Thanksgivin wit da Girlz

Our wee thanksgiving was made so bright with the presence of the Kriby crew. Cannon & Leah were able to come up, so we got to revel in the pleasure of their company and the abundance of little girls runnin about. Sooo nice to have them all here.... Beautiful chaos... lots of laughter, cries, giggles, runny noses and suprises. Love em all !!!

(this first pic of Fern lettin Lavender know whats up just cracks me up - makes me think of all those "how old are you" measuring up convos of long ago)

Of course, there was good food, good conversation and just good fun. I just can't say how much I love Thanksgiving... such a chill holiday... lots of family, lots of food, no worrying about presents, and generally just focusing on the many many ways God blesses our lives. Too bad we get so caught up with santas, bunnies and other festive entities during holidays, ya know!

Anyway, I'm in tha midst of christmas cookie madness here... I will pop out some more words when the sugar lets go of my system... smile!!!

Athens town

So, the fam took a little trip to Athens town this weekend to see sweet Amelia and Lee. How nice it was to have some time to catch up... to breathe... time to talk and be silly. We felt like we were on vacation... no pressure... no schedule... just fun and good food. I didn't want to leave... but I never really want to leave their company anyways. I guess everyone feels that way about their oldest friends... people who know ya and all your quirks... and love ya anyway!

Here are a few pics of Lee with our little one... I love these. Lavender fell in love with Lee the moment he scooped her up. She's been smiling at him ever since. I don't know what kind of special wooing skills Lee seems to have... but I can't attest to their power. So cute!

Some how I didn't get a good in focus pic of Lavender and Amelia... hmmm. sorry, girl.

And one last thing... for anyone taking a trip to Athens, GA anytime soon, I gotta a couple of tips... You absolutely must stop in at the Last Resort... a restuarant downtown with incredible food and charm to match. They make one mean cheesecake that is worth every calorie it packs. mmmmmmmmmmm. Also I am forever happy to shop around in couple of really unique spots... Helix and Toulas... so cute stuff!

SSScrunchy Face

When Lavender gets excited this gleeful scrunchy face appears... I luv it. Her dadda can evoke this response on a moments notice.... see.

It makes me smile.

Luv these ones.

Amusing Ourselves

sometimes on rainy days i like to take pictures of me and my girl. I can do this all by myself because I'm WonderJen and I like these big facey pictures... even if Josh thinks they're silly. I take pic after pic with the camera in the air... on the floor... in my very outstretched arm until Lavender cries enufff Ma! I know they are not these perfectly composed snapshots but I love em. Here they are...

Fun times with Palmer and Blakey

I forgot to tell you cats about a couple o thangs...
Blake S. (Josh's former guitar playing band mate from high school - for those non-Chatty native readers) came in town this past weekend and brought his sweet wittle girl, Palmer, over to see us.
It was a lot of fun to catch up on what's new and, of course, tell tales of old times. So fun to be with friends who you have history with, ya know!

Here is a pic of wee Palmer and Ella, who played together so well... and the other pic is Juden who sat all quiet and cozy (thanks to a severe case of doggie fear - txs Adel) with his papa for at least an entire half hour. What a monumental photo... take a good look cause you won't see this again!

Fabulous Fall

The more this season begins to fade the more I realize how much I adore it. I love the festivities in the Fall... searching for the perfect pumkin with the perfect stem... carving pumkins... and dressing up for Halloween.
Plus, there are all these special small things that make my heart swell... like wonderful orange and yellow colors everywhere... the smell of spices in coffee shops... and the beginning of eagerly awaiting the suprises of the holidays to come... especially Thanksgiving... I love a holiday centered on thankfulness and being together (minus all the giftgathering stress like at christmas)! Yep, I love it all!

Holidays make me want to make things, like this wreath or my little Tumbleweeds. This makes me happy.

Here are some pics of things that all make me smile... Lavender with a pumkin, Fall trees and handmade things.

Cakes for Mommas

My momma's B-Day is actually today... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!!!!

We had a little ol' celebration this weekend with some local girlfriends while Dadda was a campin'. Apparently, I thought the occasion called for me to turn into Martha Stewart of Chicky town.
I just wanted to make a birthday cake that was beautiful for my sweet mom, who has made countless cakes in her time for her family... (and let's face it, most of the covenant college community). Unfortunately so many recipes I found require 2hours or even 1 freagin day! So, I decided to make a Chocolate Earl Grey Cake and here is the result! I think it turned out pretty cute. And Mom had candles to blow out. Check it out!

My hat is off to all the Moms out there who have spent countless hours on cakes, costumes, toys and generally making life not only more fun, but beautiful. Love ya'll! I wish I could muster the energy to make a cake for each one of you... just because.

