Saturday, December 31, 2011

One Little Word

What will be the theme to my year?
What word will keep me focused?
What do I need to remember in all that I do?
It didn't take me long to realize my word for 2012...  BLOOM!


I want to bloom as a 
  • woman of God, 
  • a mother, 
  • a teacher, 
  • a writer, 
  • and a photographer.  
I have been but a bud,
With the desire to flourish.
This is my time,
To embrace newness and change,
And most of all.....
bloom.















Saturday, November 19, 2011

The Three Little Pigs


Another adventure begins, and this one involves raising hogs.  Well, I'm not tending to them, but I drive the teenage son to the barn in order to feed them and develop a relationship with them.  Yes...I said it.  They need to get to know their handler so they will follow along, so powdered sugar donuts are involved in this phase. Ours is named Boss, the other one owned by a sweet teenage girl (who happens to be teenage son's girlfriend) is named Gus, and the shared pig is named Wiggles.  This is sure to inspire many photo shoots!  What is the best way to photograph hogs? :-)




Tuesday, November 1, 2011

What Am I Committed To?
I finished reading my blogs for the day, which included a new one from Jennifer Loudon:  Savor & Serve the World.  Her question today was, "What are you committed to?"  This made me think...deeply....and I realized that I am floundering with putting my commitments to paper, mainly because I don't know what I am committed to other than the Lord, my husband and children, and my job.  But what am I committed to? What is it that I want to accomplish?  

1.  I am committed to learning Photoshop and Lightroom programs by December 31, 2011.
2.  I am committed to taking a photography class in January to increase my understanding of my camera and its uses.
3.  I am committed to learning photography as a career in order to fulfill my lifelong dream of being a photographer by Summer 2015.

Now...pen to paper...posted blog...it's out there and ready to achieve.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!

Although not my favorite holiday (because when I was about 8 years old my neighbor gave me roast beef in aluminum foil instead of candy...why?!), I embrace it for my kids' sake.  This year I found an adorable and easy candy bar makeover, on Pinterest of course, for the preschool party.  Simple crepe paper, google eyes, and chocolate bars turned into Mummies.



Sunday, September 18, 2011

Guest Post

I'm so excited to be guest posting at A Turtle's Life for Me while she dries out!

My Goodwill Hunting re-purpose was a couple of months ago. Since it has cooled off a little here in Texas, I am getting into the mood to decorate for Fall. This is what my dome looks like now.


This is what it looks like as part of my tablescape.
I think I need to paint another pumpkin and add it to the tablescape, so I am off to craft!
Keep Natalie in your thoughts and prayers.
Blessings!
Kim




Sunday, July 24, 2011

Goodwill Hunting


I am sharing my very first project on my blog...anxiety mixed with excitement!

Last week I met my good friend, Kari, to go Goodwill Hunting. We made lots of stops, and I spent a whopping $22 on the following items:

$2 (Scrabble & bowl)

$9 (candlesticks & pitchers)

$11 (All kinds of fun stuff!)

Of course, I had to do some photo editing, too, since photography is my dream. This is my find "vintage" style. I like!

Now for the project process:
First, I washed the cheese plate and dome.
Next, I painted the wooden plate. I didn't want to go to the store to buy flat black paint, so I used satin.
The black was a little too shiney so I sanded it to reveal some of the wooden plate.









Now, I could let the podging begin! I found some paper in my stash, measured the diameter of the plate, then cut out a perfectly sized circle on my Cricut. I used Mod Podge to adhere it to the plate, inked the edges of the paper so it didn't look so "new," then added a ribbon on the dome.










I thought the moss stones I bought at a dollar store for, you guessed it, $1, would look good under the dome, but they really didn't float my boat.









So, I looked around the house and found some shells....yes...shells always work, plus they remind me of the beach, which is where I long to be....doing photography....sigh....

What do you think?
Remember, be kind...I'm a virgin crafter and wanna be blogger.

Sonnet Gal




Saturday, July 23, 2011

Junk in My Trunk

Yes, it has a double meaning, and thanks to my good friend, Kari, who is an official tiara wearing junker, I have today's title for my blog entry.

I met Kari in our favorite shopping city and look what we found! (These are all the "before"pictures, by the way!) We also discovered some amazing places to eat, which gives "junk in my trunk" the other meaning. :-)

Happy Goodwill Hunting!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

4th of July


Yes, I realized that is not a 4th of July picture! One of the blogs I follow is I Heart Naptime. She wrote about holiday traditions, so I shared mine (pictures of my kids in their Christmas box) in hopes to win some beautiful flowers she made.

Monday, June 20, 2011


I enjoyed watching our son play baseball this weekend. Sometimes I close my eyes and remember him playing t-ball on his first team rightly named the Misfits. Then I open my eyes and a young man, strong and muscular, is before me. Metal cleats clicking and crunching on concrete is one of my favorite weekend sounds. Below are a few of my favorite weekend sights.



Friday, June 17, 2011

Photo Shoot





My first "official" photoshoot living the life I love (Thanks, Brave Girls Club!)

Let me know your thoughts....but be kind. This is a new adventure, and the very first time I am putting myself out there for others to see. Hopefully, very soon, I will learn more from I Heart Faces and Modern Prarie Girl, but until then, I am happy to play and shoot what I love.

Sunday, March 27, 2011


A pretty productive day...put the bookshelf together, arranged the storage containers on it, and even moved it back into the play/craft room. I'm challenged on furniture arrangement, and I don't like the look of the bookshelf being off center against the wall, and then there's the plastic drawers next to the bookshelf that seems to be an eye sore. I am learning that organization is the key to my personal productivity. I haven't finished any scrapbook pages in a month because it is such a mess in that room.

"Before" Pictures

This is my workspace (and what is under my workspace). Here are my "before" pictures of the playroom/craft room. Any suggestions for furniture arrangement??!!

Cardboard boxes were housing stamps and extra 81/2 x 11 paper. (I was trying to be creatively inexpensive!)



Saturday, March 26, 2011

Spring Cleaning



I'm inspired! ...by my friend who is an educator, raises dogs, and works with horses, by my new found friend who is an author, by my students (especially the one who is currently ranked #2 in her class...she is brilliant, beautiful, and sweet!), and by my kindred spirit Paper Goddess at We Will Always Have Paris who inspired me to Spring Clean My Work Space.

This is what I wrote to Paper Goddess:

OK...here I go! Just left all my favorite discount stores with storage baskets, bins, containers, and a book shelf that (kinda) looks like pottery barn, and I am ready to organize. I am going to take a picture and send to you, too. I cheated a little bit because I organized 12x12 paper and all those cheap frames I've been meaning to paint, but other than that, my room is a disaster. Literally, my shelves are cardboard boxes (you will see in the picture). Thank you for motivating me. I'm going in! If I don't comment again, I'm lost in the madness and please call my husband and let him know he needs to rescue me!