Thursday, October 27, 2011

Words from Hopi Native American Elders


These words were shared with me by my amazing yoga teacher, Peter Guinosso.  Just yesterday, he helped me move through some of the toughest emotions I've ever felt.  To me, these words speak to surrender, acceptance and gratitude.  So beautiful. 

"You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour
Now you must go back and tell the people that this is The Hour.

Here are the things that must be considered:
Where are you living? What are you doing? What are you relationships?
Are you in right relation?  Where is your water? Know our garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.  Create your community.  Be good to each other.  And do not look outside yourself for the leader.  This could be a good time!

There is a river flowing very fast.
Is is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel like they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.
Know the river has its destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off toward the middle of the river, keep our eyes open and our heads above water.
See who is there with you and celebrate.
At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all ourselves!
For the moment we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.
The time of the lonely wolf is over.  Gather yourselves!
Banish the word “struggle” from your attitude and vocabulary.
All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.
We are the ones we have been waiting for."

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

A Quote

"That it will never come again 
Is what makes life so sweet." -Emily Dickenson

Thursday, July 21, 2011

CD Sleeves

Our wonderful wedding photographer, Erin Leppo, recently requested custom CD sleeves from me!  I was so excited that she asked me to do this, especially since I've made collage-style CD inlay cards before, but didn't really know where to start with this project.  After trying a few different things on my own, I found this video for how to make a sleeve that can hold 2 CDs.   So I took a trip to Paper Source and bought some pretty paper and got started.  I sent some photos to Erin and although she liked them, suggested some lace or something else to fancy them up a little.  I agreed they needed some texture and this is what I came up with.  I think they turned out really cute!  I really enjoy playing with all the different colors combinations; my only complaint is there isn't enough different paper to keep me interested for long periods of time.   I'm looking forward to possibly  going to the vintage paper fair next month...

Sunday, June 5, 2011


"Sometimes I need
only to stand
wherever I am
to be blessed."

~Mary Oliver

Monday, May 30, 2011

A Beautiful Poem

I first saw this poem on the bedroom door of an old housemate of mine, Kristan Willits.  She happened to be a big part of my life at the time, and an ally on my spiritual path.  I've recently delved back into that part of my life and feel a succession of quote and poem posting coming on...
 
The Sun Never Says

Even after all this time
The sun never says to the earth,
"You owe Me."

Look what happens with
A love like that,
It lights the Whole Sky. 

~Hafiz

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Gettin' Knitty Wit It


Knitting makes me happy.  So I knit.  A lot.  It's good.  One day I hope to design my own patterns, but for now I'm a big fat copycat!  And I'm okay with that, for now.  Here are a few sampling of the items I've knitted in the past few months.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Gettin' Organized!

My mother-in-law got me the coolest gift for Christmas: a new P-touch!  I'm a big fan of being organized; I mean, how else do you find anything?  Our junk drawer has been overflowing and caked with gross leaky pens and melted cough drops with rubber bands stuck in them and for way too long.  And let's not forget to mention the cabinets stuffed with rags, shopping bags, tissue paper, and gift bags falling out every time we open them only to fail in finding the scissors or tape.  But no more!  I only wish I had taken "before" pictures!  Thanks, Victoria, for knowing what I needed more than I did! :)

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Mzungu in Zanzibar!

On our first night in Zanzibar, we went to the local outdoor food court for dinner.  It was a lively setting right on the water and the food displays were beautiful.  We got a plateful of fish from our first friend, pictured on the next page, and within minutes of sitting down to eat we were approached by three 14 year-old boys who wanted to practice their English with us.   Not 2 minutes into the conversation, the boys invited us to their village.  We had to explain to them that in our culture, we don't go to stranger's homes.  I was pretty embarrassed to admit it, but we wanted them to understand why we couldn't immediately say yes.  But sure enough, after about an hour of great conversation, we agreed to meet up with them the next day to walk the 45 minutes to their village.  Mzungu is the local word for "white person".  It is not a pejorative term, most of the time, but it is ubiquitous.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Thank-You-Card-Makin'-Machine!

This summer, I bought a huge stack of this cool textured paper from the the depot for creative reuse, along with some beautiful vintage wallpaper (looks like it was hand painted!) and some new paper and stamps from the Paper Source.  All this supplemented with magazines, catalogs, CD inlay cards, and other random paper, my crafting desk has been a factory of envelopes, envelopes liners, and cards ever since.  I love all the colors and textures.  Don't know that I'll ever be able to buy pre-made cards again...

Thursday, November 4, 2010

"bon-eevair"

my new favorite band: a cat-loving man (who also happens to be cute and called justin) from wisconsin and three of his buddies =bon iver.  beautiful, haunting, heartwrenching guitar melodies that make you FEEL.  comparable to iron and wine.  really good stuff!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Sneak Peek!

These are the teasers from our photographer; can't wait to see the rest!

I really like how this photo turned out.  It's sweet, and I love the quilt, made by my great grandmother... but I felt so awkward sitting like that, I mean, who sits like that?  And does anyone else notice something funny about this photo?

Saturday, October 30, 2010

1979 Was a Good Year...




Hit the Jackpot!!

On October 16, 2010 I married my partner of the past 3 years...

Not only do I feel blessed to have found the love of my life, but I have the added bonus of being embraced by a wonderful, fun, tight-knit family!  Thanking my lucky stars!!