Lovely World

new year

Do you like my watercolor sketches? I have many ideas of things to paint - and much to learn about how to paint. I am practicing a little bit every day. (p.s. That is a smudge above the girl's head, not a rain storm blowing in.)

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HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of my blog friends and readers. I so appreciate this space and all that you share with me. Thank you so much!

2011 A year for:

• Gratitude
• Generosity
• Teaching myself to draw and paint (watercolors)
• Loosening up
• Learning more about pattern making (especially for sewn animals)
• Exploring ways to collaborate and share creatively with others
• Reading one book each week

festival of lights

We have had a busy time celebrating this Hanukkah week. We attended a potluck party at our synagogue on Friday evening, and last night we hosted our annual Hanukkah party. This is always fun. The adults indulge in good food and talk, and the large gang of kids have a great time sitting together to eat at the "children's table" and planning and putting on a play about the Hanukkah story. They take great liberties in their dramatic retelling, and the costuming was quite spectacular this year. The adults also engaged in some intense dreidel game playing after dinner. Much chocolate gelt was consumed.

indoor plants

These illustrations are from the book my mother gave me for my birthday last week. It is called "The Complete Guide to Indoor Plants" and is written by Eigil Kiaer. The illustrations are by Ellen Backe. The book was published in Denmark. It is amazingly beautiful.

I have been thinking of making some soft sculpture flowers and plants. These leaves are a part of that experiment.

I just finished a very busy week of work, work, work. It feels good to be back here making a post.

My mother tucked this photo under the ribbon of my birthday gift. It shows me cutting my cake on the occasion of my 5th birthday (in 1971!). Don't you love my graphic red, white, and blue dress? And the pig tails? I'll bet I had just received that wrist watch as a gift. That is my lovely 6-year-old sister looking on. Where has the time gone? My kids are older than this now.

celebratory give-away

This is my 200th post, and September marks the second-year anniversary of my LOVELY blog. I very much enjoy this space. It is a creative outlet, a place to organize my thinking, and a connection to many, many wonderful people.

I wasn't exactly sure what I was looking for when I began this blog. I was in transition, just finishing treatment for breast cancer. On somewhat of a whim, I purchased a brand new Bernina sewing machine. I had done a lot of crafting and sewing in college and had made quilts through my twenties. But, my creative life had just about dried up as I focused on my work as a midwife and began raising my children. Perhaps it was the cancer diagnosis that led me to reexamine my life and priorities. Perhaps it was the fact that my children had grown out of babyhood and the intensity of mothering had calmed a bit. Whatever the case, I am thankful for the time I now spend on my creative work as well as exploring the loveliness of the world around me - be that a perfect pinecone I find on a walk in the woods or an old art book I come across at a secondhand bookshop. It is this attitude and perspective that I want to share in my blog.

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To help me celebrate this little blog anniversary, I would like to give away two items I have made:

Shimmering Fabric Fish

and

Starburst Crochet-Covered Stone

There will be two winners - one for the fish and one for the stone.

Please leave a comment with a way to contact you if you would like to be included in the give-away. Also, please feel free to share a link back to this on your own blog. I would like to include as many people as possible in my blog party! I will choose the winners on Sunday, September 5.

Thank you, dear readers! XO Maribeth

(PS. My fish is flying under the lovely cloud I purchased from La Casita!)

*****THE COMMENTS ARE NOW CLOSED. I'LL BE BACK WITH THE WINNERS IN THE MORNING!*****

fair

We went to the agricultural fair in Cummington, MA this weekend. I believe it is the oldest continuously-running small fair in the country. We brought my nieces with us, and that made it quite a fun time for the kids. There were rides (which I never go on because I get seriously motion sick), all sorts of animals, cattle and horse draws, amazing displays of vegetables and flowers (check out the canning display above), lots of fair food (fresh cut french fries and lemonade were our favorites), entertainers, an antique tractor parade, and much more. I liked the collection of "Pinecones of America" that someone entered in the fair (it won a blue ribbon!). It reminded me of my own recent pinecone making. Also, the bottom photo shows the kids at the Westfield River. It was such a glorious day that we stopped for a swim before the fair.

Two things of note:

(1) There was a demolition derby Friday evening. I have never been to one of these before. It was quite odd watching cars drive around crashing into each other. The kids and my husband thought it quite thrilling. I was worried most of the time about the drivers getting injured. I will not go out of my way to attend such an event again.

(2) There was a small building dedicated to homing pigeons. These birds were so beautiful. There were members of the regional homing pigeon club giving out information and showing off the birds. I was fascinated by the animals and the way they are raced. They can find their way home from over 600 miles away. I don't think I'm going to pick this up as a hobby - but I did admire the birds.

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The talented Lucy of A Black Pepper is having a sweet give-away! Check it out.

birthday boy

Happy birthday to my little boy.

Today you are 7.

You are busy, kind, a good friend.

I told you to stop growing so fast. You said you'd try, but you didn't think you could. That is okay. I enjoy watching you become the person that you are meant to be.

birthday girl

Let's jump for joy! 

Happy Birthday to my dear daughter.

You are 10!

You are growing up, and I'm glad to be witness to your journey.

I love you.

birthday

Happy Birthday to my husband.

Here's to a happy and healthy year. I love you.

sister

Happy Birthday to my sister Suzanna. She has always been the little sister, coming along when my other siblings and I were well into our school years. She had a curly mass of blonde hair when she was little, and was always busy trying to keep up with the rest of us. She is now a beautiful woman, raising four children. I wish her all the best today and for the coming year.

{The above photos were taken in 1976, when Suzanna was 2 years old. That was the year I turned 10. My daughter Miriam will be 10 this year. I paused to look at this old self for quite a while, trying to remember that time. I'm the shorter of the two girls in the top photo and the one on the back of the horse in the bottom photo (I can't remember why we were on that horse!). My other sister Wendy is a year older than me. The top photo also features my brother and our family's dog and cat.}

holiday

 

Today I clean up (slowly, as I'm a wee bit tired) from the busyness of the past few days. Our Passover seder went well. Good company, delicious food, lots of children. The children put on a dramatic rendition of the Passover story - costumes, props, and much improvisation. Most all of our holiday celebrations are now accompanied by some sort of dramatical performance. A great tradition. Some friends stayed on quite late, and we talked and laughed and relaxed. I realize how rarely I do that anymore. Before I had kids, it was easy to stay up late. Now, sleep seems the luxury.

On Sunday, my mother had a family party at her house. That too was a nice time to catch up with each other, and remark how much all the children had grown. Holidays mark time, and I see the passing of that time most clearly at these family get-togethers.

I took the top photo at my mother's house. The bottom one is of our seder table.