- 12 blogs i follow -

     I spend a lot of time reading blogs. On a lazy Sunday afternoon I'll steep some loose leaf tea, prop my feet up and flip open the laptop screen. Before long I get lost in the different worlds of photography, crafting, traveling, living outdoors and so many other lifestyles I love. Because blogging and reading blogs is such a huge part of my life, I'd thought I'd share some of my favorites so you can enjoy them too! It was terribly difficult keeping the list down to 15, but if you're ravenous for more lemme know and I'll send you a looong list!

FARMING + FAMILY
Bundaflicka 
Maggie, (from Maggie's Farm in central New York), keeps detailed accounts of her lovely animals. Her writing captures the joy - as well as the hard work - of shepherding and running her own fiber craft business. Just from reading Maggie's delightful posts, I learned a lot about sheep and Swedish farming. (Notice that our blog names are pretty darn similar?)

Life at Cobble Hill Farm
Whaddya know -- another farm in New York! (Maybe I need to move there.) Staci and her family live on a micro farm and practice a simple, natural lifestyle. They make their own skincare products, raise chickens and bees, and blog about it! Look at her site to see some beautiful photos, get recipe ideas and live vicariously through their stories.

The Vine and Fig Tree
I may be a little biased, but this is my favorite farming/family blog out there. My sister Elissa blogs about their horses, raised garden beds, homemade living and her 6 ADORABLE kids. (I'm a proud auntie :)) You'll love seeing pictures of their cozy Missouri homestead and hearing about the latest equine adventure. You'll become introduced to Peshiwa and Samson and drool over pictures of home-grown food. It will make you want to move onto the +D Ranch.

PHOTOGRAPHY
Fire and Joy
"I was a writer first. Creating new worlds after bedtime, my handwritten words lit by torchlight beneath the sheets. Pouring my heart into my diary on the long bus ride to school. Writing was my outlet for my endless creative energy and an escape from all the emotions I felt. When I was writing everything in the world felt right. Like I was born to tell stories. Then I picked up a camera."

That's how Nirrimi Firebrace introduces herself. She combines her photos with raw, transparent writing - making you laugh and cry right alongside her. Nirrimi lives in Australia with her daughter Alba and travels frequently across the globe.

Rachel Barkman 
Rachel is a photographer based in Canada and her photos are always BREATHTAKING. Whether they are wedding photos, or landscape photos of the Territories, Barkman's artistic work is something to admire. And she owns a Samoyed - which is reason enough to follow her.

Andrew Kearns
Andrew Kearns does photography as his full time job. And he's darn good at it. I usually follow his PNW adventures through YouTube and Instagram, but his blog is also chock full of photo-stories. Most of my photography inspiration is drawn from his work!

TRAVEL
Trekkernaut
My bro-in-law Ben is currently working as a life-coach in Trujillo, Peru - (check out the program SKIP which stands for Supporting Kids In Peru). Ben's blog is an inspiring account of his personal testimonies, world travels and experiences with sports and kids. He address his readers directly - calling them to be "Trekkernauts" - asking us to take a stance and make "sustainable, positive" changes in the world around us. I encourage you to follow his adventures! (Because how awesome is it to live in Peru and make a difference!?)

A Dusty Olive Green
I found this blog by accident when Dad and I spent 10 days in Florence, Italy. The title is almost enough to make me want to move there! Brigitte is Danish but she has lived in Italy for the past 15 years as a blogger and lifestyle photographer. Her photos are lovely, her writing is clear and informative and she artfully captures the romance of Firenze. Jealous. Absolutely jealous.

State of Mind Studio
Cody and Lexi met each other through photography and now they are traveling throughout the country in their van. Their witty posts illustrate the less romantic facets of van life from washing laundry to getting stuck in the snow.

LIVING LIFE TO THE FULLEST
Miranda Leconte 
Miranda Leconte is a young woman working as a U.S. Forest Service Ranger. In a short 3 years she's accomplished several research projects, various wilderness certifications and gained a social media following of 19 thousand people. Miranda uses her knowledge and platform to fight for land conservation; her writing is witty and educational at the same time! Check out her blog and her Insta account too - there are some awesome landscape shots to look at :)

Dirtbag Darling
This outdoor journal for women is comprised of freelance articles and photography. It covers just about everything: rock climbing, kayaking, living out of a van, interviews with #defendersoffun, places to visit and outdoor gear reviews. Look at their site and scroll through some articles -- it will stir up a feeling of wanderlust. If you are a traveling writer, Dirtbag Darling accepts contributions.

