I get a little happy excited when I think about tiny boxes filled with sparkly, glittery things...and its getting closer now! I recently finished up an order for these wintry white mushroom ornaments. And this minty, sparkly sweet deer ornament was something I started last winter but didn't finish until well after Christmas and didn't photograph until just the other day...but it's now in my shop too.
The weekend was good and laid back...the first one that's felt like this in a long while. 
I made some chocolate covered strawberries for a friend's wife's birthday.
I hadn't made them in a looong time... I forgot how good these are!
Also, I finished my project for little baby's room. Remember these old frames? I decided to pretty much leave them as is except for a bit of sanding (originally I had planned to paint them but decided I liked the natural/rustic wood look best...it complements the brown accents and juxtaposes nicely with all the crisp white in his nursery). As you can see, I have a little bit of a "deer" theme going. I searched for vintage children's books containing deer illustrations to find a good picture for the bottom left frame...and luckily I came across a great book at my local thrift shop that had a neat cover illustration. The book must have been in a library at one time as there was plastic over the paper jacket cover. So when I took off the plastic it was still in great condition! The other two frames contain some patterned paper topped off with handcut things...a deer silhouette and the letter "A" in a light green paper...It's a little hard to see in this photo...but I'm so happy with how it all turned out!
For some reason, I've been doing a lot of baking lately...more than usual, especially with the new baby. Recently I made Chocolate Chip cookies, Ciabatta bread, Apple Pie, Pecan Mandelbrot, and Cinnamon Rolls from scratch. Perhaps its the weather which has been downright chilly, almost wintry at times. Last week we spotted our first snowflakes gathering slightly on the deck. The deer are starting to show their faces again in our woods. And last weekend we caught a glimpse of the long white feet of a snowshoe hare. (Their furry coats turn from brown to all white in the winter.) I did some baking too partly because my mom was up for a visit last week. She came bearing a big bag of freshly picked Haralson apples. We did some tag-team baking which is best when there is a little baby around. I made the crust and streusel topping, she made the apple filling. And perhaps I've been baking more because I'd been reading the latest Amish novel by Beverly Lewis. She is always writing about delicious sounding things they are baking up and I think it soaks into my fiber a little as well. The characters are often sharing these baked goodies with their neighbors and extended family too...which makes me want to do this more often with my neighbors. So banana bread is up next on the baking agenda. (The aging bananas on my counter are dictating this one.)
Lately I've been thinking how much I love being a mom too. I think I love it even more than I thought I would. I remember the day I felt thoroughly like I was a real true "mom". It was the Saturday morning that Hub and I took little Bub to get his 3 month photos taken at JCPenney because we had a coupon and then afterwards ran some errands. I picked up some bags of frozen vegetables...something I never used to buy (except for frozen peas because they're best that way) but now I thought they'd be nice to have on hand in a pinch. I don't know...photos at JCPenney and frozen vegetables sounded and felt very "mommy-ish" to me at the time. 
...just a few photos to share of my finished fox wedding cake topper. This may be my favorite fox topper yet as I liked how the colors came together, especially the buttercreamy color of the foxes.
Today was a day I wanted to lock tight forever in my memory.
To always remember the way the wind blew through the trees, dry leaves rustling and blowing...
the flowers turned to soft puffs of white... 
my little garden sorely neglected this summer, now overrun with leaves... 
the blue of the sky, the perfect warmth of the sun...
the content feeling of my little one riding snug against my belly in the babybjorn, holding his tiny fingers and knowing he was just as content and happy to be outside on this perfect day too... 
showing him our colorful Maple, just a bit past peak...
to enjoy each day, always remembering each day is a blessing, a gift...realizing anew that I have it so good to be able to enjoy each day, each moment with my little one, beginning to see them different and new through his eyes... 
I think (hope) I'm getting better at letting things go, taking each day as it comes, and enjoying each moment...because they are so fleeting.
Getting back "in the studio" again after a looong break...now with a sweet baby at my feet! Here are a couple snippets of a new wedding cake topper in the works...another foxy couple. I don't think I've lost my touch (I was a little worried)...but it feels nice to work with colors & papers & glue & wire again!
enjoying the last things of summer lately...like the first tomatoes, homemade basil pesto, pushing a baby stroller on a sunny walk, snipping the last blush roses from our bushes out front to bring inside.
...and finally, enjoying the ideas brewing for new things to make to decorate his nursery walls...like incorporating the vintage frames (above) that I just recently thrifted.
And not just any roses...but the most beautiful, big (I mean "big-as-cereal-bowls" sized) pretty pink roses I've ever received. Hub gave them to me one week ago today to celebrate and signify nine wonderful years together. And as we start year ten with a new addition to our family, we're so excited about this "new chapter" (as hub called it) in our marriage. I feel so blessed!
