purely busy

So here is the Scrabble board that gave me so many fits. The Sven and Ole book with this class has been ordered. Considering the variable light and the fact that I felt I should hurry for the teacher's sake. I like how the photos turned out. I post-processed them to give them a vintage 60-70's color film look - slightly desaturated and not quite on - a bit faded and grainy.

I made a Connect Four frame for Grace's class using the funny face and happy face photos.


I've been asked to post-process and organize the photo book for the second grade classes photos. I ran into the lady who was taking the photos in a dark hallway and a dark blanket behind them. I talked to her for awhile and then tactfully moved her to a more well lit location, reversed the blanket to the light blue side and fiddled with the camera to maximize the settings, and make sure the flash wouldn't pop and wash out the kid's faces. I will work on the photos for that this weekend.


In addition, I've decided to donate a photo shoot to the auction. I also spent a bit of time with the preschool Sunday school teacher brain-storming a Nativity shoot she wants to do.

apple of my eye... ;0

I'm still drying apples and making apple sauce from the apples we picked at the orchard a few weeks back. I love apples not for eating (not a big apple eater but hubby and Grace love them) but for photographing - they are very photogenic in my opinion.


Saturday, I worked very, very hard in the yard. It was supposed to get cold and perhaps snowy today. I got loads done and felt quite accomplished. Today it got cold and it did sleet for quite awhile this morning. However, it was not cold enough to stick (thank goodness).


Tomorrow we have parent-teacher's conferences for Light. I will be interested to hear what her teacher has to say about her in the classroom (I know she is doing well academically based on the papers she brings home - but I know that school is much, much more than academics).


Thursday and Friday last week disappeared in a blur of obsession. I decided that in addition to the photo books that I am putting together for the school fund-raiser, I would put together a Scrabble Board collage for the fifth grade class and a Connect Four frame for the first grade class.

Connect Four was done easily and quickly. However, I ran into trouble with the Scrabble Board project. I wanted to put all the kids names on it. I spent nearly twelve hours (very concentrated hours when I ignored almost everything trying to create the board) trying to get the names to fit. I finally packed up and said it was impossible when I had an inspiration on how to make it work. I will show photos later this week when I finish the Scrabble board.





One of the projects that is near completion that the girls and I worked on this week was putting together our boxes for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. I have to buy crayons to go with the coloring books we put in the boxes, print out the pictures the girls want to include, write a note, and then we can drop them off at church.



I will try to be more visible this week. Hope all of you have a good week.

pumpkin patch

we went twice - once on Friday evening with friends and once on Saturday evening so Dad could help the girls pick their big pumpkins for carving.

















This was our pumpkin patch weekend.

at long last I show off the goodies

These came from my friend Claire over at Naked Lady. They arrived while my MIL was visiting. It was like Christmas. Some of it made my MIL wonder "Why is she so excited about moss and lichen?" :)

Everything was individually wrapped and had brown paper, handwritten tags on them saying what they were. What you see here isn't everything. Claire also sent a huge bag of one of my favorite scents - dried lavender and her hand-collected seeds for a variety of plants.

Thank you Claire.












I am supposed to pay this foreward. Here is how:

"Pay it Forward Exchange:
Here are the rules: I agree to send something fun, cute, and nice to the first 3 blog owners who post a comment on this entry. In turn, those three will post this information and pick 3 people they want to send something to and so on. Unfortunately, due to postage costs, I can only pay it forward within the United States. If you are interested in participating, be one of the first 3 blog owners to leave a comment!

You have to promise that you will then post about this on your blog, link to me, and then send something to the first three people who comment on your blog so that this continues. When I have the first three to comment I will email you a request for your shipping address and I will send out something that I hope will make you smile!"

Now if you choose to participate and are lucky enough to have me send you something, you will have to be patient because I have nothing in mind at the moment and will probably do something especially for you (and I am slow at everything lately).

many thoughts but little time

I have many thoughts I would like to share from the books I've recently read Made from Scratch: Reclaiming the Pleasures of the American Hearth and Pilgrim's Progress. Disparate books which have given me a lot to think about.

But I have fund raising projects that demand my attention.



We are enjoying a nice rainy fall day - that is not a sarcastic comment - I love cold rainy fall days.



Frugal Idea #1: Grab some old tea towels, cut them up, and hem them to make cloth napkins. If you don't like stained napkins and aren't inclined to spend time whitening your napkins use a calico or some other busy print for your napkins.

not feeling chatty but had a nice weekend

We went apple picking with my sister A.




Grace and I took a walk this evening.

recent activities

Last week Friday, Grace had a field trip to a pumpkin patch.






Last Saturday our school participated in a Marathon for non-public education. There were three possible events - walking, running, and biking. Hubby, Grace and Light walked. I volunteered as a photographer and was assigned the bike group.


The school has a Silent Auction fund raiser in November. I am doing a photo book for Grace's class and for one of the fifth grade classes. The teacher for that class doesn't have a parent representative.

For Grace's class I am organizing the book around the theme "If Your Happy and You Know It" - the verses shown here are clap your hands, stomp your feet, make a funny face, and run around a tree. I haven't worked up today's which are shout amen and lick a tootsie pop and I still have to take more tomorrow.




For the fifth grade the theme is Sven and Ole jokes as the teacher begins each day with a Sven and Ole joke. The kids will share their favorite jokes and I will photograph them in pairs as either Sven, Ole, or Lena.