Making It Beautiful | Adventures While Passing Through
Sara is an elementary school teacher in Nashville, Tennessee. (Look up Rocketship Nashville School.) She is not only a teacher, but an encourager, an explorer, an artist, a comforter, a brave-heart. Her blog brings to light the beauty of life and the joy of following Christ.

COSTA RICA | PART 2

December 29:
Today is a new day - rejoice and be glad in it!! Golden sunlight, warm breezes and a songbird who was indefatigably cheerful.
A foxy looking squirrel is sitting in the crook of a tree eating his routine breakfast orange. He nibbles at the peel until there is a hole wide enough to drink the juice inside. The fruit is too big for him to manage gracefully and he often drops it on the ground.
(EVENING:) The jungle was beyond my wildest dreams: palm trees, banana trees, lizards, birds, ferns, mosses and rivers made up the delicate ecosystem we were able to admire. I only took about 2,000 pictures. Mountain hiking is tough man! Or maybe I'm just out of shape -- but I was winded for shore. We forded rivers, sloshed through deep mud and slipped around on wet rocks. Having a clear cut path made it easy for us (thank you National Park system!), but I would never have made it through the raw jungle.
I had never seen so much GREEN in my life! I was afraid to touch anything for fear I might contaminate it; I had to watch my step in case there was a frog or parade of leaf cutter ants. There were wet, decomposing dead plants matting the ground + yet everything was so vibrant and alive. The experience was just as I had hoped -- I worshiped God the more for his glorious creation.

December 30:
Last night was spaghetti dinner + poker. I won quite a few poker hands - mostly because I had no idea what I was doing + Charlie and Ben kept helping me. Once I had a full house - ace high and I didn't even know it.

• Excitement of the day: Charlie found a scorpion in our bedroom before we left this morning. The poor little fellow was scared and hid under a leaf.
• The volcano crater we visited was closed because another volcano had recently erupted and they didn't want people to smell the sulfuric acid. We didn't care. We poked our heads out to take in some hefty whiffs of sulfur. Ash fell on the windshield. It was all very rebellious and exciting.
• During our harrowing road trip through the mountains, we stopped to take pictures. There was a breath-taking view of the mountains at sunset. The air was so thin I started wheezing. But MAN OH MAN LOOK AT THE VIEW.

          Clouds poured over the mountains, bathing them in pinkish-golden light. There are no words.
We finally reached out hostel on Uvita Beach. Lover and I threw on our Tevas and followed Josh's flashlight glow to the Pacific Ocean. I'd never seen the Pacific till that night. It was low tide and the multitude of stars were mirrored on the glassy wet sand -- it truly felt like we were walking on the sky. Romantic. Until Ben mentioned there were crocodiles. (We were only able to see a small one.)
Also, we weren't entirely sure we were supposed to be on the beach at night, so when a police car with flashing lights started following us we all freaked out and started running away. Turns out the copper wasn't after us at all.

December 31:
Last day of the year and I am spending it with family on the beaches of Marino Ballena (the sand bar that looks like the tale of a whale.)

COSTA RICA | PART 1

Whaddya know. I'm back from Costa Rica! The Herrick family disappeared sometime after Christmas for two weeks and returned to Missouri - travel weary, hungry and very sunburned. I'll be writing a series of blog posts over the next week to summarize the highlights of our journey. You'll get to see pictures and read snippets from my travel journal; all very casual, so pour some tea, sit back and scroll as quickly or slowly as you'd like.

December 26: 
"At this moment, we are at gate C18, sleeping, reading, eating and generally neglecting all manner of sophistication. Matt is passed out on the floor. Our flight goes from St. Louis to Charlotte, NC to San Jose. By dinner tomorrow we will be walking the streets of Costa Rica."

December 27:
"Mark + Charlie + I are watching planes landing and taking off through the big glass windows. We're trying to enjoy the process of waiting. There are three different sizes of passenger planes: small, medium and ginormous and they all look like toilet paper tubes with wings."
(EVENING:) "We've arrived. Juan's Papa is taking us to the supermarket to buy food. Everyone is enjoying the twilight, resting under the pavilion, smelling of citrus mosquito spray. Ben says that Costa Rica is the happiest country on earth and I can understand why; the green here is brighter than anywhere else + the mountains stand guard practically everywhere you look. Crickets and insects hum peacefully. It is already Pura Vida and we've only been the country 1 hour."
("Pura vida" means "pure life" and it represents the relaxed, sunny lifestyle of Costa Ricans.)

