Ahh Fall....

I have seen the subtle changes of the upcoming and possibly on us Autumn Season!! According to meteorologists, Fall started on September 1st, however, astronomically, the Fall Equinox starts on September 22 or 23. Yet, to my ever searching eye, the slight change has happened!

I see it in the trees. The slight shift from a dark and lush green of summer to a hint of faded yellow in just a few trees and shrubs. And not the bright green of spring; this is more like khaki colors, muted but not dull; faded. This has happened over the last few weeks. Starting with a few of the smaller trees or the low shrubs and working up towards the large oaks and maple trees. I can't wait until they burst into full glory of reds and golds and faded orange!! This is quite possibly my favorite time of the year. {Yet, I hold onto it gently as spring time in my north has not yet come over me and maybe after this winter, I will love spring more.}

I also feel it in the slight, yet obvious temperature changes! The mornings have a crisp and cool feel and sometimes they are just cold to these still Floridian arms and legs! While it still gets up in the high 80's and sometimes the low 90's, there is a definite change where the sun doesn't beat down so warm and the breeze feels cooler bringing in thoughts from our friends further north!

{and just a side note, I had about 10 pictures to post and this is the only one that made it through because sometimes computers are just irritating}

I will continue trying to post the change into autumn as I can and then as winter comes upon us will try to get some of the same places in their mask of snow.

Creativity in Kim's Kitchen

Sometimes I can hardly make myself work up the energy desire to cook a full and healthy meal and other times I find myself feeling creative in the kitchen. However, today was a creative day and I found a new way to make chicken salad!! Using local honey (supposedly helps allergy sufferers get used to the changing seasons), cheese, grapes and apples instead of relish makes for a healthy alternative yet sweet enough so you're not wanting dessert afterward! I have tried something similar in a local downtown cafe and heard it might be called California Chicken Salad, but not too sure what else they may use; nuts maybe! Anyways, this was fashioned after my favorite dinner: apple-stuffed chicken breasts!! Maybe that recipe will appear on a blog one day. So, just wanted to share this delicious concoction:
 
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, seasoned to taste, cooked and chopped
1/2 c Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded
2-3 slices of Apple, peeled, cored and chopped
3 tsp Honey, more or less to taste
2 tsp Mayonaise, just enough to hold it together
salt and pepper to taste
grapes, quartered cinnamon, optional
6 croissants
Honey Butter 
Lettuce

Heat Croissants in oven, 350 for five minutes, butter with honey butter.
Mix first 8 ingredients in a medium bowl, scoop onto croissants, top with lettuce and serve with remaining apples, raisins, and chips!!  Serves 6

Conference Time

Yesterday we had a parent / teacher conference after school to discuss problem, school work, portfolio pictures and whatever the teachers wanted to tell the parents of their preschoolers. And both our kids got great excellent reports!! They don't cause problems and are very bright, in case ya'll didn't know. ;-) 

Let's see, Noah was first. He enjoys playing with his friends, trains, puzzles and outside on the playground. We're told he doesn't get tired like some of the children. Most of his drawings are circular and he tells that they are balls or ball games or planes! Almost everyday he tells me he wants to go in a helicopter, plane, race car, truck, and a tractor when he gets bigger!!! He has impressed his teacher with all the letters he recognizes. For example, he can tell you that his friend Logan starts with an "L" and Jace starts with a "J" and of course he knows his name starts with an "N". He is quite advanced for his age! His only trouble is when we drop him off lately, as in the past two weeks. He gets very upset when I leave and does not want to stay. After I'm out the door, Ms. Sharon says he does fine and has good great days! We are currently working on scripted stories, which are essentially stories we make up together to describe what his mornings entail. She has us using "first, then" sentences to help him adjust to what is about to happen and we're trying to give him some choices so he can exert a little of his new found independence. It hasn't worked overnight like I was hoping (I know it would take a week or two, but you can't blame a mother for hoping!!).  But otherwise he is doing so well and making friends and having a blast learning!

Hannah is also impressing her teacher! She has changed so much in the last few months. She is now drawing things that you can tell with your eyes than what she can see in her imagination. She has started showing people with a circle head and long oval bodies with arms and legs. She drew a cow the other day in preschool which was obvious and had some fire to keep it warm after experiencing learning about the weather! She is still a little shy during the first few minutes, but has let go of my legs in the mornings and departs with a kiss and hug or two or three! She has made several friends, one girl named Hope that is very sweet and it's adorable to watch them come in from the playground holding hands and giggling. She also tells me about some boys that she is friends with and wants to whisper their names! Her favorite center is the homemaking area with a kitchen, (pots, food, etc.) and babies and other toys. She also loves playing in the sand and outside and tells me how often they get to go out.

Dancing Ballerina

Hannah was born doing two things: singing and dancing! She has not stopped talking/singing/whispering/etc since she learned her voice and once she started moving, she learned grace and elegance. Now she is taking dance lessons from a friend here in Erwin. {This sweet lady, by the way, has offered to sponsor Hannah this year, which is great after I found out how expensive is dancing! And she has been teaching for 50+ years and is just a beautiful person!} So, she is now blossoming and doing so great and looks natural! She has always paid attention to detail which is great while she watches the dancer's toes and arms and learning so gracefully how to move from one position to another. I'm proud of whatever my children want to do, but watching her today, she just excels above the other pretty little girls! I know she was born to dance and have a feeling she will want to continue as long as it's fun. I just pray that I don't get competitive and push either child too hard, but give them the encouragement they need!



So I was going to have Hannah dress up in her dance outfit and take some pictures, her and Noah come downstairs tonight dressed in her outfits!! Yes, I said my son is dressed in one of Hannah's dance outfits! ;-)



You almost can't tell, but Noah has on a leotard over a black, long sleeved, bunched up shirt with black tights underneath.



Hannah works on her poise, pretending she is holding a "beach ball", that's they way they learn to hold their hands in front, above and then fall down like "rain"!









And while Hannah poses, Noah flies like an airplane!

Crafty Projectiles!

Well, I have been busy in my new studio (pictures to come of this said studio) and enjoying the space I have. The latest project, which will be on display Sunday morning, is a pillow case dress. These dresses are usually made from old pillow cases, given a few holes, some ribbon and strung up on some unsuspecting little girl. This one, however, was made using a new favorite piece of floral material! It's taken me a while to figure just how to sew it right and add ribbon, etc, but it is now a finished piece of work and I think Hannah loves it! I don't know the next time I will make a dress again, but may think on it and give myself a few months to get over the detail!







Another project was inspired by a magazine called: "Where Women Create" which has a ton of studios that are ridiculously expensive and some of which I can't see anyone working in and creating any projects, they are too pretty. There are a few that have inspired my own studio and one project that inspired me. Sally Jean was a featured artist and had a few pieces like my Auntiema, picture frames that have been altered. And last weekend I found a two cute frames, one said "twinkle, twinkle little star" and the other something about "princesses". They were cute by themselves, but to babyish. And you know, my kids are "big kids" now! ;-0 So I decided to jazz up the frame and it went something like this:





My final piece I'm writing about in today's publication is a trashy bookshelf I found at a yard sale for $2. It was not very pretty, but rather sturdy and wide enough for much of my supply boxes, so I paid the nice gal and brought it home.



Then I pulled out the cleaner and scrubbed it, sanded it a bit and dragged it over to my sewing table to get a face lift! And using my new, favorite fabric, gave it an up-do and here you go: