Crossroads is about to begin the 2012 walks

Brings back memories of my walk across america a few years ago now.  That time really changed my life.
---Michaela

Open publication - Free publishing - More nicu

An amazing art tutorial

I found this while I was browsing --- if you like this style of art, then check it out ...

Trumpetvine Travels: How I Sketch: Part Two, Demonstration

Our little bundle of cuteness

We are so blessed to have such a beautiful and precious baby. Just wanted to share a little of our joy

The Baptism of our son, Patrick Scott

IMG_2217, a photo by mystical_rose84 on Flickr.

From left to right: The happy mother, the proud father, the God-parents holding the newly-baptized soul, and our dedicated parish priest.

My little brother is married!

My brother and his new bride ....

They are making their honeymoon in Europe now and I look forward to their return here as our new neighbors.

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I was reminded of so many good memories from our wedding just earlier this year in April. Here we are with the Best Man and Maid of Honor.

Baby is due at the beginning of February! Please keep us all in your prayers.

Button Tai

A friend of mine is now making these amazing baby carriers to sell. If you know of any mothers looking for practical, cute and affordable baby carriers this one is great. I am saving up to get one too!

Button Tai Etsy Shop

Button Tai Blog

From her blog:

A VISION

I am so excited to be on this journey with all the amazing moms, dads, sisters, brothers, parents and friends of the lucky babies who will spend some of the most formative periods of their early lives being worn! As a mother to two young children (and hopefully many more!), I quickly came to realize the invaluable gift babywearing is. My passion is to share that gift with others. I discovered the Mei Tai carrier with my second child and thought, "This is the perfect carrier. If only I had known about it sooner!" The Button Tai is my adaptation of this style of carrier. I hope it meets your needs as well as it has met (and continues to meet) mine

Oklahoma Snow

The sunshine was beautiful today as it sparkled off the melting snow. I must say that this last week was quite eventful. Monday was crazy in the city as people madly bought everything off the store shelves in a desperate attempt to prepare for the upcoming storm, everyone running to and fro -- I breathed a sigh of relief when I was back home. The blizzard came and we were happy to have a large supply of firewood on hand. Unfortunatly one by one different members of the family got sick and so we had to shuffle the farm chores to those of the family who were well. After the fierce weather died down and sun came out the whole world was in a big, fluffy white blanket. But more snow is on the way. Here is an article from the Tulsa World ... I guess we are in for some more snow.

Inspiration and beautiful work by EZ

Here is a beautiful online magazine that was put together by the sister of a dear friend of mine. I love her choice of colors and design. I hope that you enjoy it to.

From the website www.creaturecomfortsblog.com:

Hello everyone! I'm so delighted today to finally introduce you to Gifted Magazine! What a whirlwind of inspiration, collaboration, fun and hard work these past few months have been. Inside the magazine you will discover incredible projects and freebies dreamed up by an amazing team of contributors, interviews with some of my favorite online friends and of course heaps of gift giving ideas. As you browse through each virtual page my hope is that you will feel a sense of excitement for the Holidays come over you and that any stress over seasonal shopping/crafting will be whisked away.

Of course Gifted Magazine would not have been possible without each amazing contributor, you (my lovely blog readers), the support of the blogging community, and my amazing friends and family. I am overwhelmed with gratitude! Thank you for helping me to make Gifted Magazine a reality!

Now...get reading! xo Ez

Open publication - Free publishing - More christmas

Natural Dyes

A few weeks ago, the Tahlequah Farmers Market hosted a class on using natural dyes in Oklahoma. We gathered together in the center of the farmers market to listen and watch as Gina, a traditional fiber artist, walked us through the steps of making our own dyes at home using the resources available around us in nature. It was amazing how the simplest of resources (ie: onion skins) can be used to make very rich colors.

Here is a list of natural dyes from plants http://www.pioneerthinking.com/naturaldyes.html

The simple concept behind using natural dyes is to make a strong infusion from the plant of choice and use that as the dye bath. The material needs a mordant to help the color hold to the fabric, and throwing in a few pennies can achieve this. The material can sit in the dye for hours or days depending on how saturated of a color is desired. I am excited to begin playing with natural dyes ... I think I will begin the red onion skins since they make a beautiful green dye.