The Marathon

It is finally here... the big day my Sweet has be training for - RACE DAY... Yep, today is the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon. And my sweet hubbie is running his bootie off right now. Yep, he is running and running and running and we have cheered him at the launch and are now at home and cozily drinking tea and eating pumpkin bread... seems unfair, huh!
Being at the Start line and being a part of this race and this day has just been amazing. I am so very proud of my Josh. And its not just because he is running his first marathon... its so many things... for having the discipline and dedication to train for such a feat day in and day out... to run even when it is freezing cold or blazing hot... to run even if you feel guilty for it... to run even though you might be intimidated or nervous... and to have found something you love to do. It is for all these things and so much more that I am proud... so very proud of my husband.
It's funny watching some one take on something like this is not what you would think it would be... I thought it might be like watching some sort of painful masochism, but it hasn't been like that at all. I mean, yes, there have been the hard things... the blisters, the injuries, the sweat... but mostly, being a witness to training like this just inspiring. Watching Josh train for this marathon just makes me think he can do anything... anything at all he sets his mind to... and maybe, just maybe, I might too.

Way to go, Sweets! So immeasurably proud to be at your side...

Crinkling Leaves

Today we took a nice hike in the park.. it was gorgeous out... there was a crispness in the air and the sun was trickling through the golden forest leaves.
I think there are just those moments when you look about yourself and realize that there is a perfection right there in that moment. A time when not a negative thought could flitter through your mind and suddenly you see the simple beauty that is present in our world all the time, but I guess we are mostly too busy and distracted to notice it. And even now, as I work away in the studio I still find myself thinking about the sound of crinkling leaves beneath my feet and little Autumn voice asking me to go faster.... "Fasser, Mom! Fasser!"

Life is good... actually even better.

Faufer

Faufer is the name by which Lavender now goes by, thanks to her sweet little sis... who is constantly trying to say Laughfer. Yes, I know that it is incredibly funny that our littlest has given big sis another nickname because she cannot say the original nickname.

On another note, Miss Lavender totally pulled out all this stops today and about made me crack up into a million pieces! See, we have been going to church on Wed. nights and they conduct a children's class. In this class they learn the "God Basics" (or that is what I call them).... like 'What did God make" etc. etc. - So, tonight Lavender brings home her drawings and class papers and we are looking through them. I noticed that there is this one of a big playground scene depicting kids on slides, swings, running and all sorts of stuff. And some of these kids are playing nicely together, sharing toy trucks and stuff while others are like hitting other kids with sticks and stuff... (I know, right... ) Anyway, at the top of the page it says something like, "point to the children are doing things that please God" and "point to the children who are not". So, I ask Laughfer this stuff and of course, she goes right through the motions pointing to the "correct" kids like the good little child robot. And then I see one more question at the top of the page... So I ask Laughfer "Which children do you want to be like?"

To which she immediately points to the girl who is pushing this other kid to the ground.

Nice, right???

And a little tidbit from our car ride to church for your reading pleasure....

L: Awww, Man! Did you see that bank?

Me: Huh?

L: You know the one with the furniture...You get gas in it...

Me: uhhh

L: You know that one

Me: Yep???

L: Did you see what happened to it?

Me: nope

L: The sky broke off!

Me: It did... huh?

L: Yeah... It's a bummer, man. I don't know where it is... It just, like, broke right off.

Maybe a tree fell on it - Yep... a tree.

What this means I will never know.

Clothesline 09

So Clothesline has come to a close this fall and now that the dust has settled and all my post it note to do lists have made their way to the trash bin, I look back on all that it was this go around.
I know that there has been a lot of buzz about the show, but I could not resist putting a few pics up and adding my little ol' 2 cents.

I gotta say that this Clothesline really was a success...
There was quite a big turn out for the event both at the opening reception as well as Saturday afternoon and we all have quite a bit to be thankful for with our sales.
But ya know, the thing I always find myself dwelling in around this time of year, is the fact that there is just no other art show quite like this one. There is no other art event I have ever attended that has felt this warm... this welcoming. There is no other art event I have ever been involved in that truly extends hospitality. I just think that there is something so lovely about a beautiful home, like the Krichbaum house, opening its doors to the public and allowing them the freedom to sit down, relax and take in the work for as long as you need. It is just so very different from your typical white walled art gallery and so very refreshing.

I guess I just love Clothesline for all that it is... and all that it isn't.

Thank you all for coming out to support the women of Clothesline. It has been a privilege to share our lives and work with you!
I have placed the works that have not yet found new homes in my online shop... Check it out! www.tumbleweed240.etsy.com

Ljosio

Ólafur Arnalds - Ljósið (Official Music Video) from Erased Tapes on Vimeo.

The coolest person I know showed this to me and I found myself entranced, even though I am in the middle of full tilt art show prep... amazing!

Summeryness

So I know its been like ten years since my last ye ol' posty... but, I finally made it back to this little ol' portal into cyber land... that is sounding a heck of a lot more than "little" in my mind right now. And I find myself pouring over the insane amount of things I have neglected to share with you guys... I seem to be a person who gets totally addicted to the technology world or who absolutely rejects even the thought of sitting down in front of the computer screen. It is either one or the other with this girl... I am either updating my silly Facebook status every few hours or I don't even go into our office for days. It is like absolute obsession or complete neglect...Are you guys like this too? I hope so.

