Just chillin'...

We had white stuff falling from the sky yesterday.
Didn't stick though...

I've been surfing on Etsy a lot lately.
The other day I came across this lovely store called Wunderkind's shop.
I saw this cool DIY kit and a lightbulb went on above my head.
I wonder if I could manage... how cool would that be..
And I headed off to to Wunderkind's Flickr gallery for more inspiration.

You see I have been holding onto these two vintage spools not knowing what to so with them.
I finally figured it out.

I even had the wood parts I needed.

I got out the paints and when painting the eyes, realized it would have been wiser to pick up a smaller brush (you know one with three hairs), but I'm still so very happy with these two spool girls.

The bigger one wears a collar made from a bit of umbrella I found on the street and picked up. She's also wearing my favorite bit of ribbon :)

Thanks for the inspiration Wunderkind!

Want to take a walk in the woods with me?

I took my camera with me in Saturday so I can give you a look-see to what I have just across the street.
I'll just take you with me.. like it or not.. LOL!

It is a city owned little forest.
I spent many a childhood day playing in here.
You can't get lost in it, there's a road on every side.


Nothing like walking on fallen leaves.


This maple leaf looks like it's rusted :)

We are heading up this path and then taking a right turn at the silver birch in the middle...

Ooohhh.. pretty colors..

This is why I brought you here.

These are defensive trenches built during WW1 to protect the city.
They were never used.

But they still remain.
We used to come an play here all the time.
There even was a time when a classmate of mine and I snuck out of the window at midnight to come jump over these.

Hey, we had a Vampire Club. We were on grade 4 I think...
Why we used the creaky window instead of the non-creaky door, I'll never know.
Made sense at the time :)
My parents never knew what we did....

Now these stone trenches have been beautifully taken over by moss.

In fact there is lovely soft, lush, green moss everywhere.

And this... makes you wonder..

Many of the paths are now overgrown with new growth... very irritating..

But this little forest still has it's moments for me.

I can still find pussy willows, woodland anemones, lily of the valley, blueberries and raspberries here.

Did you enjoy our little walk?

Who would have known?

Last spring when I complained about my chronically sore heel to my doctor, he told me to get myself a pair of Crocs for the summer.

Crocs?
Is he serious?
The ugliest shoes on the planet?!?
Nope. No way.
No how.

And I had some painkillers, rested my foot and moved my nordic walk route from asphalt to sand.
And you know what, my heel wasn't all that bad over the summer.
Until work began again.

Two days of those stairs and I was in pain again.
Damnation.

So I gave in.
Went downtown and bought myself a pair of ugly shoes.

The sales lady tried to get me to buy those decorations that go on top...
I looked at her and said that my 8 year old likes those.. personally I just want my ugly shoes to be as unnoticable as possible.
Oh but the decorations add so much character, she says.
Yeah.. I'll go with the basic black, thanks.

One day at work with these shoes and I decided that maybe my doctor in fact knew what he was talking about... ha.
There was such a difference.

And a couple weeks later I went and bought another pair, so I have one pair in the classroom and another at the afternoon club premises.

I sill think they are ugly.
I wish they made a cuter style...
But as far as work shoes go, they are the best I've ever had...

Happy half birthday!

My niece is six months old today.



Yesterday they dropped by to pick up our trusty Tripp Trapp chair for Julia.
We had to test it right away.

She was so excited to sit at the table!

..umm... auntie...what's with the camera?
I'm trying to eat here...

It was so funny how she kept tilting herself to the left.. a couple more weeks and she'll be able to sit upright through a meal ;)

Think I have enough?

Bracelets...

It all started with these two I made as a part of my studies in the spring (we had a theme night with all sorts of crafts)


Of course after that night I went out and bought glass beads to make myself a green one.

I have to have my green fix.
You all should know that by now...

And just a couple of weeks back all these happened....

Oooh yeah.

Earrings too.

I like the heaviness of the glass on my wrist.

The way it absorbs body heat.

The way it catches the light.

And best of all.. I get unique jewelry.

It's dark out there...

There was a storm last night...rain and wind..

Woke up to beautiful clouds.

Then it started raining again... pouring in fact.

All day long.

A really dark day.
I've been on the computer much of the day, writing an article for the Finnish Dollhouse Association's magazine. Mary's house will be featured. Quite exciting.

Making dinner...

I rescued the last sunflowers from the frost yesterday.
The olive oil bottle is upside down in a hole in the stone counter (the holes are there so the heat from the radiator isn't trapped) so I can get the last drips.

Potatoes, cherry tomatoes and chicken in a pan... yum....

Nice Italian red wine..
And I'm baking cinnamon rolls in a bit too :)

loving it

The angle of the sun.

Frosty mornings.

Colors.

And woollen socks ;)

This quacked me up....

Mooning ducks... hehehee.....

(on our sauna windowsill)

Happy friday :D

October is here

My rose has gone from this:

september 11th

to this:

october 1st

October always makes me miss the US... pumpkin farms, warm cider, people decking out their houses...

This year Niina said she wants to design our jack o lantern :)

Hopefully I'll be able to find a pumpkin I like.. the ones they sell here are small... I never bought ones that small in Michigan...ever.