Lovin' Some Summer Art, Blogstyle!

Feelin the insane summer heat (we hit 106 yesterday) lead me to find some cool things
to spark the creative vibes! I hit paydirt with:

Dresses from fred flare

Outstanding, dreamy photography by Anna Aden

and the sizzlin', unique summer style

of the Red Velvet Art girlies!

featuring Elsie Flannigan & her new, limited edition "elsiecake girls" cards!

And we always need a summer drink:

Watermelon Margaritas by Domino Mag Online!
(before they shut down--breaks the heart!)

WATERMELON MARGARITAS
3 cups seedless-watermelon chunks

(about 1 lb. peeled watermelon)

1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup tequila

1/2 cup Grand Marnier

Combine watermelon chunks, lime juice and sugar in a blender, and blend on high until completely liquid and frothy. Combine in a pitcher with tequila and Grand Marnier. Fill pitcher with ice, stir and serve.

(My girl pal, Auds, & I prefer them blended up rather than on the rox! Also a shortcut is to buy the premixed margaritas & just dump that in with watermelon, GM & ice, then blend awayyyyy for a summer cool-down!)

What gets your blood pumpin' for summer? What do you enjoy inside & out?

You Are Beautiful - No Matter What the World Says

Today I needed to feel different from all other days of recent.

I expressed such a need to my sweet little sister, Molly.

This is how she blessed me.

I cried....

Then I dared to believe....

.....how God sees me.

Miracle on Watson Street

Photo by Iman Sadeghi

"I listened carefully to His words. 'Son of man,' He said, 'I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a rebellious nation that rebelled against Me. They and their ancestors have been rebelling against Me to this very day. They are stubborn and hard-hearted people. But I am sending you to say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says!' "

How many of you have ever witnessed, first-hand, a miracle? Have you witnessed a baby being born? Have you been in the middle of a breathtaking lightning storm or seen a flower open unexpectedly? I would love to share what occurred in my kitchen on a lazy Sunday morning.

I was in the midst of having some quiet time with a journal, cup of coffee & open Bible. Of course, being Kate, I was distracted by something completely unrelated to the Word of God. In typical A.D.D. fashion, I found myself washing dishes & peering out the window at the gorgeous summer trees & green, green grass. As I scrubbed silverware (the worst part of dish-washing, in my opinion), I noticed 2-3 bouncy bubbles floating around my face. My mind wandered a bit & I found myself thinking, "Science didn't INVENT bubbles...it's merely discovered them. That's not quite as powerful, now, is it?" So I closed my eyes to thank God for inventing something as wonderfully happy & fun as BUBBLES!

When I opened my eyes, I defiantly squeezed the soap bottle, sending 5 or 6 fat bubbles into the air. Those glorious good girls of weightlessness danced in the steam rising from my sink! I started laughing to myself. They were so cute! So I closed my eyes again, waiting for one to softly hit my face. Nothing. I held my breath, to keep from disturbing the current path of another.... Again, nothing.

As I opened my eyes I saw something truly amazing & humbling. Hundreds of tiny bubbles floated down from my ceiling. They stirred all around me & began to fill my kitchen! As I slowly turned to make sure I wasn't on some soapy high, they lifted again & swirled to greet more friends. How it happened, I can't explain...but more bubble drifted ever quietly from some unknown place in my ceiling. Tears spilled over my eyelashes as I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in my kitchen. I heard a voice in my heart, "Now go tell the world what you've seen..." I was stunned. I didn't want the moment to end. God was in my kitchen.

This miraculous bubble-dance lasted a full 5 minutes. They swept up, danced around, met more friends & celebrated a simple, awesome moment with me. To Him, I am thankful for such an inspiring Sunday blessing to keep forever in a journal & my heart.

What miracles have you had in your life? Please come share them with me. I will be blessed to read every one.

~Miss Kate

P.s. Upon investigation, I can't find any soap bubble residue on any of my countertops or wine glasses....

I Am Back & Feeling Inspired by Life

I love this artist:

kelly rae roberts


&

I am dying to make a gift tag that looks like this:

&

Wear shoes that look like these:

&

make a collage with all the heart of this one:

&
Take photos for creations unique like THIS:

(check out the Life is Beautiful blog)

&

take self portraits as beautiful as these:

Vacation...in El Paso?

