Fall is in the air.....

Only a little less than one month till the first day of fall.  I can't wait!

Yesterday, I visited the San Diego Zoo with some of Ryan's family, and had a blast.  It is always super fun with happy kids!!!  I wasn't really in the mood for taking pictures, but did break out Clem to get these two shots...





Above is the ever so cute 1 year old baby Giant Panda, Yun Zi.  And I also decided to snap a quick pic of the zoo entrance as we were leaving.....it's so colorful and exciting there at night!

Today I am just cleaning, and hope to work on more projects tonight.  My pretty bouquet of flowers, and goblet of pine-cones will be keeping me company.  This weekend is Ryan's family reunion, and then a fun get together with the Pink Ninja Addict Girls : )

XOXO

-Carrie

*Note to self

*read me (per ticket I attached with paperclip : )

I was at Barnes and Noble the other day, (it was way to hot to be in my non-air-conditioned home), drinking my current cool beverage of choice, and decided to peek inside this beautiful magazine.  Instantly, I became absorbed in it's luscious pages.  The last week or so, I can feel Fall tugging at my skirt, and this little gem is just what I have been looking for.  Buy it.  If you enjoy being inspired, and reading sweet thoughts.....it's perfect.

<3 Carrie

P.S. I forgot to mention that a local San Diego Scrapbooker/Artist, Debee Campos (Ruiz), is featured in this issue.....Bonus (she makes lovely things)!!!

Wednesday ~ Heart Flutter

I would like to introduce you to my precious little doggie.  His name is Gatsby, and he has stolen both mine and Ryan's heart.  We have had him since he was 8 months old (but I have known him since the day he was born),  and he is a Basenji. 

Getting photos of this little guy is a challenge, otherwise I would share photos of him all the time.  Most of the time, all he does is hang out with me at home and sleep.  Otherwise, he acts like a puppy, and all he wants to do is play.  He is about 6 1/2 years old.  Our routine is actually pretty cute.  If I have lunch, then he'll decide to have lunch too.  If I've been working on a project for a while, he will casually stop by just to say hi.  Oh, and he can smile too : )

When people meet him for the first time, usually they comment on what a "mellow" dog he is.  If you own a Basenji, you will think this is hilarious, because they are known for their destructive nature....they are not fully domesticated, you see.  However, he is very calm when we take him places, and he is so gentle that babies can feed him.  He will take a treat from your fingers and just barely touch you.

His is also an excellent traveler, and had the best time playing with my mother's two dogs while we were in Washington (he grew up playing with a long haired German Shepherd, so these guys are the perfect playmates).....

Anyone else out there have a cute doggie?  I'd love to see pictures, if you send me a link in the comments section.....

Here's to puppy love!

;) Carrie

Railroad Bridge Park

Our last morning in Sequim required some outdoors time.  So, we took a walk on a bridge, and through the forest.  The sound of the Dungeness River was melodic, and the air smelled sweet.  

There were all different types of trees, and most of their leaves were a really light shade of green.  When the sun shone through them, they glowed the prettiest yellow.  I even kissed my sweetie under their beautiful canopy!  

Some of the colorful moss that grew on the side of the walkway rubbed off on my jeans.  I didn't notice till much later, and it was nice to know I took a little more of our peaceful walk home with me : )

Love,

Carrie

Pink Ninja Monday!

So I am back in San Diego.  We arrived at like 7am yesterday morning.

Ryan and I both slept a lot, and then he played a new XBox game....."Lego Star Wars".....have you seen it?  It is seriously the cutest game (I am chuckling inside right now just thinking about it)!?!?  I might even start playing it.....I think I want to?!

Anyways, while he was indulged in his new game, I broke out my Pink Ninja Addicts July Kits, and just made stuff for a good three hours.  It felt SO great to be home with my art supplies!  I made quite a few tags (like the one above), and decided I want to attach a bunch of them together (probably with a binder ring) and add photos from my trip.....a mini book of sorts.  Kinda fun, right?!?!

The tag above holds a photo Ryan took of me kissing him on our last walk through the beautiful forest in Washington, so it is super special to me.  I am so blessed to have shared that moment with him.  And our walk was perfect.  Just the right temperature, cool and breezy.  I can still hear the trees as they sway together.

The other tags I made are just waiting for me to add photos, so next Monday I should have the rest to share all at once ;)   

Happy Pink Ninja Monday!!!

<3 Carrie

All u need is love

My beautiful Mother took this photo of Ryan and I at the Clallam County Fair yesterday.  I was super happy because I had just gone on a fun ride with my little sister, and I wanted to hug my sweetie <3

Earlier that morning, my little sister and brother and I finished painting stones from our art project the night before.  Aren't they magical and cheery?!?!

My little sis painted this one.  Is says "all u need is love".  I love that.  

