Ocean.

Traveled to Pacific Grove, CA with my Mom today.

Lovely sunny day to be on the coast.

Roses at Gamble Garden.

Going to California for the weekend.

Hope to visit Gamble Garden.

Here is a shot from my last visit.

Early Morning Harvest.

Up at 5:30 harvesting berries.

Good morning.

Needle Felted Gnome Class.

There are still two spots available in my Needle Felted Gnome class

for this Wednesday at Collage.  Give them a call at 503.249.2190 to sign up!

Ice Resin Pendant Class.

Have you been wondering how to work with resin in jewelry blanks?

If so, come to my Ice Resin Pendant class.

Wednesday, August 8th from 5:30-7:30pm at Collage.

Give them a call to sign up: 503.249.2190.

Crafty Folks, Amanda Blake.

I love Amanda Blake's oil paintings.

Her Portraits bring me to another world.

I love that the folks are usually a bit somber or maybe just relaxed,

like we have caught them in a moment where they didn't think we were around.

Check out her blog with great examples of her work.

Buy originals and prints here and here.

Goat Love.

I'm not quite sure how it happened...but I fell in love with goats.

My biological clock is ticking away for goat babies.

For now I am lucky enough to be friends with a farmer

who is raising a herd of twenty Kikos.

Time watching the goat channel is time well spent.

Wagon Wheel, Summer Swimming.

Looking for a good summer swimming hole?

I've got just the place.

Wagon Wheel on the Molalla River.

A great place to paint rocks.

Or just sit and watch the river.

Or float with the one's you love.

From Portland, take 205 South to 213.

Drive for 14 or so miles, until you see the second

golf course.  It's on your left.

Deep swimming hole and lot's of fun.

Beautiful Oregon, Allium Field.

Another drive this weekend in the farmland of Oregon.

I found this beautiful allium farm just south of Silverton.

Also passed a half dozen or so strawberry trucks.

You could see them coming piled high with flats of strawberries.

You could smell them going, as the strawberry scent wafted

into the open windows.  Best smell of the season.

Write a Letter.

I admit it, I am hopelessly in love with the US postal service.

I think it is amazing that for a mere forty five cents

a little bit of love can leave my post box and get all the way to yours.

I just sent my friend Diane, who is living in Indonesia, a package today.

For less than five dollars that little bundle is jetting over the ocean.

My goal for this week is to send three letters to people I love.

It's my way of supporting the USPS and all our fabulous mail carriers.

A special shout out to Willie, mail carrier extraordinaire, 

who's birthday was this week.

Check out all the work the National Association of Letter Carriers

is doing to help save the postal system.

And don't forget to send a letter or two.

Oregon, I love you.

I find myself deeper and deeper in love with this state I live.

Traveling around a bit this summer finds me in amazing places

that make me say, YES PLEASE.

I love this state with it's steep peaks, rolling hills, lush valleys,

rivers, creeks, and tree after tree after tree.

These daisies remind me of the film "Harold and Maude"

(one of my all time favorites)

I love Maude's quote about the beauty in all the differences.

 "Look. See, some are smaller, some are fatter, some grow to the left, 

some to the right, some even have lost some petals. 

All *kinds* of observable differences."

I hope you are finding places that inspire you and refresh you after the long winter.