one can feel lost in a sea of sunflowers.

everyone of them seemingly happy.
but if you look more closely...

take the time...... to get to really KNOW them...

familiarize~embrace~befriend

open your mind.....

open your heart.

to different points of view

your world will open up.

behind a sunny face,

often lies an even more beautiful core.

really worth getting to know.

mmm

mmm

my girlfriend, Anna called me the other day..... to tell me about this gorgeous field of sunflowers that she spotted (off highway 96, just outside of Franklin)......well, i couldn't get there fast enough to take it all in......... giddy with the possibility of a fabulous photo-op! Anna joined me early the next morning (clothes thrown on, no make up....i don't even think i brushed my teeth!) and oh. my!! isn't it beautiful? i can just imagine, what lovely people must live in that little victorian house behind the field, to take the time, to plant 2 acres of sunflowers in their front yard. DELIGHTFUL!

afterwards, we dropped off a borrowed sander at Anna's friends house, who lives down the street from the sunflowers........a lovely woman.....she had us in for cake (yes, cake for breakfast!) and hibiscus tea. she told us this is the first year for her neighbors to plant sunflowers and that she and her hubby are SO inspired by them, that they want to plant them in THEIR back field next year. who wouldn't? we talked about how striking it would be, if everyone along this stretch of road planted sunflowers......

isn't it amazing, that a simple field of sunny sunflowers,

can spread so much joy and inspiration.

"i believe in pink...

i believe that laughing is the best calorie burner.


i believe in kissing,



kissing a lot.

i believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.

i believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.

i believe that tomorrow is another day

and

i believe in miracles."

~audrey hepburn

joining kim klassen for texture tuesday

http://www.kimklassencafe.com/thecafe

and exploring

PINK

the tall garden phlox is starting to bloom...

i can rely on this old fashioned beauty...
caught in the early mornin rays of the sun...
(before the neighbors can see me hopping around in the wet grass, in my jammies).

sleepy light flickering through the leaves...

the awakening of a pretty purple haze...

getting bizzy...or is it buzzy?

good mornin!

it's going to be...

a very good day.

red, white and blue around the house...

i spotted this adorable boat house at a nearby subdivision called "Westhaven". it is always at this time of year (a few days before the fourth of July) that i think i need buntings for my house....but it is too late to order them. er
oh well.......i made due with out buntings and changed up a few things on my porches.
the arch covered in Jessamine leads you to the back door and the cozy covered part of the deck....

the part of the house that i spend most of my time.......a gentle breeze provided by the ceiling fan adds some relief from the heat and gently sways the curtains.....

all spring, i have had the white cotton curtains hanging from clothespins....the old crocheted piece i just added this week.

to the left of the door is an old washbasin that i have turned into a water feature.

you can't see it in the photo but there is a bubbler and tiny goldfish swimming inside....the sound of the water is so relaxing to me....

above is one of my favorite wreaths......made by a lady i found at the flea market years ago.....simple wire and fragile twigs.

to the right is a piece of porch ceiling from an old farmhouse....the perfect shades of blue.

one of my handmade angels holds a flag.

i have hung some old garden fencing from a rake head....i have a thing for delicate old wire fencing...

my Adirondack chairs will soon be painted white.......until then i spiffed them up with some new cushions.

old doors lean behind the chairs....an old frame that i painted blue is hung there........above, is the "love spoken here" signage that i created this week, out of wire (inspired by something i saw on the Internet) i just love how it turned out.......it took a few tries, but was really not that hard to make.

my blue hummingbird feeder is just for show, as it has a terrible drip.

i love how the crochet piece catches the late afternoon rays....

and casts pretty shadows.

my dollar chair has a new coat of paint and holds my chalk ware kitty.

patriotic flags are a must for the fourth of July!

especially on the front porch.

and i just had to show you this gorgeous barn off of nearby, Franklin road, sporting its flag. you can't get more

AMERICAN

than that.

mmm

wewe plan on spending time on the back porch this holiday weekend....and i'll most likely start some new projects (i just found a store here in Franklin that carries Annie Sloan's Chalk paint, so of course i had to buy some...can't wait to try it out on my dining room table) and i have some paintings that are beckoning me into the studio......and there is always puttering in my gardens......oh yes, the Art Crawl is this weekend and a cookie exchange with fireworks at church....and, and, and.......

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!

mmm

mmm

i am joining debra at common ground for

vintage inspiration friday.....come to the party y'all.

http//commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/2011/06/vintage-inspiration-friday-44-patriotic.html