It's fall now, but to me, it isn't really autumn until the first frosty morning, when the floor boards are like ice to my bare feet and a glaze of white frost tips each blade of grass on the yard. Below is my personal favorite autumn poem, A Vagabond Song, by William Bliss Carman. It's so beautifully visual.
A Vagabond Song
T HERE is something in the autumn that is native to my blood'
Touch of manner, hint of mood;
And my heart is like a rhyme,
With the yellow and the purple and the crimson keeping time.
The scarlet of the maples can shake me like a cry
5
Of bugles going by.
And my lonely spirit thrills
To see the frosty asters like a smoke upon the hills.
There is something in October sets the gypsy blood astir;
MOSAIC I will bring my hammer down on you hard And for that brief second close my eyes (believe me, this hurts me more than you') All of your beauty ' Shattered with one swift swing And cleaning up the pieces ' A messy job. But I must admit ' I thought of you, In that particular, sentimental way before I did you in Oh, the beautiful company you've held, The admiring eyes, The groping hands once all over you, Fingertips touching and feeling Your every sleek curve and smooth' Patience is the key now To give the mastic time to dry before Mixing just the perfect hue of grout to complement your new assemblage Oh wedding vase, anniversary plate, Knick-knack cat, teapot lid. -Laura Beth Love 1999
Mosaic bird's nest bowl made from broken china
Wedding Vase
Anniversary Plate
Knick-knack cat
Royal Winton Chintz teapot and lid Below: Necklace I made from same chintz pattern shown above
Hubby came to the flower farm with me last night. How cute is that?
The flower farm is surrounded by rows upon rows of orchards. Set amongst the orchards are two acres of glorious flower fields. The photo above was taken in the dahlia patch, which consists of six long rows of every dahlia variety you can imagine.
This is the back entrance to the flower farm house, a pristine Dutch Colonial that is now operated by our local historical society. Indoors, a local winery gives tastings and shares the history of the house and farm. Let me just say, that I want to move in and play house here!
It was cute to watch hubby walk around and say things like, "how about a purple one?" We had only one pair of pruners so I did all of the cutting. Hubby made his visit more of a nature walk and it was really sweet to watch. It reminded me of that poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay that goes: I will be the gladdest thing Under the sun! I will touch a hundred flowers And not pick one.
The flower farm is such a nurturing place to go. To see so many flowers blooming in abundance offers the biggest case of warm fuzzies. It's also exciting to go home and fill your house with so many beautiful flowers. Our excursion to the farm provided us with four beautiful bouquets of dahlias. The cost: $10.
I can't really take credit for this post… I have my awesome husband to thank for making me realize that tracking our kids' growth is really important and special. I don't have to tell you that kids grow up way too fast… I'm pretty sure I see a mom a day posting something on Facebook about their kids growing up too quickly. Since we can't do anything to reverse the growing process, I figure we should embrace it and take tremendous joy in watching our four children grow (even if it seems to be right before our eyes.) So of course, we take about 1500 pictures a month of our kids (I plan to fill my retirement years with sorting through millions of jpeg files), but one other thing we started about 5 years ago is measuring our kids. We celebrate and measure on birthdays and half birthdays! It's amazing to see how much growth and change there can be in 6 months and, of course, our kids love that we know their 1/2 birthday and make a big deal out of it. So this is where Eric comes in… You may or may not know that I struggle with anything to do with routines, organization, and all that mom stuff… Enter the Outlook Reminder! Eric simply sends me a reminder that goes off on each of the kids' measurement days and voila…semi-organized mom!
We recently moved into our new home and we weren't sure what to do about the measurement door. We knew we could replace the door and take it with us, but it was a weird size door, so that seemed silly. So, we ran a big risk and just took a million pictures of it so that we could transfer the measurements to the new house. We moved in and initially thought we'd put them on another door frame or somewhere in the master bedroom, but then I decided I wanted it to be more a part of our home. I had a plan in my mind, and thanks to Uppercase Living was able to order numbers and make my plan a reality. This is in our 2nd floor hallway… We all walk past it every day and from the foyer below you can see the pictures and the M.
I'm not usually one for artwork with phrases for living, but I saw this tree art at a store in New England and something about it really struck a chord in me. I decided it might not be my style, but the words (I'll stick them in a comment) are simple and something I'd like my kids to read and to see for the next years of their lives. The M was gold from Hobby Lobby, but a little spray paint and she was perfect. The line is just painted on the wall with leftover grey (of course) paint. Worked from the photo of the old door… I had close-ups too…
I love comparing the kids and how tall they were at certain ages… Kaden was about 1 1/2 inches ahead of Kenzie when they were both 5 1/2… Of course that earned some bragging rights!
The finished product. I've had the chart on the wall for months, but just finally added the measurements this week and, since I did, the kids have been checking to see if they've grown, and have been reading all their measurements. I'm so very happy with the results… even if there are dirty little fingerprints all over it already!
Even though I have my growth chart already made, I scoured the web to find some of the coolest options for under $100. Most of these are around $60 and would be something really special to add to your home. Even if you've been using a door frame or closet that no one sees, maybe consider transferring it over to a place that your kids and company can enjoy!
