Especially Special

Jay and Janice are coming for dinner....so that has been my focus today. The menu is seafood chowder and apple crisp....which sounded a little bit like fall! It's always a good thing to tend to the condo and prepare a meal for especially special people.

Adding some festive gourds to my centerpiece was my infusion of fall for today.

This one was unique with a great stem. 

But this stem was especially special.

I love the fall findings on my table!

The Wandering Flowers made a stop in New Albany, Indiana where Cherie and Dale had lunch at The Lady Tron's Diner. They were greeted by Lady Tron, and R2D2.

Cherie said the diner was tiny....with just 10 stools. 

This Guest check reminded Cherie of the doodles her dad used to do on napkins and anything he could get his hands on and leave at restaurants. He seems to leave a trail of creativity behind him everywhere he goes.

If you remember one of Chuck's doodles was featured on the first page in Cherie's joy journal. Such an especially special Chuck moment in the Lady Tron's Diner.

I forgot to plot the St. Louis Flower stop yesterday....so there are two stops today. Next up...the final push for home. Cherie and Dale have been on their adventure since the beginning of August....I'm sure it will feel good to be home. 

Sun Clock

I love the change in the seasons....especially summer to fall. And I'm quite fond of the fall equinox when the light is balanced. It's a moment of alignment.....a turning point...a seasonal shift. It represents a pivotal time in the harvest...and a time of gathering and release. 

A month or so I stumbled on this Sun Clock through an artist's feed. This is a screen shot at 6:23...and the equinox is at 8:05 here in the Eastern Time Zone. 

I'm such a visual person....so I was quite taken with it. When you go to the online site...you can move your curser around and get information about the current light and darkness is live time....in your time zone. 

Did you know there was a morning and an evening golden hour? And there are three phases of morning and evening twilight.

Check it out!  https://sunclock.net/

In preparation for fall....I took a field trip to one of my favorite local garden stores yesterday and shopped for stems pumpkins and gourds. I'm going to take a little time each day to infuse a little autumn into my yard and home....and I'll share some of it here because it brings me joy.

I want my entrance to feel welcoming and seasonally festive.

I knew I wanted this tall skinny pumpkin. Because tall and skinny is fun....but just look at that fabulous stem! The women at the checkout counter totally understood.

Cherie, Dale, and the Wandering Flowers made their way to the St. Louis Zoo...which, by the way is totally free for everyone.

It is next to Forest Park, which is bigger than Central Park in New York. It's also free....and the home of an art, history, and science museum. 

Here are The Wandering Flowers...at the entrance to the zoo. 

Thank goodness Cherie and Dale made the right call to take them back to the car....they were much to heavy to tour around the zoo and park.

The companion flowers were handed off to Ryan and Chase and joined other Chuck flowers at their new home.

So now The Wandering Flowers were on their own in the back seat for the rest of their journey. 

I loved this behind the scenes snapshot Cherie sent with all the other important stuff: snacks, paper towels, and car projects! 

Kansas....

....and Alaska! I love the connections I've made through Joyful Puttering. 

It's the last day of summer....and I could have used light gloves and earmuffs on my early morning walk. I actually adore these crisp mornings.....and I absolutely adore fall....so bring it on! 

This photo is from Lily...who lives on the southern coast of Alaska! 

Isn't it just stunning! Perfect end of summer photo!

I love both mushrooms and rocks....so when Cherie shared her photos from Mushroom Rock State Park in the middle of Kansas farmland....I was a little jealous! I've driven through Kansas several times....so I kind of chuckled with the first line on the sign that said "Mushroom Rock State Park is one of the truly amazing wonders of Kansas." 

I know every state is beautiful in its own way....but "amazing wonders" does not leap to mind when I think of Kansas. 

I will be the first to admit that these incredible 66+ million year old mushroom rock formations are a wonder to behold. Thanks Cherie and Dale!

Moments

It's Janice's Birthday today....and this golden oldie window box display continues to be one of my favorite Janice moments. But things have changed. Janice and Jay have a brand new garage....with a brand new window. 

And whether or not there is a new window box, I can always be certain that every time I visit....there will be some sort of a colorful and fabulous Janice moment. And I celebrate that she is just ten minutes away.

Happy Birthday Janice! 

