Autumn Inspiration...

We had a lot of wind last night, and so once again the ground is covered in leaves, mostly maple from the huge tree I've photographed above, mixed in with various others from our backyard greenbelt. Piles and piles of them in hues of yellow, russet, green and orange. Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of bright red color, as oak trees are not very common here in the Pacific Northwest.

Seeing this sight makes me stare in awe at the symphony of color around me, while others make a mad dash for their rakes! You can see that Fall color is my inspiration in the few pieces of jewelry I've scattered throughout my collage. Thankfully, my husband is the one who is inspired to grab the rake!

FINGERPRINT FRIDAY

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all.

from "All Things Bright and Beautiful by Cecil F. Alexander 1848

A friend of ours treated us to a boat ride last night around Fidalgo Island, Washington state, where we live. It was a beautiful evening as our "heatwave" continues- just perfect for boating. I took many photos, which I may post at another time, but this one of the sea lion was by far the most intriguing.

Apparently this big fella is often seen suntanning on this buoy and is quite used to boats getting close for a better look. It certainly reminded me that God made all creatures, big and small, , swift and slow, beautiful and beautifully challenged in all sizes and shapes! We also saw a pod of dolphins, but well, they are too swift for my camera! I'm also thankful for the generosity of our friend to give of his time to show us around the beautiful place we live from a different perspective.

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Thank you to Pampering Beki for hosting this each week! Everyone is welcome to join. To see how to join, as well as find links to other Fingerprint Friday posts, visit Pampering Beki's blog.

SUMMER ARRIVES EARLY

Here in the Pacific Northwest we've been having a heatwave. Well, for us it's a heatwave. While this is standard fare for much of the United States, we in our little NW corner of our country are not used to (or prepared for) temperatures in the high 70's in early June. Our average high summer temperature in July and August, our hottest months, are a humorously low 67°F, yep you read that right!

We do not have air conditioned houses, outdoor pools, and many of us do not have basements (although we do) so many lack a sanctuary in which to "cool off". Thankfully, temperatures do lower at night and it never lasts for more than a few days. After being in Kansas for the last 2 summers, I'm not complaining though. At least I can open every window of my house for some cool ocean breezes (our version of AC) and feel somewhat of a respite.

I thought I'd share a few photos of "Signs of Summer" in a collage. From left to right starting at the top:

1. Shorts and sandals

2. Fans are our AC

3. Planted pots

4. Backyard squirrels

5. Ahh, pink lemonade

6. Short sleeves

7. Rockrose

8. Sunshine

9. Beaded jewelry of course!

Are you seeing signs of summer in your part of the world or are you in the dog days already? Our kids aren't even out of school until the middle of June!

FINGERPRINT FRIDAY

Well, they bloomed, they finally bloomed! We've been waiting in great anticipation to go see the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival this Spring. Since we were in Kansas the last 2 years, we feel like tourists in our own town revisiting all the special sights that we missed while being gone. On the tulip festival website it says, "Bloom times dependent on Mother Nature". In my book, mother nature is God Himself, the Master Gardener.

Take a look at the color and the beauty in these... just breathtaking. As you approach the fields, you are greeted by bands of cheerful color and I can't help but feel a smile come over my face. Not just a gorgeous sight, but a wonderful feeling to be home!

Me and my favorite young man, my 12 year old son.

Me and my other favorite man. My son took this one, he's a great photographer, don't you think?

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Thank you to Pampering Beki for hosting this each week! Everyone is welcome to join. To see how to join, as well as find links to other Fingerprint Friday posts, visit Pampering Beki's blog.

CLEAN YOUR WINDOWS...

Because you never know what you'll see wander in your backyard. Yep, my husband cleaned the windows last weekend and I was glad because I wouldn't have been able to snap this crystal clear photo. Click on the photo to make it large. As soon as I opened the sliding glass door to take another, off the deer bounded to hide.