I have all these MANYMANY things to show ya'll. I got really far behind in postin' stuff due to a case of computa itis... that's what I call it when the thought of loosin' an hour or so on techy devices makes my eyes itch. I hope I'm not the only cat out there that has a love hate relationship with technology... so fickle is my heart!

Anyway, there are many more snippety snips of my days to come, so check back soon.

HALLOWEEEEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is our Hallowed night of spookiness! Little Lavender and Ella were transformed into acorns, thanks to the hard work of their Mimi... Nice work!!! Don't they just look so adorable! The girls handled all the costuming and Tricking and Treatting like champs... so little fussin'- just a happy little twosome!
Now to the rest of the St. E posse... we have almost the entire crew of the Wizard of Oz with Dorothy, the Lion and the Scarecrow (also know as Meadow, Dove and Oak). How perfectly they fit their parts, eh?!!!
And last, but never least... Here is a wee wittle cowboy also known as Juden, who rode in literally from the WILD WILD West!!! Crazy boy... runnin and jumpin and going full speed ahead in pursuit of CANDY CANDY CANDY!!! Juden was hilarious making the neighborhood rounds... when someone would open their door, Juden would yell "Trick or Treat" and walk right in! So funny to watch that bold little guy! He also did this one hysterical thing I have to mention... He pointed his plastic orange cowboy gun at Scott's tummy and said "Bang!... Does that feel better?" It was so fun to watch all the kiddos running about in little costumes smiling and out of breath from the candy conquest. It brings up all those memories of past Halloweens and costumes that Mom tirelessly labored over without much of a thank you.

To all moms out there... THANKS FOR ALL THE HARD WORK!!! Holidays (and everydays) would never sparkle without your presence and dedication. We love ya!

Baptismal Bliss

Yes, yes... we got little Lavy baptized this Sunday. I found the whole experience to be quite moving. It seemed like so many very different emotions were flowing right across me wave by wave... Here we were standing in a church Josh was baptized in... that we just joined... (which was quite a big thing for little non commital Jen) with our little daughter who was sitting pleasantly unaware in a christening gown that I wore when I was a babe.
It seemed like time was so long and short all at once... How come all the big things in life make time move this way? I dunno... but I tried not to cry.
I am so thankful and happy to be part of a community of believers where we feel so at home (but challenged too) and to have the support as our little family gets bigger and stronger. God is good... His blessing abound to us!

Blue Skies

This weekend was so nice... and so chill.
me likey this way of things.

here is a little snippet of Joshers flying little Lavy around the yard. They looked so purty against the big blue sky it just had to memorexed.
aaaaaaaaaaa blue sky... we miss you....
tooo much rainsie.

and another thing... Lavender's shirt says "I'm definately up to something"... so cute... thanks mimi!

My New Favorite

so my The Science of Sleep is my new favorite movie. Joshie and I went out on a date this weekend (thanks to Mom!) and we saw this wonderful little film. It is magical, creative and ever so inspiring... I love movies about characters who make things. Seeing this movie made me want to go home and make little people out of oatmeal boxes and toilet paper rolls.... like we did when we were kids. I guess that is it... This movie made me feel like a wee kiddo that only needed cardboard and a bit of duck tape to make one delightful evening fly by.
This movie is by the same director that did The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind...which i like too.

Hope you guys get a chance to see it... it's well worth it! Smiles to yous

Shushi??

so Jess and I decided to have a little picnic lunchy with in the park with the girls yestaday. sushi just sounded too good to pass up, so we went over to Sushi Nabe ordered a few rolls and took em over to Coolidge.

I haven't visited Sushi Nabe since it relocated to Coolidge Park. I have to say that it was quite amusing to check out the eclectic (...not quite sure what else to call it) decor smattered across the space. Jess and I about peed in our pants when we discovered that not only was there an autographed drawing of the good ol' Alabama boys hanging on the wall, but that one of the boyz dedicated the signage to "Shushi Nabe" ... eh eh eh - so funny! Gotta love country music icons!

I think Lavender and little Lou had a pretty good time playing and sticking leaves, keys and such in their mouths. he he...

So nice to carve out a little time with my girl Jess... thank goodness for friends and little calm moments like these.

I liked this frosted winder pic. Hope you do too.

More lata

One Bridge Fest

The results are in... One Bridge Art Festival freagin' rocked!!!!!!!!! so fun... so laid back... such good exposure... all that hard hard work paying off, baby! Here are some pics from the day...

Here is my wee little art tent!!! I have to say that I think it turned out soooo cute... smile. I just love the how happy the stenciled letters looked dancing across the front!

In the second pic you can see a wide shot of the entire festival site, which was located in a parking area right on Frazier Ave. As you can see, the weather could not have been better, the location was such a hot spot and the people (artists, fest hosts and customers) were really friendly. People traffic could not have been better... I'm not sure that any other show I've participated in has yielded this big of a crowd.

