No matter where you live, you get rain.  Even in the Middle Eastern deserts, they get rain two days a year.  In many countries water is turning out to be as controversial and mishandled as any other valuable resource in the past.  People who live in third world countries with plenty of rainfall seem to be those who never get it’s benefits.  That is an entire discussion all on it’s own, but it made me look at my water differently.

I live in the Midwest United States.  We get rain.  Gobs and gobs and tons and tons of it.  Our ditches swell and the sump pump in our crawl space does double and triple duty come spring.

I have never tried to make use of that water.  It just flows down off our house, down our gutter, and out to the ditch.  It comes and then it’s gone.

And then we get our summer water bill and get all frustrated.

Hmmm.  It got me thinking and then I dismissed it for a while thinking, Surely it isn’t that much water to make a noticable difference in our water bill come summer.

And then I heard the numbers put forth in this video.

1/4 inch rain falling on an average family home yields approximately 200 gallons, people.

That is completely nuts.  But in a totally cool way. So much for me thinking it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

I am new to this whole thing and I haven’t constructed a rain barrel yet, but I very much would love to hear feedback.

Do any of you have a rain barrel?  If so, does it work well?  Anybody else think rain barrels are for hippy chicks and their long-haired boyfriends?  If so, I want to hear from you, too.

Just a few samples of Monday’s shoot.  This little girl looks so much like my older sister at that age…it’s just cahraaaazy. 

And I am IN LOVE with this dress.  And the skirt.  And everything else in their shop.  Sigh.

Stop me.  Or I will go crazy and blow the whole wad.

Seriously, have a great weekend.  Be safe and have fun.  Or not.  ‘Tis up to you.

See you Monday.

I worked on the design, carved a new stamp, and mixed the ink.

But the design just wasn’t coming.  Everything I have come up with up to this point is either too sweet or too modern.

She is basically a perfect mix of the two and throw in a good dose of agricultural guru.

So this week is going to be me pushing through to get it done.  She asked me the other day, “How is the bag coming?”

And I very sheepishly told her I was stuck.

This is me getting unstuck.

Starting with some hemp and moving on from there.

We shall see what comes of it all.

In the meantime, Anna is putting me to shame with all the super-faithful and on-time stitching she is doing.

Her first quilt, no less.  She picked out each fabric and arranged the squares exactly as she wanted them.  I stood over her nervously (because I have seen a sewn finger, people, not pretty), while she did every single piece and row herself.  I am so proud.  When she was born, I hoped she would want to do little, homey things with me.  I didn’t want to assume, but I sure did hope.

And she does.  *happy mommy sigh*

I can’t wait to see the finished product.  She keeps giggling and jumping around with excitement.  And all I can think is, Did I hop around and giggle this much when I was seven?

Oh, and another photo shoot for my favorite, local children’s clothing boutique.  I love working with clients who care about their products and have a true passion for what they do.  For these ladies, their love for vintage and sharp prints make their brick and mortar shop pure delight.

The shots above were from this last spring when I stopped in to gaze at the sundry sweetness they offer in their shop.

I will soon be posting some of the shots from our Monday session and another link to their online presence.  Their new spring designs are fresh and versatile and so carefully stitched.

So, more info on all their new developments coming in the next few weeks.  If you live in the Midwest, they are located in Lebanon, Indiana, east side of the town square.

Who doesn’t need to find the perfect, little sundress or smock for their favorite little lady?  I can almost feel the grass between my toes.

I have been dry for awhile.

I will be spending this week regrouping, thinking, planning, and resting.  And shoveling.  Outside the snow continues to fall.

There is anticipation for what will come of this short sabbatical.

My mind needs a good dusting of the cobwebs.  Perhaps creativity will then be freed to flow again.

Have a blessed week.

But I have never heard an account of a birth like the one I read today.  It is absolutely hilarious.

Go here.  Read and die laughing.

I did.

We are trying to live small.  Which means bright pink hand-me-downs for Bear.  He totally owned it in a “whatchoo lookin’ at” kinda way.

And then our zany friend, Ally, who has none of the uptightness of, say, me…went out to the back forty and came back with a crock of clean snow.  Made the kids slushies.  They loved it.  It was daring.  ‘Cause they know what Mom says.

The irony of the whole thing?  Ally used lemonade mix to flavor it.

So, my friends?  My children have now, officially, eaten yellow snow.  They may now cross that one off their bucket list.

Eat Yellow Snow.  Check.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

1 Corinthians 13:1-7NIV

Love never fails.

The snow is still crusted along the edges of the road, some of it still white, but most of it slushy.

And that crazy groundhog that everyone is talking about supposedly is telling us our future.  Pshaw.

Someone much, much larger is in charge of the weather and that is what keeps me sane in these very, very long winter days with very little sunshine.

*sigh*

The solution?

Soup, soup.  Of course, soup.

And, as my Joshua says, “Potato soup is totally my whole life, Mom!”

And then he knuckle bumps Anna and they share a quick giggle.

I would have to agree.  There is something so simple, but so very grand, about the lowly potato.  Whatever the glycemic naysayers say, I love them and will eat them until they pry my ‘taters out of my cold, dead fingers.

Who doesn’t enjoy the singular pleasure of a humble bowl of  soup, stew, or chowder?  That magical amalgamation of broth, root vegetables, herbs, and perhaps the occasional surprise of tender meat.

So many memories, so much soup.  It’s crazy but almost every single meaningful memory in my childhood somehow involved soup.  It is inevitable.

It is wafting in here from the kitchen.

I cannot wait.

“Do you have a kinder, more adaptable friend in the food world than soup? Who soothes you when you are ill? Who refuses to leave you when you are impoverished and stretches its resources to give a hearty sustenance and cheer? Who warms you in the winter and cools you in the summer? Yet who also is capable of doing honor to your richest table and impressing your most demanding guests? Soup does its loyal best, no matter what undignified conditions are imposed upon it. You don’t catch steak hanging around when you’re poor and sick, do you?”
Judith Martin (Miss Manners)

Soup and fish explain half the emotions of human life.”
Sydney Smith

Happy Wednesday, Happy Soup to you.

No sunshine, no sunshine, no sunshine.

Equals…

Stir-craziness.

That’s when the inspiration book comes out and my cooped-up therefore over-productive mind starts spinning with plans for when the weather unlocks us from the indoors and we can spread our wings a bit.

My dreams for this summer are pretty tame.

I just want a really pretty garden full of produce and flowers.  Something like this.

Also, perhaps a fresh color for the kitchen.  Right now we have a screened porch spanning the entire back of the house.  It is quite successful at blocking every single drop of sunlight that could possibly reach inside and warm our bones.  Our kitchen is painted a color that was put up in this current very dark, no-sunshine state.  It’s red.  Bright, strawberry red.  With white cupboards.  It’s due for an update and something that isn’t so in-your-face when the sun comes shining through.

I’m thinking a color like this:

or this, this, and this.

Which one? (all color swatches via House Beautiful)

*photo via House Beautiful

And is it just me or is this room divine?  With the smoky walls and bright gold furniture?  Maybe this could be a bit of inspiration for my kitchen?   Can’t get over the yellow.

So, the Spring Kitchen Makeover Debate.  What color for accents?

Gold?

Red?

Gold?

Red?

Hmmm.

With the smoky walls I can keep the white cabinets, and still include my love for bright red…or GOLD.  And this color could go all the way into the dining room and down the hall.  With some gold or RED accents.

I do think I’m in love.  With a paint color.  It feels like “forever”.  *sigh*

I told you I’m stir-crazy.

If you have any color suggestions put them in the comment section.  I would love to see your ideas.