catching up

goodness...

life has been very busy here... in a good way... but i unintentionally took a long break from this space... and i am so glad to be back.

so, this post will be a bit of a catch up post... some of the busy that we have been up too...

first of all... lets finish up with the "kids" blogger swap

this is maiko's "sent" package... three carved stamps... some nature bits that we grew crystals on... and some other rocks and shells. as you can see, maiko carved the fish stamp on his own (i traced the template onto the carving block for him), he also carved the arrow stamp. i carved the snail (that makes my third snail... and i still do not have one of my own! i think i need to carve myself a snail). this package went all the way to maryland!

the package above is the package layla received. she loves everything so much! maia made layla a knitted snake, and a bracelet... she drew layla a beautiful picture and a card... she sent some pretty nature bits and a little butterfly.... and two hand dyed playsilks. layla has already used the playsilks for everything under the sun... such a thoughtful gift! you can find maia's mama's blog here http://littleleaffibers.wordpress.com/

and below...

is eislee's received package... it came all the way from new york... she loves it so much! julia made her a sweet little bag (and she embroidered those adorable little bugs and flowers on the front) which eislee treasures :) she made eislee a tin of "fairy dust" which is the sparkly purple stuff there (which smells absolutely amazing!), she also made eislee a little journal which i couldn't find when i went to take this picture, and the beautiful painting with a sweet written message on the back. once again, what thoughtful gifts!! you can find julia's mama's blog here http://www.fourwildblueberries.com/

then....

after we finished up with the kid swap.... these adorable puppies arrived.

one had a home waiting for her, but the little boy... well... he was available... and we were feeling we might need to keep him. we puppy sat for a few days and i realized that i was not ready to bring up a puppy, and miraculously the kids were ok with my decision. i think we had him just long enough that the haze of puppy love lifted and reality set in... and we all realized that this was not the right time. although, making that decision was one of the hardest i have made in a long time.

do you remember how i didn't actually receive a blogger swap package myself... well... the swap host amanda from http://www.sweetpotatoclaire.blogspot.com/ sent me a package... a lovely package... one that made my day. she sent me some peppermint lavender lip balm, two beautiful summer colored wash cloths, and the most amazing photo cards (see below)... the one with the little toes and potatoes is my favorite. thank you amanda... now i see how exciting it is to receive a package as well! and tell claire that eislee just loved her card :)

and while all of that was going on...

we have still been steadily chugging along with the "remodel" which seems to be getting bigger and bigger. unfortunately, this is not one of those fun remodels... it is the kind where you discover that you had a leak... and you keep finding more and more damage... and you do a TON of work just to put things back almost exactly the way they were before... ugh!!!

another thing i have been wanting to share with you...

see the sweatshirt below there with the awesome hand sewn owl sketch on the back... well... i am in love with it... and guess what the price was.... $36... i know... and it's a "quality" sweatshirt as well... crazy soft and cute... you can hardly get a plain one for that price. anyway, i thought i would share this shop... it's on etsy... here is the shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/LadyCordeliaDesigns and here is her blog: http://www.ladycordelia.com/my-blog/ she has some really adorable dresses right now too... racer back tank dresses... really cute. also... if you want a different design... just ask her... i requested the owl on my sweatshirt... and i am planning to request a dress with a sun on the front... or maybe a bee... hmm... decisions. thank you cory! i love it so much, and it fits perfectly.

and in the midst of all of this we had a freak heat wave that brought some beautiful summer moments... i plan to share another post in a couple days with many more of the photos below.