sharing the giveaway love

It's fall in Montana.

A very pretty fall, in fact.


But for the moment, forget about fall and start thinking Christmas because my vintage loving,  pretty pillow making friend Amy, is having a giveaway.

And it's not just an ordinary giveaway.

It is quite possibly the coolest giveaway ever.

I want it.

I want it a lot.


A couple years ago, Amy made a very cool Christmas tree out of vintage Christmas ornaments.

It was very creative and very pretty and I immediately made plans to find an old window screen and craft my very own vintage ornament Christmas tree.

I'll give you three guesses as to my progress on that front.

But, here's the fabulous news.  Amy has made another beautiful vintage ornament tree and is giving it away on her blog.

Giving!

It!

Away!

To one of us!

So, if you would like to have your very own, one of a kind work of vintage Christmas art, pop on over to Amy's blog to enter yourself in the giveaway.

Happy Monday!

  Crisp, clear afternoons and beautiful, vibrant colors.

It will all be over soon, but for now, I'm loving these color-filled days.

How about you? Are you having a beautiful fall?

Chilly mornings?

Blue skies?

Or are you having drizzly, cozy, make a pot of soup days?

Indulge my inner weather geek and tell me what it's like at your house!

don't give up on us baby

Have you totally given up on me?

If you haven't, you probably should.


I have truly lost my blogging mojo, but once I'm through my busy senior photography season, I'm going to try my best to get my sorry self back on the blogging bandwagon.

But don't hold your breath.

These beauties are just a few of the darling girls I've had the privilege to photograph this year.


I've had an absolute blast with my girls this year.  Montana girls are the best.  They'll go anywhere and they're game for pretty much anything.

Sit in the river at sunrise?  Yes Ma'am!

(This one calls me Ma'am.)

(Not quite sure what I think about that.)

(This is her "I know the morning light is beautiful, but this water is cold and I can't feel my legs" look.)


If she seems a bit familiar, it's because you've seen her here.

And here.

And....here.

And now here!

It's been impossible to pick favorite sessions this year.  They've all been fun and very, very different.


Thanks for hanging in there with me through my slump/break/slacker fest.

Truly, you haven't missed much as the deer ate pretty much my entire garden this year, and for the last two months, all the local scenery has been hidden by thick wildfire smoke.  The skies are just now starting to clear, so hopefully they stay that way and we'll be able to enjoy a beautiful fall.

Remember Ceili?  We've already done two extremely fun sessions and have plans for more in the beautiful fall color.


Until we meet again........

Peace.


p.s. Bonus points to anyone who can name the artist who sang my post title song without looking it up on the internet!

hazy lazy days

Do you ever have days where you feel like this little guy?

Or girl?  It's kind of hard to tell, but he just kind of seems like a boy to me.


My sister claims this is how she looks before she has her morning coffee.

Scary.

Watching this little nest was definitely a highlight of my summer.

The weather has been gorgeous.

I've got the most outrageous farmer's tan ever.

I've made a point of choosing my porch swing over my computer screen, and that's been a good thing.
 

But, I can already feel a change in the air.

The nights are crisper.

The flowers are fading.

There's a 36 degree morning in the forecast.

I want to make sure to catch every last second of my very favorite time of year while I can.


How about you?

Has it been a good summer at your house?

Are you ready for fall with its cool, crisp days?

Or are you like me,  hanging on to these last hazy days with all your might?

Chime in with your favorite season and then go have yourself a great Thursday!

God Bless America

Happy Fourth of July!

summer bucket list

In the last seven weeks, I've....


.....blatantly ignored all feelings of blogging obligation.

Until today, that is.

The month is almost over, and as this has been an especially gorgeous June, I don't want to let it pass without giving the garden a pictorial shout out.


Also? In the last seven weeks I've turned into a total flake and have neglected to respond to emails and comments from some of y'all wondering if I'm still alive and well.

I am indeed alive and well and have been thoroughly enjoying a blogging vacay.

It's been fabulous.


Also, also? Until I noticed how the peonies were accosting my beloved aqua motel chair, my camera hasn't seen a whole lot of action lately.

Thankfully, I finally got my photography act together the very day before a freak windstorm turned my pretty peony flowers into pretty peony confetti.


This year, I made a summer bucket list and the more checks I can make on that list, the better.


My list includes.....

* Read the entire Harry Potter series whilst comfortably settled in my porch swing.

I'm a big Harry fan and I'm looking forward to summer afternoons with Neville, Luna and Snape.


* Go on a weekly hike with my hubby.


* Make a quilt for the guest room.

(Note to self... Don't let the fact that you've started several other quilts and massive quantities of other sewing projects that have never made it to completion stop you from spending lots and lots AND LOTS of money on fabric and totally deluding yourself into thinking that this time might actually be different and you might actually make the aforementioned guest room quilt.)

After all, summer is for dreaming, right?


* Go to as many outdoor vintage/antique shows as humanly possible.

I've got four on the schedule so far.


* Master a new photography skill. Backlighting is number one on my list.


* Visit Glacier National Park. I've lived in Montana for twelve years and it's about time I see what all the fuss is about.


* Face Pinterest addiction head on. Check into local support groups.


* Sit on the dock barefoot for five minutes each day in an attempt to mellow out my flip flop tan lines.


* Literally and figuratively stop and smell the roses.


So, that's my plan for the next couple months.

What's on your bucket list this summer?

forget me not

Aren't these little blue blossoms adorable?

Forget Me Nots are one of my favorite springtime flowers, as they make the garden look like it's floating in a pale blue mist.


Most years, we don't really seem to have much of a spring here in our part of Montana, but this year it's been downright glorious.

Big stretches of gorgeous, sunny days, and so far, no freak snowstorms.

But there's still plenty of time for that kind of nonsense.


My onions are planted, I'm desperately trying to get ahead of the flower beds, and the greenhouse is bursting at the seams.

I have great plans to be reasonable with the number of flowers I plant this year, so I only planted five hundred zinnias. I've also determined that I can do without one of my oak barrels, (it rotted and fell apart) and two medium sized clay pots, the contents of which did not survive the winter in the greenhouse.

Impressive, yes?

It feels so good to be cutting back.


I'm hitting the road today with my two younger boys. We're making a quick trip to see my parents. It will be so nice to be with my Mama for Mother's Day.

Have yourself a wonderful weekend!