I had a wonderful visit with Patty today...and I keep celebrating that she's right down the street. Yesterday I had breakfast with Marita and tomorrow I'll connect with Jane. I got a couple update emails today from Cherie (more on that tomorrow)....and texts and calls from other friends in the past several days. I'm so grateful for so many joy-filled moments with my circle of women friends.

It was a treat to have breakfast at Marita's yesterday....and I was smitten with her collection of found nature objects on his kitchen bar counter. 

The whole was as beautiful as all the individual parts.

So may sweet moments.

A Few More Scraps....

.....and a statue of "Liberty."

As I was attempting to clean off one of the work surfaces in my studio...I came across a couple of scraps: the last of the fused napkin scraps and the Audubon title from the magazine I've been cutting up. 

I paused to make another very simple little tag.

I used more of the text fabric from the last tag...and some striped fabric that leaned into the teal color I used as a background on the first napkin tag. 

I'm not sure I love the stripe...but it's what I did....so it's there to stay. I filled in the letters with a little pink and added the napkin leaf for flow. 

I'm heading towards pink...teal...and aqua. I think.

One learns most when one wanders the world. Tamuna Tsertsvadze 

Cherie and Dale are making their way across Colorado....it's a big state. I've already mentioned that they make it a point to seek out roadside attractions......and this time it was "Liberty" in Aurora Colorado. Liberty is a contemporary take on New York's iconic Statue of Liberty standing as a towering symbol of unity, courage and hope. Michael Benisty, artist

The 58 foot sculpture sits in the middle of nowhere near the Denver Airport....and is visible for miles. 

"Through its reflective surface, the sculpture invites viewers to engage with their own sense of freedom and transformation, encouraging a connection to something greater than themselves." Michael Benisty, artist

The Wandering flowers....also encouraging a sense of connection and hope.

After it Rains

The second half of our summer here in Maine has been dry. So when it rains...I celebrate!

My rain gauge has been missing in action all summer....so I've been using this votive candle holder as a stand in. It's working just fine and I was pleased with the beneficial amount of overnight rain. 

After it rains I always look for raindrops. And that often leads to noticing something special...like the pinky red new growth on my andromeda. Oh how I love the day after it rains! 

Napkin Scraps and a Hero Horse

The key to a wonderful life is to never stop wandering into wonder. Suzy Kassem

I cut out pieces and parts of the leftover napkin scraps for another tag. I quite like this one with the flowers framing the text. Which...by the way....is a piece of fused fabric. No glue needed....everything is fused.

I had one swatch left that just fit the back....all I needed were a few extra leaves for balance. Going to keep this back simple.

Cherie and Dale and The Wandering Flowers are making good progress....they've hit 5 states since leaving their cabin in Southern California. 

They stopped in Cedar City, Utah to check out the Old Sorrel, Hero Horse Monument on the Southern Utah University campus...then they spent the night in Riffle, Colorado.

Old Sorrel....was a horse that saved the day for Cedar City back in 1897. You can read the story with the link above.

Late Summer Garden.....

....and a fish!

Paul found this red plastic fish while he was out and about today....

and I tucked her in the garden. 

My texture garden is that it's just as pretty in the late summer/early fall as it was in the middle of the season....just a little bit of browning.

Joyful Abundance!

Another Journey

Subtitle: Ever Since

Ever since Cherie received her joy journal we've had a connection and stayed in touch. 

Ever since Chuck (her dad) gifted me one of his beautiful metal flower sculptures I have been smitten by his spirit and generosity. 

Ever since Cherie and Dale helped me track The Traveling Flowers across the country from Chuck's home in southern California to my home in Maine...I have admired their sense of adventure and commitment to spreading a little joy. 

So it's time for another journey....and cross country tour. 

Introducing The Wandering Flowers: more of Chucks sculptures making their way across the country with Cherie and Dale....with an interesting destination twist at the end.

Not all those who wander are lost. J.R.R. Tolkien

Cherie and Dale...along with their precious cargo made their way from Southern California to Seven Magic Mountains just outside of Las Vegas. These locally-sourced wildly painted boulder sculptures are 30 to 35 feet tall. Who knew there was such a thing! Cherie and Dale do love finding unusal roadside attractions....and we get to follow along.

From their they continued onto Vegas...visiting the iconic Las Vegas sign. The red flowers are the official Wandering Flowers and the other are traveling companions. Chuck helped friends of theirs make their own flowers in his shop. Since Ryan and Chase were flying....Dale and Cherie are delivering them.