Spead the Love {Family Tree}

I adore family trees... When we finally feel like our family is complete, I would to commission a family tree that will become a family heirloom... This beautiful Family Tree from 'Spread the Love' is just what I have in mind...

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Minus One'

{Autumn Light}

1. 'The Invention of Light' Fine Art Print

2. Homemade Bridal Invitations by Kelli Murray

3. Dana & Joel Engagement Photographs

4. Hester & Hetty Vintage Pillows

5. 'Breaking Through' Signed Decorative Print

6. Gilded Room

And please take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Minus One'

Giveaway {Minus One}

I'm excited to introduce Jennifer of 'Minus One'... I found her shop a few months ago and truly enjoyed her vintage pincushions! I'm not a sewer (not at all, sadly) but I thought one of these pincushions would make a great home for my earrings... What would you use one for? For this week's giveaway, Jennifer has offered a pincushion of the winner's choice + shipping! Thank you Jennifer!

{Shop}

Jennifer has taken the time to answer a few questions:

 What does a perfectly ordinary day in your life look like?

"I work FT and have two young kids (7 and 2). So I am usually out the door by 8am and back home around 5:30. Kids go down between 7 and 8pm. After that, I can usually be found listening to a book on tape while sewing, knitting or playing with pliers and jump rings."

What time of year most inspires you?

"I love summertime. I find the wealth of sunshine relaxing - no rush to try to fit everything into a day."

What do you think of as comfort food?

"Sunday sauce! (Meatballs with OJ on Sunday mornings.)"

If you could hop on a plane, without giving one thought to your budget, where would you go?

"South of France. Oh yeah."

What are five things you would like to do in the next five years?

"Learn Italian. Learn the cello. Visit my sister in law in Italy with my family. Redo the bathroom. Learn to sew dresses really, really well."

This giveaway runs from October 4th to 10th at 9pm (EST)... The winner will be chosen and announced on Monday, October 11th (as we will be away, celebrating Canadian Thanksgiving with family until Monday afternoon)

1. Visit 'Minus One' and choose your favourite PINCUSHIONS from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN!

Comments have been a bit down... In order to keep offering these fantastic giveaways, I need to get as many comments (and visits for the sponsors) as possible... Please help me spread the word so we can keep a good thing going friends!!!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Monday, October 11th... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Jennifer of 'Minus One'!

{Samantha Lamb Photography} Giveaway Winner

 Congratulations to Lee, the winner of this week's giveaway!  Didn't win? Do not despair... Samantha has graciously offered a COUPON CODE to all of my blog readers... Visit 'Samantha Lamb Photography' and use the code: theardentsparrow to receive 20% off all orders over $20! Thank you to all who entered and thank you especially to Samantha of 'Samantha Lamb Photography'! And please stop by on Monday for a BRAND NEW vintage giveaway and help me spread the word!

Weekend Project {Fall Centrepiece}

A lovely fall centrepiece idea, using easy to find items from the supermarket... Pretty and do-able! Have a lovely weekend friends and don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Samantha Lamb Photography'!

{A Warm Fall Day}

"Before the first stars blazed in your sky,

before the sun ever kissed you,

before you cried your first cry,

we loved you."

{Marion Dane Bauer}

Late September 2010
 Leah, 11 months old
Brennah, 2 years & 9 months old


And please take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Samantha Lamb Photography'

{Carl Bengtsson}

Stunning fall inspired photographs by Carl Bengtsson

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Samantha Lamb Photography'

Getting to Know {Samantha Lamb}

This week's giveaway is with the lovely Samantha of 'Samantha Lamb Photography' (If you would like to enter this week's giveaway, please do not comment on this post... Head on over to yesterday's post to enter)... I was so enthralled by her answers to the questions I ask of each of my giveaway participants, that I wanted to give them a special showcase (along with more of her stunning photographs) in their own post! Enjoy!