December 28: 
I woke up to the tune of a different songbird. I'm living under the colors of another sky.
Ben and Andy saved the day. Enterprise had no cars for us to rent, so Ben caught a ride with Juan's Papa and brought home an 8 passenger van. Andy bravely drove us to downtown San Jose (pop. 3 million). Ticos drive like chickens with their heads cut off, and most of the roads are hairpin, mountain passes. It didn't help that the GPS was more obnoxious than helpful: "Turn left, turn right, in 600m turn right, go north. GO SOUTH!"
Downtown San Jose reminded me a lot of Chihuahua City; swamped with people, modern retail shops mixed in with local restaurants and street vendors. Bands on every corner playing on homemade instruments. A mosaic of colors. Break dancing in the main plaza. Pigeons and parrots. Vehicles plowing through crowds of pedestrians.
We made it through alive with sore feet, full hearts and strawberry smoothies :) The best part of it all was the butterfly house, filled with caterpillars, banana trees, jungle plants and bright blue Morphos. They were a breathtaking color -- like the ocean mixed in with the stars.
(EVENING:) We are now reclining under our favorite pavilion next to the B&B, invigorated by the pleasant cross breeze and eating rice. Tomorrow we drive to the jungle. Buenas Noches.

dunewood campground

-there is writing at the bottom. you just have to sift through all my pictures first :) - 

campfire beans!! nuthing like it. 

Every morning started out at 45° F and a bitter cold shower. 

     Husband and I went for a 3 day trip to Indiana Dunes State Park. Between skipping along the beach, cooking our own campfire meals and picking raspberries we were able to find some time for journaling. I selected a few excerpts to share with y'all. Hopefully they will give you a glimpse into our little sandy paradise!

CHARLIE
"My lovely wife sits to my right. We are on the Kemil Beach of Lake Michigan, listening to the brass winds and thudding drums of the surf. Though the seagulls beat us here, and some old folks with old dogs, I think we found a wonderful hideaway up in the north." 

"Sunday night vespers by the campfire. The kidney/pinto beans have been eaten heartily. Today we escapaded to Michigan City, then to Saugatuk and then to Holland ... Tonight's our last night here at Dunewood. So long campground, I'm sure we'll see ya in the future!" 

LAUREL
"Charlie and I are at the beach. Wet feet, sandy butts and windswept hair. Right now it is around 6pm, so the sunlight is golden, the air is still warm and there are people here and there - sprinkled across the shoreline watching the surf like seagulls." 

"Charlie ordered us some coffee and chocolate chip cookies for breakfast. South Haven was such a lovely town - I was ready to buy some real estate and settle down ... Holland Harbor had a bright red lighthouse that was built in 1847 (?) (not too good with dates) ... we walked out onto the pier and watched sailboats for a while. Beautiful, white, poetic triangles skimming the cerulean blue." 

"I have about a million pictures that I want to take home and edit and about a million more yet to take. It is our last night there and we are out of clean clothes. That is all. Goodnight." 

beautiful words

Words are vessels of emotion.

 

That is why I love to write -- why I attempt to put "the best words in the best order"....

There is no other way to express feelings so explicitly.

"She lives the poetry she cannot write."
           Oscar Wilde


"I'm restless. Things are calling me away. My hair is being pulled by the stars again."             Anais Nin


"There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people."       Vincent Van Gogh


"The poetry of the earth is never dead."
                John Keats


"Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."          
    Winnie the Pooh


"I am in the mood to dissolve in the sky."
                Virginia Woolf


"Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet."                Bob Marley


"With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come."               William Shakespeare


"There is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still."     Corrie Ten Boom


"He will come to us like rain."       
        Hosea 6:3


"Not knowing when the dawn will come, I open every door."          Emily Dickinson

to autumn

             Currently, in British Literature (one of my favoritest school courses this year), I am studying John Keats and his life. Of course the tragedy of his love for Fanny Brawne and his passion for beauty inspired me to dive deeper into his writing. I found this gorgeous bit of loveliness (which you must listen to without further hesitation), and also this:

TO AUTUMN

by John Keats

 Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep,
Drowsed with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady they laden head across a brook;
Or by a cider-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings, hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too, --
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hill bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft,

____________________________________________________

 

         Read it aloud, and you will see why I am in love with Keats. The imagery is astoundingly vivid and brings all of your senses to life. 

keeping your muse alive

     Half the work of being a writer is coming up with something to write about. So, (to help myself, as much as to help others) I came up with a list of ways to keep your muse alive and well.

• Write a list of small-everyday-things that make you happy
• Be adventurous and do something you've never done before. (Like eat octopus or get a new hairstyle)
•  
• Put yourself in a crowd of people. Eavesdrop on a conversation and compose a story around it.
• Get your camera out and snap a few artsy photos.
• Read the dictionary :)))))
• Listen to music--or better yet, get dressed up and go to the theatre.
• Travel. Make a day trip to some nearby destination
• Perform some random act of kindness.
• Look out the window and describe what you see
• Interview somebody interesting and truly get to know them.
• Read read read!!!! Newspaper headlines, captivating novels, blog posts--anything will do.
• Pull out some old family albums for perusal
• Go to the office store and buy some fancy pens. (I don't know why, but this is one way I am able to start writing prolifically--without fail.)
• Search "funny cat videos" on youtube
• Practice different handwriting fonts.

