Traveling Owls...

{on the dock}

Summer is the time when we find ourselves very often packing up the car and heading out on open roads, be it north along the North Shore of Lake Superior to enjoy some hiking or biking, south down to the Cities, or west along pretty little country roads, just one stoplight the entire way, as we make our way to the cabin.

This weekend, we little “owls” were away at the lake again, enjoying some good quality family time too. I was being, well, strange and photographing this cute little owl couple in different woodsy locations, collecting specimens, and taking many, many lovely walks with Mum. Hub was out fishing the entire windy weekend. And we even enjoyed some fine cabin dining too. See? {on a mossy rock}
{on a tree stump}
{amidst the lovely Linnea flower vine}

{Linnea flower specimen, above & below, a beautiful sweet-smelling tiny twinflower}
And finally...

...the "fine dining" I was talking about...everyone departed from the long makeshift table in the garage, but Mum...who was still thoroughly enjoying her coffee. :)

All in all a very good weekend. How was yours?

Growing & Blooming {garden photo gallery}

Growing flowers and plants is really growing on me. ;) And it seems Hub and I attempt to grow more each year. This summer is no exception with the huge landscaping project we did to the front of our house in May and my new little garden in the woods. It's fun to watch the plants flourish and grow and bloom...to see them bloom for the first time!

The photo above shows the trellis I recently made from twigs & sticks to support our newly purchased Pink Champagne Clematis. I just hope it lasts through the summer!
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Along with the joys of gardening I'm daily learning about the defeats and frustrations as well which seem to be all too often. We had a strange bug boring holes right through the center of otherwise perfect rosebuds...we've had spittle bugs (gross little green bugs that create a mess on your plants that, yes, actually looks like spit)...a deer ravaged one of my Astilbe plants...not to mention the new Plum Pudding Coral Bell plant I bought that doesn't seem to want to do anything but shrivel and perhaps is silently pleading for me to move it to a more shady spot...and despite the awesome ;) little trellis I made, the Pink Champagne Clematis also doesn't want to do much of anything either...like just growing would be nice...so perhaps it needs more sunlight?

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Below, a few more photos from around my garden (although a couple weeks delayed as things seem to be growing and changing faster than I can keep up with!)...

{Chives} The flowers on my Chives as they are about to burst open...I grew these from seed in a pot about 2 years ago...you know, one of those itty bitty little pots about the size of your thumb that you can get from Target...and at the end of summer I threw the practically dead thing casually into the woods to get rid of it. Then, last spring I noticed it alive and thriving! And this year they are flowering! Nature is so resilient!

{Moss Roses} I adore Moss Roses for their laid-back beauty and variety of colors...I bought these this spring and planted them in few different spots...here they are in my little garden in the woods growing over some large rocks.

{Hen & Chicks} I was adamant that I wanted to plant some Hen & Chicks in our landscaping...anywhere. I love them. They send off new little rosettes that sprawl and crawl out over the rocks.

{Roses} Our roses are now all opening...we bought 3 rosebushes to put in our landscaping and this was taken when the buds were just starting to come. I'll have to take some new photos of them now in their full glory. I ooh and ahh at them each time I walk past...despite the few that had holes bored into them.

{Pink Beauty Potentilla} Another of our landscaping plants... a flower just about to open.

{Pink Beauty Potentilla} When fully opened...they lose that rich, saturated pink hue they had when just opening but are still very pretty nonetheless.

{Wild Strawberry Plants} Dainty, pretty little flowers...I had many of these blooming around my garden in the woods that I just couldn't bear to weed out because their flowers and foliage was too pretty...even though they're too small to really get berries.

{Jack-in-the-Pulpit} One of the sweetest plants ever, I really do think. So exotic, almost tropical looking... We often see these growing wild around the trails & creek nearby our house but have yet to find any on our own property...until yesterday. I spied the 3 big showy leaves poking out on the edge of the woods and hoped instantly that it would be one...to my delight it was!{Salvia} Mum brought these up when they came up to visit a few weeks back. She is one of the big instigators in expanding our garden, by the way. She likes to get dirty and happily planted them for me up by the road.
{Salvia + Dianthus + Nasturtiums} An arial view of the little plot she planted...I added the rock...looks to me like one big smiley face right now, don't you think?

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P.S...And if you've made it this far on this LONG post (sorry ~ but I hope you have), you'll have to hop over to Little Lovelies right now!...such a sweet, pretty, & inspiring blog that I LOVE visiting each day...I have a little animated ad/badge thing on her sweet blog and I couldn't be more pleased with how Nadine put this together! (Merci, Nadine!) And while you're at it, go take a look at her brand new fabulous Etsy shop too...this girl is talented! :)

Map Postcard {a tiny story}

While shopping at my newly found favorite antique shop down in the Cities last week, I came across a neat old postcard with cute little illustrations of a hunter, pheasant, deer, fisherman, etc... Of course I was drawn to it because it's a map of the region where we live. Plus it was in great condition and I thought it would be fun to frame and hang up in our guest room. And an added bonus is what's written on the back...postmarked in 1947 the writer starts out...

Dear Ethel,

You never said you liked map cards but I thought this one would be interesting...

She goes on to say...

