...giveaway heads up sisters!

everyone always asks me where i get my jewelry.

i guess i have a particular style?

or

maybe no style at all.

whatever the opinion, i get the question and take it as a compliment.

 because ...

this beautiful, gorgeous soul

makes the bulk of my jangles!

allison dayton is one of my favs!

please take a glance at her new blog for some 

wonderful

ideas on how to "stack"it on.

turn your jewelry storage into living art.

and

enter the chance to win the mahli wedding beads above.

(they have a delightful history story that you won.t want to miss!)

here is her blog....stacks of style!

and

here is her website...allison dayton.com

(cul*ti*vate some stacking style this weekend)

run...don.t walk to your nearest book store!

you know there is something down right exciting happening 

when for the second time in several months

you walk into a random store in phoenix, arizona and see 

the work of a dear dear soul you love,

on the pages of a publication!!!

it happened again just today.

i was in this cool artsy, mixed media, vintagey little shop 

when i heard the two nice ladies behind the counter

ooing and gooing over the cover of the latest "somerset studio" 

they had just pulled out of the box.

and "oh my gosh, look at that piece of "a girl and her bird"!"

"how clever to be just sittin up in the treetops with the birds 

havin the best afternoon conversation!"

"gina...would ya look at her sweet, round face and those red shoes..."

i tell ya, i whipped around and squeeled, 

louder than was probably ladylike....

"WHOOOO HOOO!!"

"that.s my girl!  that.s miss mindy lacefield!"

and i tried to say it in my most saucy southern arkansas accent 

just like mindy.s

(but i really butchered it...sorry mindy)

the three of us sat there flippin through the pages and admiring all the

"cute"

dreamy, liquid candy that oozed over the glossy pages!

huge. gigantic. hugs to you mindy!

watching the amazing journey you are on just tickles me pink sister!

(and orange and red and yellow and....)

what have your friends been accomplishing lately 

that you could cheer about and celebrate wildly?

(cul*ti*vate the generosity of a supportive spirit)

all you need is...

it pops up in the most surprising places.

see if you can find a snippit of love today

and

then cul*ti*vate it and share it 

with someone who is difficult to love.

i.d love to hear your stories!

happy thursday!

...here. yes. park.

i.ve been thinking about friendship.
about what kind of friend i am.
do i listen more than i speak?
do i reach out before i am touched?
do i accept imperfections
as i would want my imperfections accepted?
am i being the kind of friend i would want in my life?
am i present?
do the people i love know that my heart is always open for service?
24 hours a day.  7 days a week.  365 days of the year?
even if we are miles apart?
or we.ve never met in person?
or we haven.t spoken in years?

does my heart speak...

here.
yes.
park.
?

friendships need to be cul*ti*vated.  it.s a verb.
what do you do to be a good friend?

contentment...chrissy.s answer!

{me. content. oregon coast. fall 2009}

so i was asked to speak at a women.s conference in may about

contentment.

(yep. that.s why all the questions)

i laughed out loud at the poor soul they sent over to my home to ask me.

contentment?  me?  are you serious?

(they were!)

i have to say that i feel like i am virtually surrounded 

by so many amazing. beautiful. busy. contented women right now.

you might say, like i did...

contented? me? are you serious?

and i am!

...because here is my answer to all of you about...

contentment is...

to me, contentment is a peace within.

i love this definition of 

p e a c e

it does not mean to be in a place

where there is no noise, trouble

or hard work.  it means to be in

the midst of those things and still

be calm in your heart.

you women that encircle me are 

sweethearts. mothers. daughters. grandmas. aunts. sisters.

you.ve lost loved ones. children. parents. grandparents. friends. pets.

you nurse and you counsel and you carpool and you blow bubbles.

you create.  art.  homes.  families.  careers.  memories.

you provide the necessities for your home.

some of you are the home.

you laugh and you cry.  you teach and you lift. 

you pick up off the floor again and again and again.

blocks and bodies and lonely friends and aching hearts.

sometimes the broken heart is your own.

the laundry is never done.

the dishes will always have crumbs...(thankfully!)

your shoulders will always need to be strong for leaning.

there will always be a blank canvas to cover.

there will always be 

noise. trouble. hard work. heartache. 

and yet...

i see you and in the marrow of all that chaos that swirls about you.

you

are

at

peace.

contentment is a journey!

i am amazed and blessed to be encompassed by you women

 who are trying your best each day and encouraging each other

 to stay in the race.

