Four years in the making...

My blog birthday post is always one of my favorites to compile. I love looking through the blog posts from the last year and re-living the highlights. This blog is truly a creative diary for me. Looking back at the last four years gives me so much joy. To have this format to share my life with so many others and find so many like-minded people never ceases to amaze me! If you'd like to get all caught up, see my first birthday post, my second, my third and now here is my fourth! What a fun ride it's been. Thank you to all my blog reader's. You inspire me and motivate me to keep sharing myself authentically in this little corner of blogland. I'd love to hear about what have been some of your favorite things about visiting this blog. It's also become my tradition to share photos of my favorite local inspiration spot Nature's Harvest in my birthday post. All photos are from their marvelous store. There are also lots of links embedded to link you over to my other posts over the last year. Enjoy!

This year I created one of my favorite scrapbooks ever. I printed out over a hundred pictures of my favorite estate sale finds and compiled them all together along with a bit of journaling about where I found the item or what it's significance is. I love how it turned out!

I shared 16 random things about myself here.

My big project for the year was my Year of Color blog. It was a lot of work and a ton of fun. I hope that those of you that have been involved enjoyed it. I look forward to a new project next year!

I hosted several swaps: All the I Love, May Basket, Sweet and Sinister and more!

Started a style journal and became journal buddies with Hope. Am looking forward to continuing to work on the concept of style in this class next year.

Traveled to ArtNest in Utah and hung out with some of my favorite people and made the most amazing projects! It was a wonderful retreat.

Discovered my style statement after working through the book in my own journal. Then attended a firestarter session this summer with Danielle LaPorte.

I was honored to be published this year, here and here and here. I hosted a huge online book release party for Blogging for Bliss by Tara Frey. I hope to self-publish another book this coming year.

Journaled about where I'm at in my life right now.

Attended some amazing estate sales and a few that were truly memorable.

Interviewed Anita Kaushal. Her books are so inspiring!

ArtsyMama.com, the web site was born! Thanks to Hope, after her wonderful visit here this summer.

Took a birthday challenge. Have to admit, it's definitely been a challenge and I've caved at times. However, I'm keeping my head up and am going to keep striving!Attended the Junk Bonanza for the fourth year and Silver Bella for the third year. I cannot wait for next years junking event. It's going to be bigger and better than ever. Can't wait to tell you more!!

Thanks again for being here, it means the world to me!

Giving thanks...

My four year blog anniversary is coming up in just a few days. I will do a separate post about it on the 29th. I love the tradition at this time of year to count your blessings and feel grateful about so many wonderful things in our lives. I wanted to make sure to thank all of you, my lovely blog readers. Some of you have been reading this for all four years and others just found me recently. I read and appreciate every single comment that is left and am so delighted with the relationships and support I have been given through this little space of mine in blogland. Thank you! As I finish my early prepping for the big day tomorrow, I am thankful for a warm cozy home with the scent of pumpkin bread freshly baked and gingerbread cookies in the oven. I am thankful to have parents that live so close that we can spend the day together and so many other days of my children's lives are spent with their grandparents. I am thankful for a husband and children that I cherish beyond words and need to tell them that more often. Thankful for my sister and her delightful family, who will be coming home for the holiday's oh so soon! I am so delighted to have friends and relatives near and far that we can share our daily ramblings and keep connected online. I am thankful for the opportunities I have each year to meet up with the most creative and inspiring bunch of blogging artists that I can imagine. Thank you all for filling my well!
With love and gratitude, Happy Thanksgiving!

Today's the day...

Today is our 11 year wedding anniversary. It was such a beautiful day, this is how Joe got to spend the afternoon. Lucky guy! Ever since seeing the neighbors holiday lights, Chloe has been in awe of lights on houses, so we decided this year we'd give it a go.

The kids enjoyed watching daddy climb around on the roof.

Ta da!!!

I love you Joe. xoxo.

Happy Anniversary!

Five senses: bella style

I'm back from silver bella and having a hard time deciding how to post about this amazing weekend. I thought I'd throw a bunch of amazing eye candy at ya and share the event five senses style since I missed last weeks installment from abby. Getting back to "real life" here I realize how stimulating an event like silver bella truly is. My senses were piqued for days.

See: Of course an event like silver bella is a visual feast. So many amazing projects were made with the most stunning stashes of supplies. Vendor night was a smorgasboard of outstanding art and supplies. It's a whole lot to take in at once!

Touch: Jennifer Murphy's classes challenged my fingers and allowed me to work with some lovely materials. Loved all the textures!

Hear: It was so great to meet Kaari Meng. We were having so much fun with the fact that our names have the same pronunciation, which is one that you don't hear very often. Every time someone would say her name trying to get her attention, I would turn around. Also hearing Jo Packham speak was wonderful and moving. She really is so authentic!

Taste: Lots of yummy food was consumed, mostly late at night after the last class was over with this lovely lady, or in our room in the form of coconut rum with my roomie Michelle.

Smell: Bellas smell good! The sweet sweet smell of creativity was in the air all weekend long.

The event was wonderful, as you can see. Loved meeting so many bloggers for the first time, giggling and catching up with old friends and generally filling up the well in every way possible.

Hop around blogland for other posts about the event beginning to pop up...here, here, here and here is a good start!

Looking up...

Watched the movie UP today with the kids. What a cute show. The kids are feeling better now. Horray! I'm taking off tomorrow to Omaha for Silver Bella. I thought it would be fun to have a little blast from the past, bella style. I missed it last year due to our amazing 10 year anniversary trip to New York City. Attending Silver Bella the two years before was so much fun! Here are my past posts about this marvelous event.

My first year:

I had no idea what to expect, it was such a small event!

The classes

The scrapbook

My second year:

The people

The shopping

The classes

Looking forward to all the new memories this year! I promise lots of pics when I return.

Have a great week!

Getting ready for the bellas....

Well, I guess one advantage of having sick kids at home and now a car in the shop is I have more time for collecting, gathering and putting little packages together for the bellas! Silver Bella is next weekend!! I can hardly wait to see so many of you.The apron has arrived.My journal is ready. Some crafty projects are finished.

I'll see (many of you) in a few days in Omaha!
Have a great weekend!

Dark November...

Not much light here today. November is definitely upon us. I'm trying to think of it as a time of cocooning and great productivity. Lots of inside time to get crafty, right?! I added some post-Halloween autumn inspiration to my wall. This little autumn cutie is from Melissa McCobb Hubbell as part of the art exchange that's going around the blog-o-sphere lately...
...and this tag.Paged through some lovely autumn images in these magazines.

And baked up some yummy treats. These apple cookies from naptime chef are delicious...and not too sweet!

November begins...

with some exciting news! It's always such a thrill to be published in a magazine. Thanks to Christine at Stampington for asking me to write an article for Artful Blogging magazine about my year long Year of Color blog that will come to an end at the end of 2009.

Our November guest designer on A Year of Color is Jeska Hearne. I have adored her blog Lobster and Swan for a long time. She's the perfect guide for inspiration and beauty for this month's theme of brown and sepia tones. She encourages us to move into a season of warmth and calm with cozy accents before the holiday rush. Her tone is perfect! Please join us in these last few months of the blog. All the archives are available, so you can catch up on the whole year. I won't be doing another like it next year, so now is your last chance.

Happy November!