A Tuesday Treasure Hunt

I love it when our girls come for a visit and I have some time to go treasure hunting with them.

Tuesday Janice and I grabbed our favorite tunes and our bottled water and set out on an adventure.

A trip to Fryburg, PA to visit the antique shop there was our first stop.

I couldn't pass up this pretty umbrella. I have 2 others, but they are made of paper.

This one is silk.

 Love this little vessel made in occupied Japan.

I believe it is chalk ware.

 This sweet doll has glass eyes. 

The thrift stores we visited were a complete waste of time.

Not a treasure to be had, but that's okay.

After all part of the fun is in the search. If it were easy to find just the thing you're looking for, it wouldn't mean as much. These 3 special treasures will always remind me of great day spent with Janice.

We ate lunch at a diner that had more decorative chickens displayed than you could count. I wish I'd have gotten pictures of all those chickens. It was a little crazy. Aside from the over abundance of chicken decor, the food was home cooking at it's best.

On the long drive home we stopped at a Dairy Queen that was rather frightening.

The landscaping hadn't been tended to in years and everything was all grown over.

The people and the feel of the place was just too creepy.

I was waiting for a zombie to come walking out from behind the counter.

Anyway, it was an interesting day filled with the little things that make good memories.

Good company, good food, good music.

Good Day

karen

Sleepless Night

Over the weekend I dyed a few batches of wool for spinning.

The sun was hot and it dried in no time.

All ready to be spun into yarn.

 Was awake most of the night, so I used the time to do a little spinning.

karen

Hiding In The Gardens

This morning it is sweltering outside already, so it will be a day indoors for me.

I've been enduring the heat and humidity for weeks as I've been outdoors planting and tending the gardens, but it is beginning to make me tired and things are getting quite messy inside.

In the evenings when I can't garden any more I've been doodling. It's something I use to do a lot, but haven't in a while.

Most of my doodles resemble plants I guess. I must have gardens on my mind ; )

Then there are the trees……….

Love this Twisted Baby!

 We've planted 10 trees in the past few days.

There are willows and twisty curvy ones and weepy ones too.

I hope I'm around long enough to see them reach maturity.

These pink leaves are just gorge.

We planted 3 of these.

 The herbs are doing well.

These ones are in the center of the vegetable garden.

The ones around the tub I planted last week and they are taking off already.

My sweet husband came home with this beautiful arbor last week.

I am planning to plant wisteria along the sides.

We will have fresh lettuce from the garden tonight.

And flowers on the table.

I think I will leave the chamomile right where it is beside the daisies.

I just can't stand the thought of cutting it. 

 The rock garden has some interesting plants as well.

Soft short creeping ones 

 and tall sharp ones.

 This popped up out of nowhere and I don't know what it is.

A weed maybe or a remnant of some sort of grass that I planted last year that didn't make it through the winter except for this one lonely sprout?

The mulch is growing it's own interesting fungi from all the rain we've had I suppose.

I'm amazed at how this stuff just shows up over night.

It's been a busy Spring and Summer here so far.

I'm planning to take an evening to visit some of my favorite blogs to see what everyone else has been up to.

As always, thanks for stopping by!!!

karen ann

Growing

Plants 

 Indoors

 And out.

 Even outdoor plants indoors.

And indoor plants outdoors.

Berries from the garden make the best jam.

karen

The Visitor

This morning as I stepped out onto the deck with my cup of lemon ginger tea and my copy of "Artful Blogging", I thought about how lucky I am to live here in the country.

Surrounded by beautiful woods with a lovely creek flowing along the edge of the property.

I felt blessed and content as I sat there sipping my tea.

I looked up for a moment and noticed a flash of white through the deck railing and this is what I saw…

A beautiful white duck just like the one I had as a pet years ago.

I don't know where he came from, but I heard he lives among some downed trees at the edge of the creek.

He seemed to be staying close to the three families of geese that have made their home here.

Probably for protection from the many predators that also share the surrounding woods and creek.

 I do hope he stays a while and takes a swim now and then in the pond.

Sushi the cat, like the white duck, was a visitor who popped in several years ago and decided to stay.

 I love my life in the country and can't imagine ever living elsewhere.

I could never trade my moccasins and the morning dew on the grass for high heels and hard pavement.

The simple pleasures of country living are my happiness.

karen ann

Getting Around To It

Last summer I found this wonderful Dutch Wax Resist fabric at a flea market near Pittsburgh, PA.

Yesterday, I finally got around to using it.

I made these fabulous drapes for my dining room.

I finally got around to hanging my glass star as well.

And replaced the aqua pressed back chair with this bent wood one.

Here's hoping today is just as productive.

karen

On Being Artful

As I sat on the deck this morning with my cup of coffee and my copies of "Artful Blogging" and "Where Women Create", I realized I haven't had much time to be artful or creative lately.

The arrival of warm weather has brought with it outdoor activities in addition to the indoor ones that keep piling up. There just aren't enough hours in a day to accomplish all the things I want to do.

 Gardening has taken priority over spinning and other indoor activities.

These beautiful Cone Flowers are the latest addition to my herb and flower garden.

 I've added some potted moss to my indoor plants

as well as a little Patchouli.

The vegetable garden is in and beginning to sprout and I feel relieved knowing that I can take a step back to admire what I've accomplished.

When you think about it gardening IS "Artful".

karen