We've had such beautiful weather the past few days and I've seen lots of wildlife activity in the woods behind me from squirrels, hummingbirds, various others birds and now deer. Back to drizzle and clouds today. Such is living in the Pacific Northwest. Are you seeing signs of Spring in your part of the world?

Oh, and have you cleaned your windows lately? The world seems so much brighter and sunnier when you can see through them.

FINGERPRINT FRIDAY

Is today really the first day of Spring? I guess it must be because I can hear the birds singing in the woods behind me. Oh thank you Lord for the promise of warmer days ahead.

I wasn't sure what to write about today, but right on my MSN home page, there is a picture of the tulip fields in Mount Vernon, Washington, in a picture essay called "12 Scenic Spots to Ring in Spring". The link is here. The Skagit tulip fields are even listed as "1000 places you should see before you die". I am 10 minutes away from them, wow! So if you ever in this area in the month of April make sure to go see this spectacular site of God's beauty and see His fingerprints all over His creation.

I went through my old scrapbooks and then scanned this 10 year old picture of me and my son in the tulip fields. I will definitely be going this year, as I was in Kansas last Spring (their best season I might add), and I think I need to take an updated photo since my son is now twelve! Yes, I've been back since this was taken but I love the way the human element gives it a sense of scale and shows the wide extent of the fields. This is only one of many tulip farms in the area.

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Thank you to Pampering Beki for hosting this each week! Everyone is welcome to join. To see how to join, as well as find links to other Fingerprint Friday posts, visit Pampering Beki's blog.

IS THAT THE SUN?

I guess it must be... I think I forgot what it looked like! On the way to the mailbox, I just had to snap this picture. I'm sorry I got the corner of my neighbor's rooftop, but this photo actually showed the sun's rays. I was excited to see my shadow and I almost took a picture of that too!

I know this is a silly post but if you live in the Pacific Northwest you can probably relate to my musings. There are times that I miss living in Kansas (where there is so much more sunshine) and when I am sun-deprived this is one of those times. Now if we could just do something about those freezing cold temperatures in the midwest winters. On second thought, I better stick with the rain!

I hope you had some sunshine in your day!

SNOWED IN!

We woke up to a winter wonderland this morning with about 4 inches of snow and more on its way! Schools were cancelled, so it looks like we'll be housebound today. These photos were taken in our backyard which is a greenbelt of huge cedars and pine trees. Just beautiful and majestic with their covering of white!

Our little town of Anacortes, WA doesn't have any snow equipment, so life pretty much comes to a screeching halt when we get a winter storm. We already have ice packed roads from unusually low temperatures and snow from earlier this week, so road conditions are particularly treacherous.

I thought we had left all of this weather behind when we left Kansas! Oh, well, it's beginning to look alot like Christmas!

HEADING HOME!

After being here in Kansas City for a little over a year, our family has decided to move back to the West Coast. I am very excited to get back to our little town, our church and friends as well as my family in nearby Vancouver, Canada. We have enjoyed our time here being closer to my husband's family and seeing all that Kansas has to offer but we find the West Coast calling us back!

This is one of my favorite pictures (make sure you click on it to get a full view). It was taken at the Mt. Erie lookout point - the highest elevated point on Fidalgo Island. Are you wondering where on earth is Fidalgo Island ? It is an island connected by bridge west of the Skagit Valley in the upper Northwest corner of Washington state. The island contains the city of Anacortes and is known as the "Gateway to the San Juans". On a clear day, (here's proof they do happen in Washington!) this spectacular view allows you to see Mt. Baker, the nearby Whidbey Island Naval Air Station and the islands that make up the San Juans.

When I opened my Etsy store, beadinbythesea, we were in the midst of trying to get back to the West Coast but still being here in Kansas I went ahead with the name. Now there will be no more confusion, I really will be Beadin By the Sea!

To find out more about this beautiful place you can click here for the Anacortes Chamber of Commerce.