Nature walk

Come with me on a beautiful stroll beneath a lovely canopy of the trees.
I went up into the canyon for a lovely evening stroll with my little family and it was breathtaking, so I thought I would share a few photos.



Just look a the this lovely blossoming sage brush!

I am unsure what this wild flowering bush is but it intrigued me and I snapped a photo.

Isn't this world such an amazing place! Even the bark of a tree is full of texture and beauty.

What a lovely treat to see a momma duck dutifully sitting on her nest. I tried to get as close as possible for a good photo and she didn't even budge!

Thanks for stopping in, I hope you felt that same wonder via my photos as I did on our little stroll. What a wonderful world!

Tea party fun

Whilst browsing my long long list of daily blog reading I came across these lovely tea sets via Poppy Talk ( a must read!) I was so enchanted by the hand painted loveliness added to this already beautiful dish wear, painted by Esther Coombs.
I adore these and wish I could afford a set of my own. Till then I'll just browse my fave's folder and pretend. Hope they inspire you too.

Lovely fashion inspiration

iro-iro.

I am just in love with these clothes by iro-iro. I came across their site via a lovely blog called red aprons & lunch boxes. The details and colors are so lovely I just had to post about them. I can't read a darn thing on the entire site but the images were mesmerizing. Hope you enjoy looking at these as much as I did.

P.S. My printer broke so I edited and made changes to the big give-away so peek back to see whats up. And if you haven't entered yet you still have a week. :)

Lorajean's Big Give-away

Lorajean's Big Give-away!

So here is the deal, to celebrate my 150th post today I am going to have a huge give away!
The winner gets...

A whole set of 4 lovely illustrations! Thats right only one of you gets all four 8.5 x 11 prints.(Printed on high quality Epson heavy weight matte paper.)

EDIT: My stupid printer just broke, and I am not sure I'll be able to print anything by the 10th, so,
I am changing the prise to:

A set of Five 8.5 x 11 in. illustrations matted in white 9x12 mats.
(The printed images measure about 5x7in. )

I chose these illustrations in this size because they are already printed, matted and ready to go! Please forgive me for having to change it!
I feel so silly to have to do this in the first place so that is why I am offering 5 matted prints instead of 4.

Or if you wish you can receive a 45$ gift certificate toward another item(or two) in my shoppe!

I thought I would shake things up a bit so Here are some rules!

1. If you post a comment on this post, to share a thought or just say hi, you are automatically entered in the drawing! (Be sure I have a means to contact you when you win)
2. If you blog about this give-away on your blog, type the url to your blog post in your comment, and I'll put your name in the drawing twice!
3. If you've followed a link here through someone else's post about this giveaway, type the url of who's blog you came here through, and your name's in twice!
4. If any one enters the contest through your blog post your name's in three times!

Be sure and comment on this post before 12:00 noon on Tuesday June 10th!
I'll draw the names at 1:00 pm Tuesday June 10th and post the winner!

GOOD luck and happy commenting!

Freebies from other bloggers.

This is actually my 149th post because I skipped a day last week. :) oh well! I have been wanting a blog break lately because my mind wont get into it. Every time I sit at the computer I wish I were doing something else, so I'll make this short. I just wanted to share a few freebies from other bloggers that I have enjoyed.

1. A print a day, free lacy labels
   
2. Creature Comforts, free soap wrapping printables
   
3. Du-Bah-Du Designs, give away!
   
4. Allie Hoopes, free hand written font downloads

Click the images to download the freebies!

Edmund Dulac illustrations

I am greatly inspired by these paintings by Edmund Dulac.

They remind me a bit of the paintings by Warwick Goble I blogged about a little while ago. I really love the color schemes and lovely intricate backgrounds in these paintings. When I look at these I start to think that my paintings need a little more work in the design and background aspects. My portraits are becoming mundane to me and I need to open my mind and imagination to the design of the painting as a whole and not just the quality of the girl in the painting. I don't mean to say my portraits are badly painted I am just saying my future paintings could be improved by using good design and spending more time on the background. I get so excited every time I find a artist that inspires me! I hope these images inspire you too.

In my garden

Good morning!

Here are some photos of the pretties that are showing up in my yard as of late.

We have a pretty pink flowering crab apple in the front; I love it when it blooms. :)

Here is an angled view of our window box with brand newly planted annuals! This is something I look forward to every spring!

This is one of many many blossoms in our strawberry patch. Look! Can you see a few tiny green strawberries growing? Yippee! We have the ever bearing variety and I love eating fresh strawberries all summer!

Our myrtle ground cover is coming in so lush this year!

I love smelling the grape-y flavor these irises emit. From what I've heard from the previous owners they used to be all colors and varieties, but cross pollinated and eventually turned white.

Here are some of my favorites in the yard! Hosta! I can't wait till these beauties grow up and produce the big leaves and tall stalks of dainty blossoms.

I am unsure what variety this tree is because the city planted it in our parking strip by the road, but it blooms the prettiest little white clusters and smells lovely!

Even the weeds in my yard are beautiful! :) These weren't really in my yard; they were in the neighboring lot.

What loveliness is peeking out in your yard this spring?

Happy Wednesday!

Goals, and a nearing 150th!

Lately I have been looking at this!

a slight likeness to my teenage self
(click image to see source site)
and these
(click images to see source site)
































And I have come to a decision!

1. I need to get one of these swim suits.
   

And,

2. I need to get my reflection looking at least a little more like my teenage likeness!

How shall I do this you say?
Well, I have made a few goals for my weak little self and I plan to really follow them! :)
Here they are:

• If boredom hits get crafting or go for a walk. (I tend to munch when I'm bored.)
• Save the ice cream for holidays and special occasions. (And you know, they will end up feeling more special that way.)
• DRINK a ton of water! (It always helps everything)
• Go for a nice walk every day! (Bonus the kids love that too!)
  
• If I need to munch do it on the veggies and rice cakes! (I really do like to eat these anyway.)
• Chew sugar free gum after every meal. (My downfall is that I have to end every meal with a sweet taste in my mouth so I tend to go for the sweets...Not any more! he he. )
  

These are small goals but they will get me on the right track!
What are some of your goals for this spring/summer?
Are you planning on getting into that gorgeous swimsuit or pushing yourself to walk one more block? Please feel free to offer tips and share your own goals!
I am also super excited today, guess why! Ok ok I'll tell you! A week from today will be my 150th post on this blog!! I'll have to get some secret surprises put together to celebrate! Hooray! Thanks a bunch and have a great Monday!!