(huge contented hugs to all of you!)

now we know what it is...what.s your pathway to get there?

i.ve been thinking about pathways.

i like pathways.

love them actually.

apparently i like to photograph pathways.

pathways inside of pathways.

speaking of contentment...

...and

...of pathways.

just where exactly...

...does your pathway to contentment lead you to?

or from?

(sounds similar to what is...but it.s not...it.s how!)

...contentment is?

i.ve had a word swirling around in my head over and over this weekend.

contentment.

{me.  oregon coast . october.  2009}

care to share?

contentment is........?

...in a rut?

sometimes all we need....

 is to just "see" ourselves from a different perspective.

you might be "surprised" where you can find "yourself" 

when you change your point of view!

happy weekend heart friends!!!

...an accidental tractor pull...

i know. i know. 

 how does one just accidentally show up at a tractor pull?

here.s the story

it all started one recent saturday morning when i set out with my two daughters on a photo treasure hunt.  each loaded with a camera and a list of things to photograph, we headed to a local historical park that is known for it.s quaint old buildings and wild chickens 

(which i am obsessed with as of late)

(i mean honestly...isn.t he wonderful?)

we were surprised when we arrived to see that the park was closed for the "annual tractor and steam engine festival"...closed unless we paid the entrance fee which i was not about to do.

until...

i peeked in and saw all sorts of wonderful "old" things.  old people.  

old tractors.  old paint chipping off said old tractors (another obsession of mine).  fascinating old treasures up for auction...  

the disappointed look on my girls faces had me whippin out my wallet 

right behind billy-bob dwayne and his sweetheart earlene-jo.

(not their real names of course)

i knew i had made the right decision when the first thing i saw 

was a chorus line of elderly farmer folk, 

down right enamored with the pulling capacity of the new john- deere 620.

...then art through the lens began.

for some of you, this may be "old hat" but i was raised on a ski slope, 

not in the fields. so i was like a kid in a candy store.

these darling farmers get together for some 

good ol noise makin, dirt flyin, smoke sailing competition.

these guys holler lots of funny things and tell everyone what to do.

these guys wait until it.s their turn to hook their "babies" up to the sled.

this is the fellow that "mans" the sled.

the tractors each get a turn to pull the sled along a track..(dirt)

the sled gets harder to pull the farther they go.

this guys waves a flag when the tractor sounds like it.s gonna blow.up.

and these guys sit idle...but thrilled...on bales of hay, half a toothpick hanging out the corner of their mouth, donning their favorite farm equipment hat bought...

from wally!

the girls and i had a "rootin-tootin" good time...

...with the good old boys and their rusty toys!

(if you.ve actually read this far..i highly recommend headin on over to your nearest tractor pull...

and bring your camera.  you won.t be disappointed.)

...baskets and birthday candles.

we celebrate easter in the gardner home.

this an {oooold} photo of my mom...aka...the easter bunny,

getting caught in some secret bunny business.

(she wore those ears and that tail every year! bless her heart!)

today, i hope that you fill your basket...

with whatever brings you joy!

...and i hope when the day is through... 

you have a sweet place to land.

enjoy my dear friends!

....................................................................................

(speaking of enjoy...)

...these numbers are significant today 

for an incredibly wonderful soul who came into my life last year.

this is my heartwing-scarf sister...kolleen!

i know!  i know!  she.s gorgeous!

one of the most beautiful things about her is that 

she is just as stunning on the inside as she is on the outside.

this is her being painted by the ever.so.present andrea scher 

on the oregon coast last october.

the word that soaked into her skin was just so incredibly fitting.

good.

{of favorable character; agreeable; pleasant; amusing; 

clever; true; virtuous; kind; benevolent; loyal.}

and that.s just the beginning.

happy birthday shining star!

it.s a baskets and birthday candles kind of day!