Baby Shower Day!!!!

Today was my family baby shower.  It was so fun!  My sister and mom did a great job of decorating with a Minnesota nature theme.  All of the food they prepared was wonderful, too.  We played one game, which had a Minnesota theme.  It was all about naming the Minnesota state flower, bird, grain, fruit, muffin, etc.  I didn't win the game, but I was just one point shy of the woman who did win!  I am pretty sure all guests had a nice time.  I feel so blessed for all of my lovely family who attended this event, physically or in spirit.  Our baby boy is very lucky.  I am feeling overwhelmingly grateful for all of the fantastic gifts we received today.  Thank you everyone!!!!

 The happy couple

 Mom, me, sister

  Mom, me, Mother-in-law

Time for a little north woods vacation

I don't know about you, but life has been feeling really stressful lately. Thankfully, I am able to rejuvenate the soul this weekend with the fresh air of the north woods. We are staying at a friend's cabin on the top of a hill. We are almost at the tree tops, we are so high up. The sound of the wind blowing through, rustling the leaves gently, is soothing my wild spirit. Wishing you all a joyful and peaceful weekend! Also, on my commute to work on Thursday, I listened to a CD by Dr. Christiane Northrup on finding joy. I don't have the exact title right now, but I will post it when I've returned from vacation. That CD was the beginning of my slump improvement. Anything by Dr. Christiane Northrup is worth spending time with. She's fantastic!

MCBA & The August Visual Journal Collective Meeting

Hi Courageous Creators!  I hope these photos inspire the journaler/book artist in you, as much as they do for me!
Taken at the Minnesota Center for the Book Arts and the August Visual Journal Collective Meeting, facilitated by Roz Stendahl.

On display at MCBA

The August Visual Journal Collective Meeting

Roz gives a demo on using gouache.  Her favorite kind is sold at Wet Paint in St. Paul, MN.  Roz also recommends this kind of gouache.

Karen Engelbretson shares pages from her fabulous journal she kept while on vacation.

This is Jean Shannon.  She got some inspiration from Matisse for these journal pages.  

Kathleen Richert shared some of her journal pages, too.

Last, but not least, here is Suzanne Hughes sharing pages from her very inspiring visual journal.

I love this group (The Visual Journal Collective), and feel so honored to be a part of it.  It fills me up each and every month!

Do you attend a monthly meeting that fills you up?  What do you call it?  What do you do there?  (It is good to share these things, as everyone needs people, right?)

Inspired by Summer SouLodge with Pixie Campbell

Pixie Campbell is an inspiring woman.  She has a new website called SouLodge where she posts information about her upcoming e-courses and gatherings.  Recently she finished up teaching her summer session of Summer SouLodge, and decided to post a FREE PDF on her site.  I have been soaking it up lately, and am feeling deeply connected to Spirit, just when I needed it most.
If you are someone who likes nature based ritual and ceremony, you'll love what Pixie offers.

I made a journal page after watching one of Pixie's Summer SouLodge videos.  Next I listened to her link of whale songs.  Wow!  What amazing creatures.  I haven't listened to them for a long, long time like this.  It was good to hear them again.

Now that I am in tune with my spirit, and feel grateful for Pixie's free pdf offering, I'd like to give something to you, too.
It's a piece of hand painted paper that you can download and print for use in your journal, scrapbook, or handmade cards.  Enjoy!  (Just click the image and save to your computer).

(Dimensions are roughly 7 x 10 inches)

Early Morning Walk with My iPhone

Today is going to be a work day in the house.  This is the weekend Tom and I are going to try to spiff up our house for the upcoming baby shower and arrival of our little bundle of joy.  I will be entering into my third trimester of pregnancy soon, and I am already feeling many discomforts.  I can only imagine it will be getting worse, as far as comfort goes.  Mind you, I am not complaining.  I love, love, love being pregnant.  I feel very lucky and blessed.

What are your labor day weekend plans?  Hopefully you'll get some outside enjoyment in there somewhere.  That's why I decided to go for a walk first thing this morning.  Walking gives me a space to breathe, think, relax, process, and enjoy nature.

The first two pics are using the ClassicINSTA app.

Oh how I love the photography apps on the iphones!!!

The photos below are using the ClassicTOY iphone app.