Thursday, May 23, 2019

I don't have a green thumb...yet.

Ask any of my family and friends and they will tell you that I have struggled with having bad luck in the garden. I am not a fan of dirt. As a kid, I would make mud pies....but I do whatever I could to keep from actually touching the dirt! In the past, I have managed to kill plants that are the most hardy of plants. It seems to be the same story each year, I can easily grow weeds anywhere, grass grows great (where it is not supposed to), and vegetables and flowers are a hit and miss.  When my parents were visiting in December, they bought me a set of 3 succulents. I was thrilled because I finally had some plants that I wouldn't kill. Fast forward a few months and only 1 is still alive.

I want to have a healthy lawn, fresh vegetables, and fresh picked blooms from my yard. The reality is that life is incredibly busy here and I didn't get this spring off to a good start. Between work, school, and Allison's insane schedule (choir performances galore, AP classes, and oh yeah - she is a teenager), it didn't leave a lot of spare time to get the yard ready.  Every day, I would look out and groan seeing it get worse and worse, but couldn't do anything about it. I wasn't the only one. At the worst, the grass and weeds were actually taller than Minnie! Every morning she would give me a look that said, "Really, I have to go into that jungle?" There are more weeds than lawn, you could barely see one of the garden beads due to the grass and weeds covering it, and the flower beds aren't much better. I long for a yard where I can sit and sip a glass of strawberry lemon-aid and just enjoy the beauty that the PNW has to offer. Right now, that isn't the case, but I am determined that it will be in a few weeks.



I am digging in, with gloves on (not touching the dirt if I can help it), and getting to work. I am starting from scratch and changing the way I garden. I am planting my vegetable in containers, and flowers in the old vegetable gardens. I was going to pull up my existing garden beds, but a dear friend convinced me to leave them and plant flowers instead. You can see the start of my container garden in the picture below. I can't wait to see how it all turns out!


Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Dusting off the blog and torch!


Please excuse the dust you see all around my blog. Over the past few years, I have struggled with finding that perfect balance where I could manage all aspects of my life. It was a hard thing to admit to myself, but I couldn't do it all. Shocking I know! For the longest time, I pushed myself to go, go, and go and wasn't willing to let anything slip away. I found myself broken, exhausted beyond belief, and my creativity was just gone. It was time to take a break, concentrate on other areas of my life, and take some time to heal.

I started to go back to school a few years ago, and have been slowly working my way towards earning a degree. In April, I received my Associate of Science in General Studies from BYU-Idaho! I am still pursing my Bachelor's degree even if it is taking just one class at a time. That is a lesson I seem to have to learn over and over again. I signed up for three classes this semester only to remember how insane spring is in my house, and that I can only handle one class right now. Will this increase the time it takes to get my degree? Yes, but it allows me to have the time to spend with my children and to make the memories that we will remember and enjoy. This is the balance that I am reaching for.

As I am finding this balance, I am also getting my creativity back. I am anxious to get back to the studio, to dust off the glass, the tools, and get back to the magic of melting glass. My girls are also wanting to make beads and I am so looking forward to this summer and the time that we will spend together making memories and beads. I actually sat down and made a video of a simple bead last week for part of a class assignment. I wanted to show what is involved in making a bead. I couldn't believe how good it felt to sit at the torch again. I am looking forward to this weekend so I can tidy the studio up and get back to being creative again. I hope this gives you a little glimpse of the magic I find at the torch!

 

Search Away

Site design by: The Blog Decorator