I am amazed that it is already Sept. and in my neighborhood I am already seeing the signs that summer is showering us with her last lingering rays and that Mother Fall is right upon her heels. I hear her calling to me at dusk... reminding me of the brilliance of color that will grace her leaves and fall down all around us... teasing me with promises of ripe apples and big beautiful pumpkins! Oh, I do love Fall and I am excited to see her, even if it means that my long summer days that stretch into bright evenings will soon be over.

Oh... I guess I was supposed to be telling you about what has happened, not what will hopefully be, right???
Oh well... I will just say that this last bit of lovely summeryness has been celebrated and joyed in with the onset of our sunflowers blooming, the excitement of little girls enjoying miniature tea time with real porcelain, long wonderous naps, many hours spent in the pool and a very over due and soul filling camping trip with my constant outdoor companion... my dad.

I know I could live on a farm

this past weekend we found ourselves at Crabtree Farms once again... there seems to be a magnet for this family that pulls us to those pretty fields... picking strawberries, buying Nasturtiums and seeing what's ripe. I have to say that this is by far my most favorite family outing.... the wholesomeness is unbeatable! It's like there should be some sort of soundtrack it is so harmonious! There is just something about being out and about soaking in the sunshine and seeing the wonders of the world of horticulture. And at this age, it really is so brilliant to see the girls learning about the plant world and enjoying it to its fullest... in fact, I think little Autumn Marie weighed a whopping 3 xtra pounds by the time we drove out of the gate! What can I say, the girl has good taste!

The 4th baba!

 

So our 4th o July was pretty fun and bustling with activities. Here are the things of our 4th:

Symphony Americana music

Inflatable jumping apparatuses filled to the brim with mobs of kids

one kid peeing in line

the girls first fireworks display

one cinged eyeball from the ashes overhead

free popcicles

Lavender's critique of port o potty facilities

neighbors with lots of fireworks

one yellowjackets nest

one hand swollen to the size of a baseball mit (totally not even jokin' dude!)

one perfect temperature pool

2 patriotic deserts (of course, there were 2!)

Lots of good friends

Amazing food cooked by one loving Mimi

one bean bag toss

one game o golf

a big time badmitten schoolin' for Joshers! yes!

one souveneir American flag made in China

Church 

and lots of family time

Lavender serenading me with the Ramones

not too shabby, eh?

Regina Regina

So there was just no way that I could refrain from posting about Regina Spektor's new album, 'Far'. We have been listening to Regina for some time up in here, but I gotta say, I didn't expect this album to sweep me right off my feet like it has. It is an album filled with tenderness, delight, tragedy and heartbreak. So many of the tunes of this album are delivered in a playfully upbeat songs that weave a magical web right around you. However, there is this extraordinarily great thing about Regina... she wins you immediately with her powerfully rich, coffee like voice and cheerful sound... and then slowly you realize the shadowy, weighted lyrics underneath. And these lyrics seem to say some things you have felt or thought or sensed before, but could never quite put into the right words. It is a lovely little package that steals your heart away.

Perhaps, this captivating hypnosis that Regina can cast over her listeners is some kind of vampy dark magic that comes from the heart of Moscow (her home till the age of 9) or maybe it is just the result of hearing a true artist amongst so much of the clamour of an music industry inundated with "talent" that more the result of crafty studio execs and pr managers.... I don't know, but I do know that she charmed me completely as I listened to her lovely interview on NPR the other day, and I think that is what sent me over the moon for her. She seems to have this playfully friendly magic that springs out of her that is irresistible. That kind of super fan doesn't come out of me too terribly often. So I find myself thinking of the early Bjork era (before the days of Matthew Barry or the attacking of Japanese journalists and such) where everyone simply thought of her as this lovely little Icelandic fairy fluttering to and fro and producing magical off the wall sounds that could only sweep you away to some place with lots of colors.  

And yes, Rolling Stone calls often for my album reviews.

Apple core discoveries

so the past few weeks I have found myself "doing" less and just be ing more... if that makes any sense. I think something in me somewhere was a bit lost... wondering what I am doing... if I purposeful in my days... if I am living my calling or whatever you would like to name that purpose for your life. so, when I find myself in this familiar place I tend to stop... open pages of written word... think more... produce less... and try to listen to the words of my heart and seek the guidance that does not come from places I see and touch and know everyday. I can't express all that this search is yielding just yet, but I will say that I have discovered two things yet again. First, that I am just where I am meant to be... here, at this place I now know for certain is home. And Second, that we will always be homesick for a place we have never known.

And perhaps discoveries like these hold something in common with the drawings and photographs of the remains of various produce I keep finding filling the pages of volumes and volumes of sketchbooks.

Or perhaps I just feel I have something in common with an apple core.

Summer days

With the onset of the hot weather, we have found ourselves outside with the hose more often than not. Last summer I scored an awesome sprinkler ball (yes, they do make a GIANT beach ball that hooks up to your hose and sprays water everywhere! Awesome!) and have just now started to break it in again... gotta say that there is nothing that draws a neighborhood full of homebound kids in the summer like a simple sprinkler. I'm so glad that it doesn't take much....
Here are a few views of our recent days... I have a wierd knack for photographing my kiddos at unlikely angles.... they will probably hate this as they get older.... but for now I get to savor all those great shots of their tiny hands, rolly polly legs and sweet little toes!