almost time for tulips!

O! it's a bright shiny sunny day in bohemia!! it's so beautiful today! there was frost this morning, so the whole scene outside her window is sparkling in the sunlight! the bohemian is so thankful  to live in this gorgeous place...

***ART PROJECTS:  she has been working in a friends altered book themed "tulips"...

*first page:

she's been saving this picture of these two little darling girls in their bright pink dresses with those gorgeous orangey-pink tulips with shockingly yellow centers... PERFECT!
*page 2:

she's been saving this adorable but slightly bemused cherub in denim with her purple tulips... these were so perfect for her friend's tulip book! and so, now the bohemian feels justified over her office-sized file cabinet stuffed to over-flowing with collected images.... her powers of justification are immense!

*page 3:  images of beautiful little girls blissfully enjoying the tulip fields which grow in the nearby valley...

the background on this page, with which the bohemian wasn't entirely happy, was first embossed in clear embossing powder to create a mask, then inked with lime green... came out kinda messy rather than popping the pattern out.  sigh.

ALSO outside her window today, she spied a fuzzy brown squirrel playing in the cedar tree. as she was watching and laughing at his antics, she noticed a shock of cobalt blue on the feathers of a stellar jay among the green boughs of the tree.  and then, just beyond the tree, she caught a glimpse of  the startling white of a pair of trumpeter swans flying over the field below the cottage. and again, she thanked God for letting her live in such a gorgeous place with such beauty and vivid colors surrounding her. she hopes you find gorgeous beauty surrounding you today.  and wishes you the loveliest day, with sunlight sparkling like diamonds in every one of your mudpuddles... don't forget to PLAY!!

the further adventures of miss hanna the fairy grandchild...

We last left miss hanna the fairy grandchild wandering the grounds around the bohemian grandmother's cottage. miss hanna was finding all kinds of wondrous things to discover.  in the driveway that led around the cottage, there were rocks of all sizes, shapes, and colors...

and in between the rocks was lovely, lovely, silken dust!

oh joy to one's hands! the soft, cool, wispy stuff! one never could be quite sure that it wasn't fairy dust!!!

it felt so magically ticklish on the legs!!

till the grandmother said: "alright. that's enough...dust off your hands!"

and then the grandmother showed miss hanna the mystery of the hazelnuts that were dropping from the shady tree into the grass beneath...

and little round pumpkins hiding under giant green leaves...

miss hanna thought it was a green ball and tried to pull it off the vine... the grandmother said: "no, no! hanna, no!" but miss hanna has no idea of the smiley jack'o'lantern that the green "ball" will become in another month! oh, won't she be surprised!  (well...that is all of miss hanna's adventure pictures that blogger would let the bohemian grandmother post for today! rats!  but please come back another time so see what further adventures miss hanna the fairy grandchild will have!)     autumn-y wishes to you! and a very merry full moon night to you all...

 

an adventure of miss hanna, the fairy grandchild...

once upon a time, the fairy grandchild journeyed to her bohemian grandmother's cottage at the foot of a very high and craggy mountain...  it was one of those rare and sunny, hot days in the lateness of summer...

miss hanna, the fairy grandchild roamed around the grounds outside the cozy cottage of the bohemian grandmother...  there were so many wonders to discover!  she found a SILKY, cobalt blue feather that a scolding stellar jay had left behind. 

she gazed around her at the sights... roses in bloom, blackberries hanging like grapes from the vines which her fairy grandmother called: "evil spellbinder thorn vines".  her grandmother said: "ouch! ouch!" as she stole purpleblack berries from off the thorny vines for the fairy grandchild to taste. oh the taste! sweet, dark magic melting in her mouth!

she had dressed appropriately  for the day's adventures... stylish plaid shorts...

chic yet comfy sandals with their flirty pink roses...

an o so pink t-shirt with frilly girly sleeves...

so what did the fairy grandchild do next?  well, the  bohemian grandma will continue the tale on the next available sunny summer day!  but in the meantime, sun-warmed wishes to tan your summer skin... and to keep that skin and the soul inside it young: go find a fairy child to play and laugh with... IT'S MAGICAL!!!

random summer fun...

1.  snuggling the fairy grandchild: delightful!!! (she's wondering...who IS that in the mirror?)

2.  the gorgeous bohemian mountains...they put on spectacular cloud shows!!

3.  face paint and smiles... and SUNSHINE!!!