It was fun watching them get excited about painting a pile of rocks we had found just laying around the yard.....we had such a great time that they were actually a little stinky about having to go to bed, and not being able to finish them that night.  It was cute : )

I have so many great memories from my trip this summer, but my head is swimming with all the things I didn't have time to do.  And I'm wondering.....How is that even possible?  I have been here an entire month!  And today Ryan and I leave Sequim, and begin our adventure back to San Diego.  I am not ready.  But I have to be.  It's time.  We are suppose to go on a little hike down my the old railroad tracks today, and I'm hoping that walking through an amazing forest one last time, hearing the sound of the rushing water, seeing the sunlight peek through the dense trees, and feeling the earth as the lush overgrown grass brushes past my side will help me feel some closure.  And of course a big hug from my little sister and brother will help too!

So here is a big hug from me to you!  I hope you have a great day!!!

<3 Carrie

Summer Wedding Crafts

It's been a while since I shared anything creative, so I though today would be a great day for sharing some of the crafts we made for Sarah's wedding.....

First, we made some soft tissue paper pompoms for hanging in the trees. Each of us girls chose different colors (except for we each made some white ones), and added our own personal touch to make each one special.  (There are 4 plus part of a 5th in the photo above.....can you spot them all?)



Then, we made a bunch of these colorful beaded lanterns.  Most of them were also hung in the trees, but two of them were placed on the arbor (like in the photo above).  We used battery operated tea lights (from Costco), and they worked perfectly!

I got the idea for these lanterns from Elsie's Summer Camp (online class), and all us girls just loved making them!!!  If you haven't taken one of her online classes before, I highly recommend it.  You will have SO much fun!

For the tissue paper pompoms, we just used the instructions from the Martha Stewart website HERE.  Super easy, and they turn out so cool (and huge)!  I am totally going to make more, and hang some from the ceiling in my craft area at home.....

See you tomorrow, and have a lovely day beauties!

<3 Carrie

Wednesday ~ Heart Flutter

Right now I just adore Olympic Cellars Winery.  Visiting this local winery, and drinking their delicious wine has been a real treat!!!  My mom and I have been wine tasting there twice : )  

In general I am not a big wine drinker, so finding some that I really enjoy has been a definite highlight of my trip to Washington.  Though, I'm sure it doesn't help that Ryan and I have been to a couple totally fun dinner parties (both with Italian food), were the La Dolce Vida Cabernet Sauvignon (2006), and My Sweet Syrah (2007) were served.....and I now officially have fond memories of drinking delicious wine with great friends on two wonderful summer evenings.

I even bought some of their limited edition wine to take home (La Melange Nouveau).....it's infused with lavender, and the perfect refreshing summer white wine.  I can't wait to crack open a bottle in San Diego!

 .....Yes, Gloria, I'm talking about you, me, some fresh fish and veggies for dinner, and a bottle of this ertradornary wine while we catch up somewhere relaxing.....can you see it?!?!

Well, tomorrow my family and I are visiting the Clallam County Fair (which I am super excited about), and then I am going to try and fit in a little trip to some of the local antique malls (I have something special to hunt for).  Tonight, I am working on some art fun with my little sister, and eating dark chocolate fudge brownie ice cream!

Happy Summertime to you!!!

Love, Carrie

The Wedding

Sarah and Colby had a great wedding.  The ceremony was perfect.  Our brother Benji was "The Reverend" (which is also his current nickname ; )  And he did the best job (that's him above in the red shirt).  The photo of the cute boy in the hat is my little brother, and little packets with hearts on the chairs was bird seed instead of rice for showering the bride and groom.

I'm going to keep it short tonight, but will post again tomorrow.

Sweet dreams to all of you who are going to bed now.....

Love, Carrie

An Afternoon at the Beach.....

It was just my little brother and I for a good five hours at the beach on Tuesday.  We had the best afternoon visiting the Dungeness Spit!!!  It is a rocky beach covered with beautiful stones, but close to the water we found some sand to lay out our blanket.  The sound and motion of the waves were so peaceful, as the tide slowly came in.  We took time to make a sandcastle, and wade in the cold ocean water until our legs were numb.  Our beach blanket was hot from the sun, and felt amazing!  We listed to music on my ipod, and just relaxed.  The above photo is the early evening sun hitting the tall trees, on our short half mile hike back to the parking lot.  My little brother told me he was very happy we could spend time together, just the two of us.  He has been asking me to take him back every day since : )

<3 Carrie

Pink Ninja Monday!

A layout for *G*  She is my dearest friend.


My room (at my Mom's) is officially being taken over with delightful goodness.  So far I have a piece of embroidery hanging, magenta twinkle lights, a glass pictcher filled with my freshly picked lavender bouquet, and now this sweet 6x12 layout sitting on my dresser.  Needless to say I fall asleep every night feeling blessed with my visit to Sequim : )


Here are some of the details of the layout.....



I used both the July kits for this layout, *Toast & Bananas* and *Sunday Afternoon*.  I am in love with these colors right now....so fresh, bright, and cheerful!!!

Happy Pink Ninja Monday!

Miss you Gloria!!!

Carrie

Lovely Lavender!!!

This is my self portrait for July 29th.  It was a great day!!!  

I visited a local lavender field (and snapped some photos), while my sweet mother picked blueberries with my little brother : )









The smell was amazing!  I even picked my own bouquet to take home.....

Have a lovely day!!!

Carrie