Yes, I think Minnesota is pretty country but oh so cold in winter! Too bad we aren't all rich so we could go south with the birds!
I found it funny because who ever says they like "map cards"? Maybe in 1947 they did? But her statement about Minnesota winters and flying south couldn't be more true!

Yes, I know...I'm easily amused. ;)

happy father's day...

I couldn't help but post this cute old snapshot of my dad with his fancy Corvette...

Was this your very first one?

Thanks for all you do and have done for me!

~xoxo~

cabin sweet cabin...

Long weekend. Gentle breezes. Warm sun. Water softly lapping against the rocky shore. Rocky dock. Lazy fish. Cabin clothes. Toes dangling into chilly water. Carefree laughter. Early firecrackers snapping nearby. Piles of firewood. Dinner beside a smoky bonfire. Stunning sunsets. Tall trees. Overabundance of spider webs. Wildflowers. Old fishing boat. Sunburned shoulders. Walks down the dirt road lined with old cabins and random gardens. Painted turtles, Bald Eagles, baby ducklings. Ant hills. Dogs barking. Simple meals. Grilling. No phones, computer, or TV (or very, very little). Coffee on the dock in the morning. Sweet, peaceful days.

Little Reasons Why...

...my Hub is the best...

1. He leaves me sweet little surprises for no apparent reason...accompanied by sweet little handmade cards.

2. He knows me so well that he knows just what kind of music I'd probably like...even before I do.

3. He always updates my iPod for me.

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{By the way, the CD is amazing...}

PaperWork {the good kind}

PaperWork {the good kind}

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A new LillyBonBon line coming to the shop ALL through the week! Gift tags...featuring original LBB papercut designs, entirely handcut... lovely ribbons, twine, and other sweet little details...

Go take a gander if you're so inclined... Merci!

Baby Birds

While out in my little garden in the woods in the late afternoon sun, pondering where to place some more rocks I had found, I heard the tiniest of tweets. Not quite a tweet really but more a series of small squeaks or chirps. I looked up and just overhead was a tiny, fluffy bird clinging to the side of a tree. I thought it was a baby White-Breasted Nuthatch and as I drew closer, my suspicions were confirmed when I saw its soft newborn feathers and pale coloring...along with its unsuspecting, almost curious manner. Moments later more little baby Nuthatches were squeaking about me, while Mama Nuthatch flew busily about, poking and searching for food in the tree crevices for them.

Now I may have been mistaken but it almost seemed as though these babies were intentionally coming closer to me. Because as I walked through the woods, another little bird would fly towards me and land on a branch just inches away, looking at me in an almost quizzical manner, as if to say, do you have some food for me? I could be wrong, but that's how it appeared!

New Papercutting Things...

Just a few photos to share a couple of new things:

Above, "take me to the woods"...original layered papercutting in shadowbox frame (8" x 8")

Below, a close up...(I had some difficulty photographing this since its under glass...glares and reflections and whatnot so the photos aren't the best.) Below, a new votive..."honey honey mod papercut votive" (3" x 3.25")
The open honeycomb pattern is cut from one continuous piece of paper that almost wraps around the entire votive.Sweet when lit.
Oh, and just noticed it on the Storque (Etsy's blog) today too. Go take a look here. Don't you love Etsy's blog articles?
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P.S. Listening to her while working today...

Hope you're having a wonderful Wednesday!

More Soon!

Weekend Journal {Wild Loveliness}

This time of year, when Spring is just waiting on the doorstep of Summer, is so beautiful here. Although the weather hasn't been too exceptionally warm yet, and we've had to cover plants and bring in planters due to cold nights more than I'd like...I still find myself outside most every chance I get.

Last weekend was no exception. Friday found us at the driving range, practicing my swing. And then an impromptu hike afterwards in search of morels...again, no luck...but perhaps its been too chilly. We did find some wild asparagus and fiddlehead ferns though, a nice compromise. And I will admit that I "cheated" earlier in the week and bought dried morels. So a wild spring dinner was born. Hub invented something new...baked chicken breasts stuffed with blue cheese, walnuts, and some herbs...drizzled with fresh lemon juice and more herbs on top. I had the easy job (but what I always do) of making my roasted garlic mash (see below for recipe).

Mum & Dad were here visiting for the rest of the weekend and we took plenty of walks and more hikes through the woods. Mum & I discovered lovely Wild Sarsaparilla and some odd but pretty pink pinecones. We planted flowers together in my garden and enjoyed sitting on the front porch, basking in the landscaping loveliness...(tired of hearing about that yet?). ;)

Sunday ended rainy and stormy with Hub and I snuggled on the couch together watching an old Hitchcock movie (The 39 Steps...love it!). So creating and making and working on projects has been put to the wayside, as I'd rather be outside most often. I do have a few new things to share though...hopefully soon. Oh, and do be sure to try that garlic mash below...so, so seriously good!
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Roasted Garlic Mash

Cut off the top of a whole garlic bulb, just to expose all the cloves. Set in a dish lined with tinfoil and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Wrap foil up around garlic and pop in the oven at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour. Let cool and then squeeze the cloves up and out of the bulb. Put cloves on a cutting board, season a bit more, add some herbs if you like (thyme is good) and mash with a fork. Scrape up and put in a little dish. Drizzle with more good olive oil and a hint of truffle oil if you’ve got it…then spread onto good, crusty baguette slices.