Summertime at Ijams

summertime postcards

greetings from east tennessee

toothless wednesday

home again, home again

Jiggity Jig!!!

Looking back at our calendar I just realized the last Saturday we got to spend at home together was March 17th!!! Wow. No wonder I feel like a new woman! Don't get me wrong, I love trips to the beach, time with family, girls weekends, friends visiting us in Knoxville, baby showers, bridal showers, weddings... it really is such a joyful and full season of life right now. But, oh how I love a weekend at home with my boys:) I've never put weekend in Knoxville on our calendar before, but I'm starting to realize I need to pencil it in every now and then. And, not only did I get to put it on the calendar for last weekend, but for the next two weekends as well! Ahhhh, we could potentially get so much done and definitely enjoy the steamy summertime in our backyard.

Here are some highlights from our first weekend in Knoxville:

- good old fashioned surprise birthday party 

- yard sale (i.e. cleaned out my closet and the attic) 

- hiking at Ijams Nature Center

- sleeping in (first weekend at home = first time L could entertain Abe for a little bit in the morning) 

- Sweet Pea's BBQ!

- blackberry picking

- shopping at Stanley's Greenhouse! (with our proceeds from the yard sale)

- planting, weeding, mulching

- planting my hanging baskets and containers for the front porch, finally!

- catching up on laundry (did I mention our washing machine went kaput)

- bathing Lulu

Here's what's on the list for our next weekend in Knoxville so far:

- take a family trip to Lowe's
- bake a blackberry cobbler
- grill out
- plant, weed, mulch... and repeat
- go hiking in a state park
- purchase and play in a baby pool with little A
- make some mojitos
- go to the movies

little crawlers

just these guys, not Abe... yet. I just put these up in his room yesterday and they look so great above his crib! I actually didn't realize until I finished these insects that they would match the colors in his room so nicely. I'll post a photo of them hanging in his room soon. And by soon I mean whenever I get around to taking a photo and then uploading the images. No promises on the blog here. It's hard to type with a little guy in my lap trying to chew on the computer cord. 

However, here's a quick preview of some of my new pieces. I took some different angles so you could see the layers of paper. I'm so excited about this series and plan to add some more critters to it soon. I'll keep you posted about when they make their debut in my shop.

and here's where you can find these little critters lately...

Lulu loves laying on the floor next to Abe in his jumper. She must pick up on the fact that he's very amused by her.

Amalgam: 17th Street Studio's Group Show

Come out and see what we've been up to behind the yellow window panes. 

This Friday

7-11pm

Fluorescent Gallery

Showcasing a few new insect studies in peppered paper!

Should be lots of fun. Look forward to seeing you there.

poster by: Perole Lind

wordless wednesday

April Flowers

Peonies

lavender, calendula, oregano, chives, chamomile, thyme, sage

oregano

 sage

rosemary, dusty miller, yarrow

irises

Our yard's a bloomin! Lots of pink and purple this spring. And when did our herb garden get so out of control? I think we're ready to do lots of thinning- let me know if you need some fragrant herbs!

still saving scraps

Before:

last year's salvage show, 8 weeks pregnant

After:

really, look at that face!

Laurence's work:

spice rack and coat racks from knob and tube wiring and charred wood

Occasionally Laurence tells me he needs to spend some time in the garage so he can engage the right side of his brain. I'd like to take credit by saying my right-side dominated brain is somehow rubbing off on him, but then I remember that everyone is created to enjoy using their right brain. Anyway, off he goes tinkering with whatever garbage found material he's collected. Who knows what is in there! (still no cars)

This year he made some more coat racks and a really nice spice rack/ shelf out of lath for the Knox Heritage Salvage Show. It was such a fun show and always brings out some folks who don't usually frequent First Friday events. I'm hoping he'll make me some wooden planters for Mother's Day. ;)

You can check out more work from the show here: Knox Heritage Etsy shop

Happy Easter!

wordless wednesday

cute as a button

Chandler's Deli picnic at the Knoxville Botanical Gardens with Abe, 12 weeks.

He still gets approximately 100 kisses a day...

and he's wearing his uncle John's vintage Lacoste overalls. I love the stripes and little buttons.

It's does wonders when we decide to enjoy a nice Saturday outside and take a break from working on the house. Yes, we're still working on the house.