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!

Lavender uncut volume 2,403

So Lavender's new favorite thing is to lay and I do mean lay all over Chloe (our relatively new dog). Yes, Chloe seems to double as a giant pillow. And Lavender seems to have decided that Chloe is by far the best transportable reading spot. Yep, most days I find them cuddled up together while Lavender is "reading." So funny...

Yesterday we were in the car and this is what Lavender busted out on me...

L: Mom, do you need to be safe?
Me: What?
L: In the car... are you to be safe?
Me: I hope so.
L: Yeah... cause this is a BIG road.
Me: Yes, it is.... and I am being very careful
L: Because of the fast cars, huh
Me: yep
L: yeah, you gotta look out for cheese
Me: Huh?
L: and Poles
Me: sure
L: and houses and cars
Me: a huh
L: and flags too


What tha.....

New Birdies

these little tweeties flew off to comfort a good friend whose own nest is just about to make room for one more. Grace, I am so excited for you guys and can't wait to meet 'Green'... eh eh eh!!!

On we go

So here is a collection of randomness... lovely little snippets of our days that somehow never actually made it onto a post. There just don't seem to be the right words to describe the cuteness of leg warmers on a almost 2 year old, the beauty of a wreath of Euonymus framing Lavender's pretty face, the way sun tea seems to taste better than tea from the kettle, how a puppy looks at you with those big sweet eyes or the way paint dries on tiny hands....
so when words fall short, the camera comes out.
And on snipping pics I will go.

At long last

At very long last these pieces are complete. Now that I have journeyed with these works to a place somewhat resembling completion, I take a step back. I realize that they don't look like too much... in a great way, I think.
What I mean is that throughout history, silhouettes have been used to preserve moments and capture memories. And they always seem to have an unencumbered simplicity about them that communicates nothing but an effortless, humble, everyday kind of beauty. Perhaps this is their nature... they are frank in their intentions, source and purpose... and their very presence is so often a testimony of a familial love. Maybe all these things are why I love them... they are unpretentious and made for a home, the antithesis of a vacant gallery space... and yet they are just as lovely in composition and form as a great work of 'fine art.'

And ya know what the most amusing thing is... hidden behind these simple silhouettes lies hours and hours of studio time, fine paper swatches, beeswax test strips and multiple silhouette sketches. No one will ever know how many 'test runs' were put put to critique and failed before the ones you see made it onto the canvas.
I guess nothing worth doing is ever easy.

Thomas the Train gone wild

This past weekend we took little Laughfer Daffer to the Thomas the Train event at the Chattanooga Railroad (thanks townleys!!!). And as you can see, I got a little camera happy. Maybe I was just a bit too giddy about all the free kiddie activities. The place was totally sensory overload ville.... giant bubble wands, train sets, Thomas tattoos (seemingly temporary), a petting zoo, an inflattable jumper and other stuff... I'm sure the is something that I'm leaving out.... like some poor teenage kid trapped in a giant Sir Toppem Hat costume getting toppelled by an onslaught of pre-schoolers! eh eh eh
And as you can imagine, they loved it.... the funny thing was that I think they liked all the free activities more than they got into the actual train ride, which ya gotta have a ticket for! I guess it's the same as those first christmases... when they like the box more than the actual present... don't ya just love that about little people???
So, for all you Chatt town parents out there... this little outing is definitely worth your while... you just can't beat all that activity filled fun for free yo!

And one last thing... you gotta make sure to think of all your old school photos when you check out that last one of Lavender and Matthew in front of Thomas... totally reminds me of my old prom pics!!!! so funny!!!

This makes me want to make BIG art

'Just her size'

Since this crew spent our little ol' easta sunday making sick couches and tending to snotty noses, my moms and I decided we still had to put those pretty Easter dresses to good use. So, we girls went out for tea. Yep, yep... you guessed it... The English Rose was the spot for such a grand affair... this is Chatt town, where else would we go??  

Anyways... I gotta tell ya, I was a little antsy about this. I had images of tea cups and saucers flying through the air and meany pants looks from stuffy old ladies bouncing around in my head. But, I was delighted to see that all the fears I had built up in my head were fruitless. The ladies in the Rose were happy to have us and my girls just made me proud!
It was so charming to watch Lavender enjoying such finery and being such a little lady. And miss Autumn Marie was so into the little spoonfuls of hot tea we shared. And as I watched my little women soaking up all the lovely little details I re-realized that all those cute dainty things really do communicate such important messages. They say "You are such a very special treasure" and "The everyday does not always have to be so ordinary".  I think for me, in the chaos of flying toys and shouts of 'No' and 'Mine' it is just too easy to coast... to be a bit on autopilot.... to just make sure that everyone gets food and is clean (relatively). 

And when I hear Lavender tell her Daddy about the "tiny teacup that was just her size" I beam.