Bits and Pieces: February/March '18

Hi there!  Remember me??

I haven't a valid excuse, so I shan't invent one...

Instead, I thought I'd give a pictorial account of my adventures/excursions/mischief that has evidently kept me so thoroughly occupied as of late. (Or something like that).

New chapel veils I hope to review soon...

Bacon and puff pancake for Shrove Tuesday....

One of my latest projects I did in February (more on that to come.)

~

At the end February, my brother and I went up to NY for a week to help our sister and brother-in-law move into their new place!  It was a lot of hard work, but also fun to be doing it together.  And seeing my niece was a nice bonus, too :)  Here are some pictures from the trip...

A little sleepy...

Now these, I will have you know, are the best swings ever!!!

Trying for an artistic angle...how'd I do? ;)

 Being silly with her Uncle Matthew!

Part of the view heading home again after a busy week...

Woohoo!

A warm welcome home from the greeting committee!

Homemade Lenten pretzels...mmm

When will I learn to read one book at a time???

Hopefully the last snow of the season!

It is awfully pretty, though...

Benjamin caught being nice for a change!

 

 St. Patrick's Day! Only a few days late...

Okay, so I pinky promise you I'll have a "real" post up very soon!  This has been an especially busy time for me and, as you can tell, life kind of pushed blogging to the back burner.  That doesn't mean I haven't thought of you, though, because I have!  That's partly the reason for the excessive flood of pictures, so I'd have something to share of my adventures!  I hope you enjoyed :)

 Happy Feast of Saint Joseph! 

Always,

~Emma

 p.s. Please let me know if you have trouble viewing any of the pictures, either on the blog or email version, as I was having a difficult time uploading them.

Happy, thankful, blessed, and smiling

I'm sitting here at my computer blogging this.

Yes, I probably should be writing, but this is almost the same thing, right?

It's words.  That counts for something, maybe...

 

Anyways, Happy Thanksgiving all you US  readers! 

I will admit, I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to make this post about.  I was just browsing through pinterest looking for pretty quotes and pictures, the typical blogging fare, but I still wasn't quite sure of what I wanted to say.  I didn't want to sound cliche but at the same time I knew I wanted to write along the lines of Thanksgiving.

In my browsing I stumbled across a writing prompt I had saved a while back, a challenge to write down 50 things that made you smile.  Hmmm... that got me thinking.  So in the spirit of that prompt here are just a few things that make me feel happy, thankful, blessed, and put a smile on my face.

 

1. The smell of wood smoke burning on a cold day.

2. Memories, and the fact that I have so many treasured ones.

 

Isn't this just so simply beautiful?  It makes me wish I could've written it.

3. My Catholic Faith, through which my many blessings are realized.

  

4. People in my life who love me and care about me and even make me laugh!

 5. Rainy days.

6. And sunny ones, too.

7. Changed plans and new beginnings.

 

♥

8. And for all the tiny, countless things in this great big beautiful life that we don't always notice and don't begin to deserve yet are blessed with anyway.

 

And so, I bid you all a very happy thanksgiving day, and just a very happy day in general!   You guys are all wonderful, the best, and I'm really glad we get to cross one another's paths the way we do.  Thank you!!!

Always,

~Emma

September.

  Firstly, it is Our Lady's birthday today, so here is this beautiful image in her honor.

  

What I tell ya, folks?  Now do you believe me when I say August went by fast?  I feel like I blinked too long or something.

I kept giving myself little tasks to complete before I allowed myself to just sit down and type up a blog post.  (Which I fully realize is rather unfair to you. Sorry ;) ) The truth is, as I'm sure you are all very much aware, life is busy.  Wow!  I know, right?!

(Some happy yellow flowers for you. Because I love you.)

September, though.  September is busy.  September is always busy.  For me at least.

We start school on Monday, I have a part-time job beginning next week, our church fair is the following weekend so I'll be face painting for that, and I still have a few minor, measly little things to do before then and it seems it's always those petty things that weigh you down and make everything feel so much more hugely overwhelming than they really are.  Hopefully that's the only run-on sentence you'll have to deal with in this post, but I think you get the idea ;) 

Now please don't think I'm complaining because I truthfully don't really mind all those things.  Like I said, September is always busy.  I mean it's true, busyness can lead to craziness, craziness often leads to chaos, once chaos ensures the feeling of being overwhelmed sets in rather quickly and can easily lead to insanity, but as long as you take a few deep breaths and say a Hail Mary or two before things get out of hand, you can usually avoid going stark raving mad and inevitably being locked away in a nut house for the rest of your days.  I don't know about you, but I'm pretty okay with those odds.

(Oh look! There's another one!  Whoops...)

Anyways, when I'm not concerning myself with the added strain put on my mental state, I find September a rather endearing month.  It's so charming, caught between the desire to be as warmly carefree as summery August or brisk and dignified as cooler October, the same as a child torn between either the sophistication or simplicity of an older and a younger sibling. 

There is just enough of sunshine and warmth so as not to mourn August's passing too dolefully, yet with a definite and irresistible spice of Fall, come to enchant the world to sleep once more against the coming chill.  

I guess I think September is special.  That's probably just me, but I'll continue to feel this way regardless!

Alas, I must be off, but you will hear from me soon, my dears!  I hope you're enjoying your Septembers, are they as busy/busier than mine?  (Not that it's a contest, of course, just makin' conversation.  hehe ;) )

Always,

~Emma

Summer Ambitions~ 2017 Edition

I am always so seized during the span of these warmer months with such soaring aspirations towards greater productivity and creativity. 

Perhaps there is something in the sunshine and warmth or that special, joyful bloom lying all about and covering everything that sends my imagination whirring.  Whirring and reminding me of all the things I want to learn,

and create,

and do. 

 

For me, if I want to get things done without forgetting or losing interest, I write it down.  So this is my list of things I want to learn, projects I want/need to accomplish, and skills I want to attain.  Some are more silly than practical, but why not have fun in the progress? 

 I plan to keep you all updated on my progress and at the end of the season see how many things I actually accomplished! 

And now the list:

1. Post more frequently. (No, I'm not kidding, I'm really going to try ;) )

2. Go through/reorganize/consolidate my hope chest and items therein.

3. Make more time for writing, and just write.

 

 4. Learn to play guitar. (Or at least try.)

 

5. Maybe finally figure out how to ride a bike. Maybe.

6. Teach myself to play the lap harp. 

7. Repair bureau drawer. (There's a story to that, I promise!)

8. Learn to paint hand-blown eggs. (You know, like those gorgeous Eastern European ones. So fascinating!)

 

 9.Read books  lots of books. 

10. Repair broken statue.

11. Create a resume.

12. Make homemade SPRINKLES!!!  (Sounds super fun, maybe a disaster, but a fun disaster!)

 

 13. Turn 17! (Eek)

14. Expand run for chickens. 

 15. Crochet lots of items for Fall craft fairs and local fair entries.

There!  That's my list, what do you think?  It certainly isn't comprehensive, but it's something from which to work.  As I said, I 'll be sure to keep you all updated on my progress, success or fail, I promise!

While we're on the subject of goals, do you have anything you'd like to accomplish over the summer?  Things to do, places to go, people to see?  I'd love to hear!   

Well, I guess it's time to get started and "make hay while the sun shines", as they say!  Wish me luck!

Always,

~Emma