4.  waterballoon fun! and the hot summer day to go along with it!

hope your summer so far has been filled with fun and sun.  and cool refreshment, if you live in a hot, dry place!  don't forget to play... how long has it been since you threw a waterballoon (or got hit with one?)??  try it, you'll like/love it!  blissful, sun-warmed days are wished to you!! from the tanned and smiling bohemian.
P.S.:  guess what?!  fairy granchild #2 is due any day!!! woo hoo!! fairy grandmother joy is abounding!!!!

bohemia by the sea... ( a little bit more)

 the bohemian is so thankful she lives near the sea...

 to be able to wander along the shore, walk upon the stones, smell the saltwater tang of the air...

 marvel at God's creation... the light, the colors, the textures, the animals...

 find a shocking dash of purple in the cold blue of the water...

discover with delight the patterns on a starfish's back...

what a glorious day of discovery and delight!!

AND: it's that time of year again for the bohemian!!  off she goes retreating to the peace and quiet of the gardens along with the women of her church...  she wishes you the beauty of spring, bursting into bloom in your corner of the world.  get out there and play in all that sunshine and beauty...can you still do cartwheels? swing on a rope swing? blow bubbles? fly a kite?  go outside and see if it is still in you.  salty wishes and ocean dreams to you all...

a day beside the bay...

oh the trouble "blogger" sometimes causes the bohemian!  she had lovely pictures of her time beside the bay... but alas, uploading was not cooperating.  it was a lovely day she had though; one of those rare and beloved days of sunshine sparkling on the water, the wind floating puffy clouds across the sky.  she and her drama queen daughter and her daughter's royal dog were treated to sightings of sea otter, purple starfish, fat sassy seagulls, as well as other adventurers, on foot, on two wheels, on four wheels, on dogleash...

maybe blogger will allow her to publish the rest of her pictures on another, more lucky day.  wishing you royal blue skies with white puffy clouds and water sparkles galore...

retreating into restfulness...

with the weather being so unnervingly fickle around bohemia these days, the bohemian wasn't sure how her retreat to the garden lands would turn out... but there was a time of sunshine and glory. the bohemian got to sit and soak... soak up sun's warmth, soak up restorative water songs, soak up the Creator's beautiful blooming nature, soak up the love and companionship of sisters and friends. her afternoon stroll took her past this sundial with this hope-filled quote inscribed upon it. she smiled... only the earliest of the spring blooms were showing off... her pathway took her up the hillside through the rhodie bushes not yet decked out in their spectacular array of color... past the music of cascading water... and the happiness of the daffodils. forsythia blooms showed off their brilliant yellow shades to the blue, blue sky. a few azaleas had bravely burst into color, ignoring the late snow and frosts. so many paths beckoning... she found her favorite daffodils blooming. and a new variety she's never seen before. her NEW favorites!! yes it was a very restful time for her, followed by a baby shower for her coming first grandchild!! then some more art time making cards and some more music time, playing her bass guitar in her church group. then rescuing her car from the mechanic and handing over lots of $$$ for it to be better. then today...a day of bright sunshine and a quiet house. and some art time... don't forget to play today! find some daffodils smiling at you and smile back at them. watch the herd babies frolic in the pastures. pass your smiles on to whomever you meet. flower-fragrance wishes to you...

good day, sunshine...

yes, it has been rainy lately but the last two days have been glorious!!! they begin with misty, moisty mornings... then beautiful spring weather. of course, the bohemian was shocked this morning to discover it had dipped down to 26 degrees! it has been keeping to the 50s. but it seemed damp rather than frosted... the bohemian has been wandering in blogland, trying to find inspiring and challenging blogs... her muse has been a little absent-minded lately. this black page was inspired by a michelle ward challenge: "come over to the dark side". yes, that little girl is the bohemian. yes, she has red-winged blackbirds in her neck of the woods. yes, some day she WOULD like to learn to dance some latin-type dances. another try at the challenge: 'braving the elements" (michelle ward). this is the beginning of the layers. now where to next...? another faerie for her faerie book... the hopeful faerie. a much-needed muse right now... the bohemian-townie-hipster daughter created a bunch of these sweet little cupcakes made out of old sweaters!!! aren't they adorable? this one is a wild blueberry cupcake, looking good enough to eat... yummmmmmyyyy! matchbook card valentines for la familia... (these were so fun to make!!!) put in pics of the parental units to remind them of what they looked like:).... the beginnings of a cover for an altered book... hurray for upholstery fabric sampler book gleanings... and another breath-taking glimpse of her bohemian mountain as the sun begins its sinking of the day... crispy sunshiny wishes to everyone. take time to make art!!