The whole thing was not too big and not too small and the date of the event could not have been betta... the fest on the same day as Wine Over Water as well as the Culture Fest... Incredible... all 3 events going on within a few feet of one another.

And I cannot go any further yammering on about my experience without declaring my incredible thankfulness and love for my sweet Josh, my dear dear Cat, Amelia & Lee, Kate a Kate, and my parents... these are the loves of my life... so dedicated, so thoughtful... so loyal. I treasure them all and am indebited to them for all their help and support. Thanks, guys!

Acorn Days

Alas, Alas... here I am again! Sorry for the delay in posts... getting ready for an art fest is sooo much workis!

Anyway, here are some of the cutest pics of this year's Acorn Day festivities complements of Susie-Q (also known as my sweet mom). For those of you who are not in the Chattavegas area... Acorn Day (instituted by me moms) is a day where everyone big and small gets together and takes a little time to ponder what their thankful for and to look for the small little miracles that happen everyday... like the way an tiny little acorn makes it way into a big, beautiful oak tree. We also go on a nature walk, have a little crafty time and listen to a special story. So fun!

These pics will open a little window into the festivities...

First, This beautiful girl is our sweet Lou... who paused for just one moment when I called her name!

Second, is sweet Juden showing off an Acorn of his own. What a treasure!


And last but certainly not least, is Ella...STANDING!!! Way to girl... so proud!!! Too bad you can't hear all the cheering that ensued after such a feat!

I have to say these past few days have made me fall in love with Fall all over again. smile.

More words lata, kids! miss yous guys... smile

ART news

Good news on the artistic front here!!! You guys will be able to check out my work, if the need pulls you, at the One Bridge Folk Art Festival or perhaps at the Legacy Fine Arts Fest (Legacy is in Cartersville, though).

I will have a booth/tent set up at One Bridge (txs, kate!) which is large enuff to feature a large selection of works... so come check it out, kids! The fest is produced by Winder Binder Gallery on Frazier Ave. next to New Moon Gallery. All of the artists are going to be showing work in the little parking lot next to the Gallery right on Frazier.

October 30th from 10am to 6pm - save the date, kids... Can't beat free entertainment, right?
More words lata... so busy gettin everything all ready for these events

Gansta girl

A little Chickamauga gansta girl! Word up eh eh eh... yeah, she actually just has a onesie on her head. he he - that is about as gansta as it gets out here in the sticks. smile - cute though...

in other news...
Cat, Kate, Joel and I went tromping around downtown this weekend visiting most of the galleries featured in the Chattanooga Gallery Hop event. It was so fun to see so much art all at once and so nice to be a kid free for a few hours in the city!!! Speaking of our little city... I am just more and more impressed with it all the time! So nice to see so many working artists involved in the community and so much activity taking place... She made me proud! So happy to be living and working here.

My Sweets

My 2 most favoritest peoples in the whole wide world!!! So cute, aren't they?? I think little Lavender looks so much like Joshers here!

So sweet!
So cute!
Gush gush gush

Sweet little shoes

These are the cutest little feet ever, eh!!! Lavender wore these little shoes on our outing today. We went wondering about the city today and enjoyed the absolutely perfect weather. We stopped by the Tanner Hill Gallery, Rembrandts, Blue Skies and AVA... so fun to have an arty day with Lavender and Mimi (aka my mom)!!! If you guys haven't been by Tanner Hill you should definately check it out... I was very pleased with both Terry Turrell and Frank Shelton's works... very layered and symbolic... great colors! And the gallery space is so nice. It's in the Southern Saddlery Building on Broad... amazing how they have transformed that space.

Disclaimer: Lavender chose to stand in the lovely pose above... no forcing or setting up here. Yes, I'm afraid we might have a model on our hands here... or dare I say... diva??? ooooh

Tumbleweeds & Babies

Here are some tidbits I have been workin on. The little softies to the left are my Tumbleweeds... cute little stuffed guys for wee peoples. I am trying to make a whole lot of them in order to sell them this holiday season. The same goes for the babies you see strewn across my table. I can't get enough of making little baby collages. They just turn out so charming every time. They are like new shiny little pennies to me! Enjoy.

Labor Day Exstravaganza

Here are some pics from our Labor Day festivities at the pool. So nice to be with everyone and enjoy the last few days of summer together! As you can see, it takes sooo much to entertain us... a few pastic cups, some water and presto.... fun is born! I love that simplicity.

It seems like it is that time again... the sun has begun to take a little longer to get up in the morning and the pool is not quite as warm as it once was... the changing of the season is here guys! More and more these past couple o days, it has become apparent to me just how much the turning of a season really marks the passing of time. I love thinking about what has been and what will be...


This year, beyond all others, has really left its imprint on me. I love these in between times.