This Miss Natalie jute cloth measurement kit is adorable. This one is super popular, but I think the paper tags would become part of one of Kira's next craft projects! Miss Natalie Heirloom Growth Chart
This modern, bold design would make a huge impact on a room. Oh, it also comes in 40 colors! Love it! Etsy Modern Growth Chart
Add a little whimsy with a modern tree and a little bird ByrdieGraphics on Etsy
These simple charts have a European flair and I love how the numbers get larger as they go up… Measure Me Stick
The measurements are in Metric and English Units, which I think adds a little something… I also lean towards modern lines, so this one appeals to me. (slight confession… this one is over $100, but I liked it too much not to include it!)
Cute for a child's room or playroom Woodland Growth Chart
Believe it or not, this is a DIY project. Here's the link and everything is free and printable. Score! Coolest DIY Growth Chart Project
I'll finish this rather long post with a little poem by Dianne Loomans. Yes, kind of unlike me, but it made me stop and think about my role as a parent because before I know it they'll be all GROWN up… If I had my child to raise over againI'd build self-esteem first and the house laterI'd finger paint more and point the finger lessI would do less correcting and more connectingI'd take my eyes off my watch and watch with my eyesI would care to know less and know to care moreI'd take more hikes and fly more kitesI'd stop playing serious and seriously playI would run through more fields and gaze at more starsI'd do more hugging and less tuggingI'd see the oak tree in the acorn more oftenI would be firm less often and affirm much moreI'd model less about the love of powerAnd more about the power of love. So whether you make a growth chart or not, still take a moment to stop today and just enjoy the little people God has allowed you to grow for Him.
Let’s Really Support Each Other: Linked up to: The Creative Girl Sumo's Sweet Stuff
View from our upstairs window. October gave a party; The leaves by hundreds came The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples, And leaves of every name. The Sunshine spread a carpet, And everything was grand. Miss Weather led the dancing, Professor Wind the band. George Cooper Have a wonderful fall weekend! And I've made another fabulous friend — go see Jennifer at The Newlywed Diaries!
W e've had two weeks of cool spring temperatures and monsoon-like rains. But the clouds have passed and the sun has started to shine....
....and the flower farm has been graced with an abundance of blooming peonies.
I picked two varieties of pink ones,...
....a fiery fuscia variety, and a variety of small baby white ones.
The house had been without flowers for too long.
But soon our own garden will begin blooming and we'll have fresh cut flowers for months to come. Each flower is a verse in nature's enduring poem. I cannot wait to dwell on the beauty of each one.
Hey there! We hope you all got to see our Nate Show episode yesterday. If not, no sweat, we've posted them here on the blog! Okay, now get ready for Day 1 of our 12 days!! We're super excited to share today's project with you because it didn't get much face time on the show, but is an awesome project that you'll want to try! Holiday Handwritten Lamp Shade
We love this DIY project because it's adorable, BUT it's also removable! No need to ruin a perfect lampshade just for the holidays. Come January 1st, you can say adios! Here's how I (Monica) did it… While shopping through Jess' house, I found these great lamps that Jess had thrifted and added IKEA shades to. I immediately thought they would look awesome in her Christmas basement!
The best thing about these IKEA shades is that the completely unroll! Score! (If your lamp doesn't unroll, don't fret, just wrap the fabric around it and then cut. A tiny bit more tricky, but good news! You have more than 48 hours to do it! I was in a bit of a rush!) For this project I actually used a khaki sheet from our first Nate Crate Challenge, but you can use any fabric or kraft paper for that matter. You want to trim your fabric so that there is about 1/4 inch excess on all sides.
Once the fabric is cut, use a glue gun or adhesive to attach the fabric to the inside of the shade. If using a glue gun, I promise you a few blisters. I think I still have two! Yikers! Do this step as neatly as you can because it will be slightly visible when the light shines through the shade.
The next step is to grab a Sharpie or fabric marker and write on the shade. I prefer a Sharpie, because the point is a bit sharper (duh, it's called a Sharpie! Sorry.cheesy, I know) For Jess' shade I wrote the first verse to Joy to the World, but you could write anything. A poem, quote, story etc… The only tip here is to stagger your words. I started the first line with"Joy to the World"… and the second line with wherever the first left off, unless it was too similar. And, If you're like me, you might hate seeing your own handwriting, but other people probably think it looks fine.
(Sorry about the frumpy shirt I borrowed from Jess' husband's dresser. It was about midnight at this point!) Once the writing is done, just reassemble your shade and admire your handiwork! It makes a cool impact, with a modern touch. If you like a more traditional feel, you could write in a more script fashion.
So what do you think? I pretty much love it! (and I think Jess does too!)
So, there you have it a simple Holiday Handwritten Lampshade! Now, how many of you are going to search through your house for just the right lamp?? Thanks again Nate for letting us share all the inside scoop of our Nate's Crate DIYs! Check back Monday for the fabulous accent branch Jess created for me!
