The Start of Summer

Greetings friends! I have returned from my trip to northern Illinois and survived a Memorial Day neighborhood gathering at our house (the day I returned) and I am ready to get back to work. To say my lists are long would be an understatement - I have one more needlework finishing order to complete (I started it before my trip...and left my studio in shambles) and another special order, then I will be working on my Poppie Cotton projects for June (think Christmas!) and my latest Therm O Web tutorial. I also have a pile of "one-of-a-kind" pieces I would like to list in my Etsy Shop this week. There are several patterns to write that are calling my name and some model stitching that I am itching to get to, as well. With all that on my mind, I will keep this post short and let the photos "talk" for me...here are some of my favorite photos from visiting my parents at their incredible lake house property...as you will be able to see, my momma has a very green thumb (she planted everything and does all the gardening). I hope these photos will showcase their very special lakefront property - spending time with my family in such a breathtaking, nature-filled setting is quite good my my creative soul...

Inspiration Along the Journey

Greetings friends - happy weekend! I am back from my quick trip up to northern Illinois to visit my momma and second dad...and I thought I would quickly drop in to share some photos of my journey. It was a good trip, minus the standard (extensive) train delays. They live in a lovely lakeside home with incredible wildlife, birds and gardens. We spent most of our time at the house, working/playing outside...but we did make a trip up to Wisconsin to a favorite apple orchard (Ten Eyck Orchard). We also took the pontoon boat out for a trip all around the lake....and I did a little painting at my mom's artist easel. It was a good, quiet, artistic week...and here are a plethora of photos I took...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit - I hope you feel happy and inspired! I will be back on September 20th with my latest project tutorial for Therm O Web (you can see it on the Therm O Web Blog on Tuesday, September 19th)...it is an autumn/Halloween project with a bit of magic. I hope you stop back soon...