport. We each have our special things when we beach comb. I look for sea glass, my husband looks for agates, the kids look for shells. I take pictures of everything. :-)


















Eventually we drove north to explore new terrain. The beaches we found there were a bit wilder, with tidepools and rocks. The kids found living creatures to look at and not just shell remains.
































We stopped at the Hoh National Rain Forest along the way. It didn't rain while we were there and we didn't see any of the fabled slugs, but we did meet lots of large mosquitos--lots!

















Our final days were spent in Port Townsend, exploring the town and Fort Worden. While enjoying the lovely buildings (and taking pics of the architecture, inlcuding the incredible yarn shop--note the red building), I happened upon snails that were almost as large as the fabled slugs.

























Then we headed south to catch the ferry and head for home. That's Safeco Field, for all you baseball fans. :-) Of course there was so much more, but who wants to see every slide in the show! ;-)






One of the best parts of the trip? Being in 67-73 degree weather, while back home it was in the triple digits. Believe it or not, I had to buy a sweatshirt on the trip!

Conundrum

If my sweet little man could write a poem, this might be one he would write. He's four. ;-)


Bed in Summer

In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.

I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people's feet
Still going past me in the street.

And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?

--Robert Louis Stevenson

Journey

I've been thinking about journeys of many types for many months now, so when ZNE announced it as their theme for August's theme week challenge, I had to turn something out. My piece is about the journey of faith, and can be seen here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230016093215

Here I Go: Adventures of Louisa

Here I Go: Adventures of Louisa

Well, now that I'm finally starting to get the hang of this blogging thing (I'm actually starting to understand a bit of html--something I never thought would happen!), I've started a second blog for the adventures of Louisa, my little travelling girl. She shares her thoughts, her adventures, her faith and photos of the whole journey in her new online journal. Be sure to visit! And a special thank you to my sweet eight-year-old consultant, who advises me when I need it. It has been a bit since I was that age...

First stop on the journey--our wonderful neighbors to the north

Louisa is off on her adventures! Joining her mother on a train through the Rockies, our sweet traveller is taking in an eyeful of God's wonderful creation. The mountains are taller than any she's ever seen. The wild beauty of the place is like none she's ever seen. Of course she's making friends along the way, including the RCMP.






A very large thank you to Roy Beaty, for allowing me to use his incredibly beautiful photo of Mt. Rundle. His photo captures the majesty of this breathtaking place.

Some new art

I've been playing with jewelry this week, which is a new venture for me. Quite fun! I was blessed to win a necklace from a dear artist on eBay (Lani of Healing Exressions, if you want to look for her by ID) and have been inspired to try some of my own. Every time I wear hers I get so many compliments--everything she does is first class. So, I've played around, adding my own colorful twist.










Then, while searching for findings at the local craft store, I found some adorable little bottles that begged to come home. How could I resist? Well, I couldn't...






And finally, here's a fun little piece made with those bracelet squares:

Speaking of creation...

Remember Romans 1:20 the next time you look at a flower. "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." Our hearts know; our heads try to deny. But let me ask you, how many of these incredibly varied blooms have you ever made?

Why?

Why did God make spiders? Are bugs the result of the curse? Hmmm, this gardener thinks she knows the answer, but I look forward to someday knowing for sure. Of course, by the time I'm with the one who knows, will I care?

And speaking of knowing and someday being known, 1 John 3:2 tells us "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." What a wonderful promise! Hang onto it, dear friends, especially when the day seems the longest and maybe the little people in your home seem the orneriest and you've been less than your best. God looks at us as we will be! Mmm. I like that! :-)

Roses and evolution

If evolution is real, how come my daisies don't evolve into something prettier? You know, like these roses...

A Recent Adventure

My daughter's class took a field trip to a local park where we had so much fun. Our spring has been so rainy and at times it has been frustrating, but it makes for some lovely plants. And besides, I've never melted in the rain yet!

I'm It!

I've been tagged by JoAnnA to share, so, here goes:

5 things in my fridge:
1. XS--an energy drink with no sugar/low carbs, but still tastes good. My family loves it.
2. Strawberries--mmmm, what a lovely time of year, first strawberries
3. Snow cone syrup! My daughter got a snow cone maker for her birthday, which she loved!
4. Salsa--always eating that.
5. Lettuce--some is brown and needs to go, some is good and needs to be eaten...

5 Things in my closet:
1. Hats on nails
2. Outgrown children's clothing
3. A beautiful vintage wool sweater with pearls embroidered on and, unfortunately, tons of moth holes. :-(
4. Only nine pairs of shoes (three of which are boots) because I'm in the middle of cleaning out!
5. Six new white shirts, to add to the five or so previously there. I love white shirts.

5 Things in my purse (this should be fun!):
1. Art supplies because I teach second-grade art (crayons, colored pencils, paint brush--one day I even found several pairs of scissors!).
2. A measuring tape.
3. Yesterday I found an unwrapped sucker--luckily untasted and unsticky!
4. An art journal, for sudden inspiration.
5. Usually a book or my portable Bible for those unexpected times of waiting.

5 Things in my car:
1. Kids! Ooh, not right now, but most of the time they're there! ;-)
2. A large sheet of Tyvek in my trunk.
3. Maps in the glove box.
4. Seaglass in the ashtray that I need to remember to bring in the house.
5. A mileage sheet for our many businesses.

5 People to tag for their answers:
1. Jill
2. Dianne
3. Crystal
4. Amber
5. Kathleen

Here I Go

Her bags are packed. She's ready to go. She's standing now inside the door. Ready to go out to see the world...

Louisa is finally embarking (although not on a jet plane). Her optimistic eyes show her desire for some adventure. Her sweet smile will win her friends everywhere. What adventures await? Only her creator knows, just like our Creator knows the plans He has for us. Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us: 'For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' Her she is, literally standing inside the door, ready to take on the world.



For detail pictures and to see the back, please check her out on eBay. She is part of my eBay group His Muse's newest challenge after all. Click on the photo, then on the little box in the lower corner to see a close up.

The beautiful verse at the bottom reads: "If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast." --Psalm 139:9,10

Some new art

I've actually had some creative time this week. Yay, oh yay! Since the sewing machine conviently lives on the dining room table, fabric was the medium of choice. The pillow is themed for Mother's Day and went to my retail space where I am hoping someone will find it and want to make it hers.



This little quiltlet was originally planned as a pillow, but just wanted to be something else. Having recently read Lesley Riley's CPS article, I was excited to try her pillowcase quilt method, which worked very nicely.



















After a bit of drilling (I was already drilling holes in a book) I was able to finish up these little lids, too. Finishing projects always feels good.

Heart Musings

spring
new green
lifting, singing, flying
refreshing life and beauty
rebirth








beauty
lively soothing
blooming, knowing, praising
live for the heavens
flowers








child
fleeting babe
loving, laughing, being
freedom of my heart
daughter