You better believe it! I had a really great weekend with really wonderful friends. I was taken to amazing places & saw more than I imagined in 2.5 days. What was intended as a visit to a close friend & his family, became a small adventure of greatness & joy. It was definitely a treasured weekend. When I left, I felt more at peace & more relaxed than I have in a long time. I was so thankful for the warm reception, the many hugs & kisses & the endless laughter with people I love.

I was introduced to Jaxson's for salad & plenty of weekend planning. I loved the atmosphere!

Then it was onto the cinema to see "Sunshine Cleaning," which I really liked!

We walked out the door & hit EStarbucks ("eh-starbucks") for a sit outside in the sunshine. I had a view of the mountains & began gluing items into the travel journal. The camera was out in very little time & my eyes began to slowly open to the possibilites El Paso has to offer.

After an ounce or two of sun-soakin', cafe-n-conversation, I was taken to a Familyland of gourmet food, outstanding dessert, a few beers & beautiful, joyful people & lots of stories --complete with singing to the moon... I loved that.

Saturday, I awoke to the smell of coffee & the warmth of sunlight streaming through the windows. After a quick shower I was introduced to The Bagel Shop! My tastebuds were pretty excited by the warm, fresh bluberry bagel smeared with vanilla creme cheese. WOO HOO! The restaurant was decorated with none other than black & white photos of customers enjoying their time on cranberry colored walls.

From there was an alum-tour & stop at the UTEP Fine Arts Center. We were intro'd to the

2009 UTEP Student Exhibition!

Come take a walk with me to see a few of the wonders that delighted our senses...

The tour de El Paso continued into downtown & ran next to the Mexican border,

where I got to see "the fence..."

followed by a visit to the famous Rosa's Cantina for a cerveza & the early stages of the NFL draft.

check out the song that made this little place famous!

Later, a quick road trip to Las Cruces, NM landed us in Old Mesilla Park (photo by RC).

We walked down a short street to the historic Fountain Theater where we saw an independent French film called "The Class." What an awesome treat! The people were so nice & had fresh baked cakes, plenty of popcorn & drinks at their old-time concession/cafe.

After the movie we headed across the street to the Vintage Wines shop & cafe.

There we sipped a little of a really rich red & an outstanding reisling. Truth be told, I had my heart on finding a bottle from my favorite vineyard. As we looked through hand-painted wine bottles (by a NMSU student named Rebecca), I casually asked if they carried Wines of the San Juan. The owner exclaimed, "Yes! And we're almost out!" I was given a really cool gift to remember the occassion--a bottle of "Girls are Meaner" by San Juan Winery & a hand-painted bottle for my new apartment.

If you look closely in the reflection of the bottle, you'll see Miss Kate telling one of her famous stories. (photo by RC)

A similar bottle to the one now residing at Kate's

Joy of joys Sunday! After much searching I was taken to a World Market & found the baskets for my new office! I was holding out for the perfect items & found exactly what I'd been hoping for. What a gift & blessing to be able to unpack even more AND organize my art supplies.

Fabulous moment #300 for the weekend: awesome homemade Mexican breakfast followed by my official introduction to Mexican fútbol! That was totally entertaining!! Ricardo & his hilarious father yelled, exclaiming "AIE," more than once. The highlight of this moment was when I heard the ONE word I waited to hear from a real Mexican futbol game...."GOL!!!!" There was much celebrating, high-fives & I do believe an Indios de Juárez cap was thrown down as Armando began dancing a little. *LOL*

I visited a bit, gave a couple of hair tips, talked decorating & attempted to make "Gap Baby" beautiful nieces laugh. I had a really wonderful, memorable time. I will absolutely be visiting more & am very happy to say my former perceptions of this city were altered drastically. To my surprise, I really love it! It just might make the "Could Live There" list that seems to be growing by the year.

I am thankful for such a wonderful weekend & look forward to many more like it!

Keep checking back! My birthday gift is going to get major use & you will be seein' the results...

Have an outstanding week & God bless you all, as I have been blessed.

My Photo Archives

I was searching for a photo, when, of course I found about 15 others I'd forgotten I'd taken. So...I'm going to share. I know a few of you will be happy to see I haven't totally packed my cameras away. I am still playing a little...

The Hemingway--my favorite small bar.

Makayla's Wedding Dress

A Joy-Filled Moment & Surprise from Germany

The Gift of a Lightning Moment

A Collage I Joyfully Created for Molly & Jeremy's Glorious Day