What does a perfectly ordinary day in your life look like?
"Well, I will tell you about a day on my farm:) When I rise and shine around 5 or 5:30 in the lovely AM, I first greet all of the animals around my bed. I personally only have 1 dog, but between my farm and the neighboring farm, we have collected about 5. They enjoy sleeping around my house at night when they get the chance. Once I have greeted the animals, and sung the appropriate Disney song while waltzing by myself across the hardwood floor that leads to my kitchen, I put on the coffee. I am a coffee fiend and will be the first to admit that I am addicted. While the coffee is brewing, I let the chickens out of the coop to roam free and feed them a bit of corn and cheese.... they enjoy warm oatmeal during the winter. Then I grab a carrot or two from the vegetable basket and then an apple from the fridge for my donkey Fred. Until I get the perfect horse, who knows how to work with cattle and gallop through the pasture with a certain sweet abandonment, I like to trot along with Fred. He will take me down to the fishing hole at a slow pace and walks around the hickory trails in the north pasture. He has only ever once gotten up to a fast trot... but that was because he saw where I had placed a large basket of carrots upon the fence. After brushing him and kissing him on the nose, I meander back to the house where I pour myself a cup of coffee. I then retreat to my art studio before the sun rises and decide weather I want to act upon one of my capture ideas, or maybe just do some writing that lovely morn and more sketches. By 8 am I have already had my first small breakfast and have either taken a capture in a lovely tree or out in Gnome meadow (that is where the Gnomes live...they are really good at finding prime pieces of wood)... or done some writing and sketching of new ideas. I then find my handsome dog Harold and we sit in front of the computer for a spell and return e-mails and write down what orders i need to send out that evening.... I prefer to create and bundle up my packages in the evening. For lunch, I almost always pack a picnic and pick out a spot around the farm to lounge around and do some reading. I try to picnic everyday. It is healthy for the heart and the flush in your cheeks. When I get back in, I bake a Pie. Baking Pies is my therapy. I bake a different one every day and it is a great bartering tool to get things done around the farm. My favorite kind to make though is a nice apple. I am looking forward to fall though, so I can make pumpkin pies with a cream cheese bottom:) The rest of the day is spent in the wood shop, editing photos, framing captures, weeding the garden, picking the garden, sweeping the floors, collecting wood with the Gnomes, studying up on different flowers and trees (I enjoy studying plant propagation and learning as much as I can about the local Flora).... When the day starts coming to a close, I put up the Animals and make sure I did not leave any laundry out on the line. I usually make one last pot of coffee and do some evening returning of e-mails, packaging of art to be shipped around this sweet old world and eat some goat cheese with crackers. I am usually in bed by 9 or 9:30....I am not a night owl in the least.... hence the name of my farm, Early Bird Acres:)"

What time of year most inspires you?
"The middle of spring and the lovely Indian summer. Mostly because everything is just so vibrant and green and on the brink of change... either to ease into it's fall or thrive into a lush summer. Plus, the mornings during these times simply make you want to sing:)"

What do you think of as comfort food?
"I am a cookie dough eater when it comes to "comfort food"... Plus, an amazing Bang-A-Rang from my favorite cupcake shop "Cuppies & Joe" in Oklahoma City always does the trick..It is made with shots of Espresso in the batter and mocha chips on top:) AMAZING!! But... when it comes to my overall favorite food.... favorite food all around... I enjoy cheese... mostly goat cheese....or an amazing Brie or raw milk cheese layered with peach!!: I just get really excited about cheese..."
If you could hop on a plane, without giving one thought to your budget, where would you go?
"Ooohhh my goodness gracious...that is a big question...I guess right now it would haft to be Holland...I am currently trying to save up my money to buy a ticket there right now because I am to have a lovely show there... it is to be one outside in spring, surrounded in large Dutch windmills:) But really...I would want the lovely plane to take me strait to the Swiss mountains... breathe in the lovely air and swim for days in their crystal clear lakes:) Pick wildflowers and place them all through my Dutch Braids:)"

What are five things you would like to do in the next five years?
"*Get a Horse
*Build a guest cottage on my farm
*Do an in depth instillation that is inspired by honey on window sills and laundry lines:)
*Find a fellow agrarian, lover of the land, & oh so handsome bearded lumber jack/farmer who is crazy enough to marry me
*Carry my artwork in Anthropologie :)"

Like what you see and hear? Head on over and enter this week's giveaway for a print from 'Samantha Lamb Photography'...

Giveaway {Samantha Lamb Photography}

Back in August, I shared a photo series by 'Samantha Lamb Photography' entitled 'The Perpetual Picnic'... Everything about Samantha's work inspires me... And after exploring her site, I found myself outside taking pictures of the trees in my own backyard... This week, the winner will get to pick one of Samantha's prints (8x10 or less) + shipping... A value of up to $40!

{Shop}
{Blog}
{Twitter}

This giveaway runs from September 27th to October 2nd at 9pm (EST)

1. Visit 'Samantha Lamb Photography' and choose your favourite picture(s) from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Saturday... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Samantha of 'Samantha Lamb Photography'!

Giveaway Winner {Mary Kate McDevitt}

Congratulations to Melanie, winner of this week's giveaway for $20 in store credit from 'Mary Kate McDevitt'... Thank you Mary Kate for the lovely giveaway... And please tune in Monday at 12 am for a great new giveaway!

Weekend Project {Fig Spice Cupcakes with Honey Cinnamon Buttercream}

Remember yesterday, when I mentioned that I could live on cupcakes alone... Well... It's true... And don't THESE sound just perfectly Fallish and delightful... I think I might give them a go this weekend...

{Fig Spice Cupcakes with Honey Cinnamon Buttercream} from 'Love & Olive Oil'

{A Cupcake}

I could give up all other food, for the rest of my life, for chocolate cupcakes with strawberry buttercream...

{Warmth}

{1} {2} {3} {4}

{Goodbye Summer}

 Today, we bid adieu to summer... You will be missed dear summer... Come again soon...

{Kling Summer 2010 Collection}