~the island~

      So I’m baring my soul to the world and showing you what kind of romantical notions run through my mind! The following is a description about my favorite vacationing spot—Onset Island (you can read more about the island here.) Hopefully it gives you a glimpse into our paradise.

 

     Ellen breathed in deeply the mingling perfumes of salty air and sea lavender. She wriggled her toes deeper into the sand, and watched a sailboat lean precariously in the wind. This was her home—where she belonged! It was not much; just a twelve acre island off of Cape Cod, but it was more than enough for the young girl. Ellen could simply forget about everything on this island paradise—all things harrying and unpleasant were washed away with the tide leaving Ellen to run around barefoot and savor the small things in life.
 

            “Hey!” It was her little brother Eddie. “Wanna go fishing? Mom got back from the mainland, so we can use the rowboat now!” Ellen shrugged.

            “Sure!” she agreed. Fishing wasn’t her favorite thing to do, especially since she usually got stuck helping Eddie hook the sea worms. They were such nasty little creatures that wouldn’t stop writhing around. Getting up from her seat on the sandy beach, Ellen followed her brother down the board walk to the main dock. Gathering up their rods and tackle boxes, they jumped into the bobbing row boat and set off.

            “Let’s go over there!” shouted Eddie waving vaguely towards the opposite side of the island. “Then we can watch the canal boats while we’re fishing!” Ellen bent over the oars. Back and forth she went, sending the little boat farther and farther along in the rippling water. Eddie squealed with glee.

            “Go go go! Go Ellen Go!” He chanted. “Faster! Faster!” Ellen laughed and obliged her reckless brother by hauling on the oars with more force. Whew! It sure was a work out! Her biceps were burning by the time they reached the designated fishing spot.

            All afternoon they fished; Eddie never tiring of casting his line, and Ellen with her legs propped up hoping to get a tan. She stared upward at the endless expanse of sky interrupted only by the occasional tern wheeling daringly about. Water lapping against their boat and ship horns from the canal serenaded the two fishermen. Once again, Ellen marveled at the pure simplicity of island life. She wouldn’t mind if it lasted forever!  

All too soon, the daylight hours were running out. Beginnings of a stunning sunset were creeping up behind the fringes of trees and weathered cottages. Pinks and yellows and blues all mixed together in water and sky to create one of God’s greatest masterpieces.

            “Awwwwe Ellen!” breathed Eddie—deeply moved. “Look at that!”

            “Mmmmmmmm. It’s wonderful—simply divine!” The two figures sat, slowly darkening into silhouettes against the deep color. City lights from the mainland glittered brightly in the harbor, and the ever constant murmuring of wind and water was a crooning lullaby from the sea. Ellen dipped her oar into the water and stirred it slowly to watch the jellyfish light up like tiny Christmas lights. She breathed in deeply the mingling perfumes of salty air and sea lavender. This was her home—where she belonged!

dear pen pal.......

It is a truth universally acknowledged......... that handwritten mail is becoming quite scarce throughout the U.S. :)

An article from CNN says this:

"E-mail is quick. Texting is convenient. Facebook has photos, videos and games.
But for all the fancy, multimedia modes of communication out there, nothing beats the thrill of opening the mailbox and finding a personal letter, written and addressed just to you.
"Snail mail" has been under attack for the past several decades, with the U.S. Postal Service reporting a drop of 10 billion letters in the past 20 years. Literally billions of e-mails and text messages are sent each day. And the Postal Service says that unless something changes very soon, it plans to stop Saturday mail delivery beginning next year."

Email--quick though it may be--does not portray emotion of any kind. Texting is short and and oftentimes insufficient. As humans, we crave attention--the knowledge that other people care about us. Handwritten letters fulfill this desire.  

 

"By going to the trouble of physically committing words to paper, the writer shows their investment of time and effort in a relationship. That's why we tend to hang on to personal letters as keepsakes." (from an article on guardian.co.uk)     

   

 

   In my hope chest there is a secret drawer and in it I keep all the letters I've ever received since I was 5 or 6 years old. Occasionally I like to sort through this drawer, read my birthday cards, letters from my siblings, novels my pen pals have written to me, etc. They bring back memories, they make me laugh and cry---they are full of feeling! I challenge you to begin letter writing if you haven't already.