girlfriends are a necessity of life...

my goodness!

how can it have possibly been 2 weeks since i wrote last?

where does the time go?

my little girlie get-away was oh so amazing.

 this was our view from the house we rented together in logan, utah.

i was overjoyed that it rained during our visit since rain is a rarity in phoenix.

{and we spent almost 98% of our time in our pajamas anyway so rain away}

 this is what happens when 8 women go to the store HUNGRY...

...and fill their separate carts with NO MEAL PLAN!!

we could have fed all of you in those 4 days!!! and your families too!

 luckily we had some clever culinary women amongst us...

 who knew how to throw things together....

and pamper us with their kitchen skills.

{sorry mel i didn.t get a photo of the JAMBALAYA!!!! you rocked it though!}

we came together with no agenda...just love.

 we each brought our separate art forms to work on...

 a lot of painting...

 a little stitching...

i think christy brought her entire art studio...

{but in her defense...she had a deadline to meet!!}

 one of our outings took us to "the bluebird" for lunch

it.s a neat old restaurant in the middle of town.

 {who is the silly photographer in the mirror...ooops}

 {i am pretty sure my grandma spurrier ate horehound candy back in the day!}

{these girls can ingest some serious whip cream...

the waitress finally just came back with the entire can of it for our table!}

 this was a hilarious shot i snapped of my girls taking a picture of ........

THIS... bluebird on the ceiling.  artists are so funny!

we made sure to get our antique and thrift store shopping in.

 we shared advice....and found some along the way...

it says..."FORGIVE YOUR ENEMIES.  IT MESSES UP THEIR HEADS!"

we had an impromptu photo shoot...

you can read more about it on sweet jeanne oliver's blog.

i am so grateful to christy tomlinson for gathering together her "trues".

her girlfriends.  her soul sisters.

my circle of friendships was strengthened and i even added a beautiful new 

sister to my family of friends...love you jamie soucy.

{she even lives in the town i am moving to this summer..such a blessing}

as i said in my last post.

i can.t tell you how blessed i feel to have the opportunity 

to gather with such women...

to refuel.

to lift and be lifted.

to have my spirit fed.

to be inspired.

to laugh.

to eat.

to laugh..

to play.

to laugh...

to color.

TO LAUGH SO SERIOUSLY HARD!!!

to sew.

to

just

"BE".

girlfriends are a necessity of life!

cultivate girlfriends!!

going to the well....

"Traditionally we are taught, and instinctively we long, to give where it is needed - and immediately.  Eternally; woman spills herself away in driblets to the thirsty, seldom being allowed the time, the quiet, the peace, to let the pitcher fill up to the brim."

- ANNE MORROW LINDBERG-


am i the only one who feels this way at times?
like i spill myself in driblets all over the place
and seldom find the time to replenish my provisions?
i am way overdue for a deep plunge into the well.
for the next week i am going to refill my
 pitcher with...

a quiet plane ride

a new book

a day of skiing with the honey at my favorite ski resort

searching for a new home at the foot of these beautiful mountains

and then nestling down in logan utah with amazing, creative, lovely friends

like jeanne oliver

and margie aslett...and melody ross...and christy tomlinson

 

sweet maria simpson

and the talented julie hosley

i can.t tell you how blessed i feel to have the opportunity 

to gather with such women...

to refuel.

to lift and be lifted.

to have my spirit fed.

to be inspired.

to laugh.

to eat.

to play.

to color.

to sew.

to

just

"BE".

i hope that if you find yourself in need of a refill...

that you cultivate some time to do so.

we can.t give if we are on empty.

loves to all of you!

d.i.y. cake stands

i love to shop at second hand stores.

they are like a HUGE treasure chest for me.   i was giving a baby shower awhile back and needed several cake stands.  they were so expensive new...

so away to my favorite thrift store and a new project was born.

i found several glass candle sticks from .99 to $1.99.

and lonely white plates from .99 to $3.99

first everyone gets a good hot bubble bath.

 next take e-6000 glue {you can get this at craft stores or wal-mart}

trace around the top edge of your candlestick with the glue

 with your plate face down on your work surface, tip the glue side of your candlestick over and stick it to the plate.

 make sure you push it down firmly.

 

...oh and make sure you don.t drip glue all over your kitchen table...ooops!

measure each side of the candlestick to make sure it is in the center

 of the bottom of the plate.

then take a finger and make a seal around the candlestick as you wipe up the extra glue, making sure you don.t move it's position

continue this process with all your new little pieces.

then let them sit and have a good nights rest in this position.

 the next day you can add fun ribbon or vintage finds to the candlesticks.

i love how they look all mixed and matched.

 while i was shopping i also picked up a few glass candleholders 

for $1.00 a piece

i filled them with pink candies...it was a baby GIRL shower after all...

 and for the price of one "new" cake stand...

 i had a whole family of cake stands and yummy candy dishes!

anyone having a baby soon?  this was just too much fun!

*a cultivate tip:  i love that you can easily change out the ribbon and findings to match whatever wonderful morsels you are going to place on your stands.  i also made some really "funky" cake stands out of crazy plates and bases, 

but thats for another post someday!*

cultivate your ability to turn something old into something new again.