antidotes and anecdotes, part 1

November 15, 2021July 22, 2022 AmyLeave a comment

Single square images and silly hashtags became important to me during a time when blogging did not seem like an option. Since it has been over three years since my last blog post, you can fill in some of my story at my Instagram account. The tagline there used to be “antidotes and anecdotes” much for the same reasons that this blog was once called “cozy good times.” I posted images that either amused me or provided a remedy when I needed a reminder of good things during the inevitable. Yes, it is a highlight reel of sorts, aimed at sharing the good stuff whenever possible.

wondrous, woven magic in manhattan

November 1, 2014November 1, 2014 Amy3 Comments

kindergarten cannot wait

September 1, 2014September 2, 2014 Amy5 Comments

Tomorrow is a big day for my niece (and her family); it’s the first day of Kindergarten! Earlier today we did things the almost-kindergartener likes to do: make bead crowns, read books, eat bread and jam, play library, shuck corn, pick raspberries, chase butterflies, and draw on the sidewalk. This little wonder has more heart and energy than she knows what to do with, and I am proud to be her aunt. She cannot wait for school, and we cannot wait to see what is in her future.

happy golden days of yore

December 23, 2013February 10, 2017 AmyLeave a comment

where did summer go?

September 28, 2013February 10, 2017 Amy3 Comments

It happened again: lots of living and not much blogging. This summer has been adventurous and at times, delicious. I am grateful for the milestones we celebrated and the simple moments we savored. When I look at these photos I remember unexpected treats from this past season; wishing all of you those reminders of the good times. I sense a reflective autumn coming on.

rainy spring day watercolor

April 19, 2013August 19, 2017 Amy6 Comments

“More water makes more color,” I said to my niece as we sat inside at the kitchen table, loosening up the dry paint palette with our wet brushes as the spring rain fell outside.

hearts on globes

January 28, 2013September 29, 2013 Amy4 Comments

I did a little apartment decorating using heart stickers and heart garland (made by accordion-folding used wrapping paper before cutting the heart shape). While I attached them to my globes I thought of all of the people in all of the world and how all of those people have hearts for feeling. Anne Mansfield Sullivan was Helen Keller’s teacher who explained to her that “the best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen nor even touched, but just felt in the heart.” Hope you feel the love across the globe.

pearl and copper jar forest

June 30, 2012January 24, 2014 Amy4 Comments

I didn’t do any baking during the record-high temperatures this week. Instead, I took to making a small and wintery indoor craft. Inspired by Sweet Paul & Apartment Therapy, I made whimsical jar lids with plastic figurines, used jars, superglue, and craft paint.

Any empty jars you have will work: jam jars, cookie jars, baby food jars. You could also use spray paint if you have an extra can and proper ventilation. I used my Martha Stewart Pearl and Copper craft paint with a sponge brush. In order to cover everything, I daubbed the paint on in three coats (brushing on just didn’t stick). I imagine that first using a primer would make covering the lids and figurines much quicker, I just didn’t have any around.

Your jar collection can easily become an enchanted forest or a bustling color zoo; the possibilities are endless! Use the finished jars for containing craft supplies, toys, or sweet goodies. I especially like my new birthday candle jar.

reading letters telling stories

March 29, 2012March 29, 2012 Amy9 Comments

Earlier this week my grandma and I spent an afternoon together reading letters, telling stories, and eating ice cream. We read the correspondence of sisters, between a Midwestern farm in Indiana and the nation’s capital in Washington D.C. My grandma’s eldest sister, my Great Aunt Catherine, was laid to rest a few weeks ago. She enjoyed a long and lively career in the city while my grandma raised a family as the wife of a professor near their hometown. My grandma laughed and laughed as she read aloud one letter she wrote her eldest sister in the ’40s (thanking her for the use of her high school formal and including a joke she had heard that day over the radio). The letters sparked many lively memories, which led to storytelling. The afternoon was ageless.