Learning to sew

I have never thought of myself as creative or crafty. However, I love to learn new things and am a fairly quick learner. I have been faithfully following some amazing sewing blogs -- Sew, Mama, Sew and designer Heather Ross, among others. I am in awe of their abilities and hope to one day be half as amazing. As I was watching Martha Stewart one morning, I was inspired by Heather Ross. I decided to attempt her little girls smocked sundress. It was soooo easy! I am addicted and now have an array of fabric on the way to make more dresses and shirts and skirts.....oh the possibilities are endless!!

I Heart Faces -- Fix-it Friday

I couldn't resist this week's Fix-it Friday entry. I have not participated before but this picture was begging for my try. lol

Here is the original.



Here is my "fix". I used Cathyjo Sparkle to make the eyes pop. I then adjusted the color and curves.

Gardening

The weather has finally improved enough to plant the garden. It has been so cold here at night that our garden was put on hold until it warmed up a bit. I am soooo happy we were able to plant the garden on Memorial Day.

Flying

It has been a while since I participated in I heart faces. I couldn't resist this week though. I LOVE the theme this week -- silhouettes. This is my all-time favorite picture of my son and his Daddy!

Check out more beautiful silhouettes at I Heart Faces.

Picnic weather

The weather has been beautiful this week. We decided to enjoy the gorgeous afternoon and have a picnic in the yard. The kids loved it. It's the simple things in life that make it all worthwhile. :)

Wordless Wednesday -- Finding God in nature

Elakala Falls

Yesterday on our hike we visited Elakala Falls in Blackwater Falls State Park. It is beautiful this time of year.

View from Lindy Point

I have lived here for a few years and have never ventured out Lindy Point trail. We decided to take a walk today and that's where we ended up. The view is breathtaking. It was not a good time of the day to go but this gives you an idea of why WV is "Almost Heaven".

Fog over the wetlands

Appalachian delicacies

I did not grow up in Canaan Valley. I actually spent the majority of my childhood in Marietta, Ohio. I moved to WV after graduated from high school. When I came to WV to visit my family during spring breaks I would often here them talking about ramps. I was just a kid so I didn't think anything about it. It wasn't until I was much older that I had my first encounter with ramps.

My husband grew up here and is a self-professed Appalachian man. lol My husband and his family LOVE ramps, I on the other hand do not. My only association with ramps is the type you drive a car onto when you need an oil change. I was told by many people that the aroma of ramps was not at all pleasant. So, when he said he was going to hunt for ramps I was less than thrilled. I soon experienced the knock out aroma of ramps. OH. MY. GAWD. Let me just say when Spring rolls around and my husband disappears for a few hours on the hunt for the elusive ramps, I duck my tail and run the other way. But I am not one to forbid him from eating his prized catch. lol Luckily he is kind enough to cook them outside. ;)

Although I am not fond of ramps, I am extremely fond of another elusive Appalachian delicacy.
Can anyone tell me what this delicious little nugget is?