Random Bits, and Thanks for the Inspiration

Good Monday morning! Can you believe how quickly March has flown? The sun is shining brightly here and it is in the 40's.  Earl and I took a long walk outside this morning and it felt absolutely heavenly to be walking along, breathing semi-warm fresh air and hearing the birds sing. I believe they were as happy as we were :)

I came home and decided it was time to straighten up the kitchen a bit. It's my favorite place to be in the morning because of the east facing windows, The sun just streams in and lights up the room in my favorite light. I think morning light is the best.

I washed a batch of eggs and put them in this jadeite bowl. I have to admit, I miss the days of coloring eggs with the girls when they were little. It's not the same just doing it myself. But I will say, since we keep chickens that lay so many shades of brown and blue eggs I really think it is hard to beat them for beauty.

 Fresh pink carnations in the basket by the sink. ♥

 This weekend I decided I needed to lighten things up for Spring.  These checked curtains from the thrift store are fine, but I needed a change.

 So, I dug through my fabric stash and found this lime green ticking stripe. I knew it was just what I needed.  I am on such a "spring green" kick right now. I had just enough for a simple valance for both windows. 

  I found a pale green china cup and filled it with some green and white flowers and tucked in a little nest and eggs. I hung it from the corner of the window from a satin ribbon and it makes me smile every time I go in the kitchen.

 The funny part of this post is that, because I was sharing the kitchen, I really ended up doing a much more thorough job cleaning than I had planned.  The dirty windows had been driving me crazy all winter and since I was showing you the curtains I felt I just HAD to wash them.. I washed them inside, got the ladder and washed them outside, then came in and realized they were still dirty inside, washed them again and realized there were some streaks I missed outside. That is the story every time I wash windows. What am I doing wrong when there continue to be streaks? Then when I edited the photos I realized with the light coming I probably could have left them dirty since the light washes out any detail you would see, including dirty windows!  Lol.  I will absolutely redo them when I do the rest of the windows this spring. In the meantime, shhhh, it's our little secret ;)...and thanks for the inspiration to get them as clean as I did.  Lastly, I have one more fun spring design in the etsy shop.  I love the bright colors and fun message. 

I hope you are all enjoying sunshine and warmer temps. Have a great week! What are your plans for Easter?

Spring

 Spring has sprung! We have fairly consistent highs in the 40's now, and while that may seem wintery to those of you in warmer climates, it is heavenly here in Michigan after a winter of consistent temps considerably below zero. I have been outside without my coat and it makes me so happy! I am slowly adding bits of green and spring to the house.  I found some silk flowers left over from wedding decorations last summer and took the arrangements apart to stuff into this old green vase.  You would think that after all that winter white that brighter colors would be what I was drawn to. But the white and green somehow say Spring to me.

 I added this little mossy nest and twigs to the arrangement, along with a blue egg that I found in my stash of Spring decorations.  The lime and turquoise are so fresh together. I love it.

 Although the sunshine and balmy 45 degree temps say spring, alas, the yard and garden are still quite desolate. Thank goodness for grocery store flowers.  The last remnants of some lilies reside in the basket next to the sink...along with the gingerbread boy soap dispenser that holds the dish soap. Hmmmm, it may be time to look for a different dispenser? You have to admit though, the little guy looks so happy.

 I have begun Bible journaling.  I had a group of ladies over to my house a couple weeks ago to show them what I have learned and just as fun time together.  It was great to get to know them better and I am finding that journaling really slows me down in my study of the Bible.  It gives me the opportunity to really think about the verse and as I illustrate it, it is easier for me to remember. You can check out my Pinterest Bible journaling board here.

 I found most of the goodies that I used at Michaels and Joann Fabrics for 50 cents to a dollar each.  It doesn't have to be expensive.  The watercolor set was about $5 and I love the colors. A lot of the washi tape was 2 in a pack at Joann's on sale for 50 cents a pack.  It's the first time I have used any and I can see how some of you have started a collection! I have done so much of my design work on the computer I started to feel that I was losing my skills in hand lettering and drawing, this gets me back to that and gives me some practice that I was sorely missing. 

So there you have it. I'm back.  I know, it had been a while, and I am still working on a giveaway to celebrate 8 years of blogging. I'll be getting that posted soon.  What does Spring hold for you? Feeling overwhelmed? (I admit, I am a little, with spring cleaning, etsy, and so many other things and a certain lack of get up and go.) Are you planning a garden? So tell me, what are your Spring plans?

'Nuff Said

Back soon ;)