Holiday Giveaway

For the month of November, anyone who visits my website at Rosemary's Garden and leaves an e-mail, your name will be placed in a drawing to receive this new vintage-inspired Bethany Lowe "Candy Cane Snowman Box." Just click on the "contact" tab at the website for my e-mail address. The drawing will be held on December 1, and I will contact the winner by e-mail. Also, if you are in the North Alabama area, and are interested in attending the Open House on November 14 or 15, please indicate in your e-mail. However, you do not have to be local to enter the drawing. Thanks to all of you who visit and leave comments.

Blessings, Rosemary

Autumn

"The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry's cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.

The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I'll put a trinket on."

---Emily Dickinson

This photograph from Stock Exchange reminded me of the above poem. You know how much I love Autumn, so I'm going to pay tribute as long as I can. I'm planning an open house at my shop/studio on November 14 and 15, so I've been busy preparing for that-- and busying myself with all the things one does for an open house, cleaning, displays, and baking a few goodies.

Although autumn officially arrived on September 22, we in the deep south have only begun to feel the effects. Yesterday was the first "cold snap" and this morning the temperature dipped to 45 degrees. Makes me want to think about the holidays, but there is so much beauty to enjoy from this season that I cannot let it pass without paying tribute to some of the sights, aromas, and delights that are part of fall. The picture of the leaf that I am sharing is from www.sxc.hu/ .

The cats in the basket are some that I made for fall decorating. They are available for purchase in my Etsy store.






The "Kiss of the Sun" Pincushion is also one of my creations for fall, and I borrowed the name from the poem, "The kiss of the sun for pardon, the song of the birds for mirth. One is nearer God's heart in a garden than anywhere else on earth." It was made from new and vintage fabrics, buttons and millinery ribbon with a little vintage figurine of two birds in autumn colors.



It is available on the www.rosemarysgarden.biz website. As an artist, I just enjoy the colors and fabric of fall, as you can see!

I will be sharing more about the season later; today is Saturday and I will be spending time with my family. Enjoy the fall--those leaves will soon turn and be gone! Capture your moment and seize the day with whatever God has given you to do!

Growing A Garden

If you have been following my blog, you know that my business has been in a process of development. I believe that we have all been given a garden--a special gift that we need to cultivate and grow--but we have to search within ourselves to find the seeds of that garden. I believe the dormant seeds have to be nurtured and cultivated in order to erupt into tiny seedlings, grow, and finally begin producing fruit. The dream of having a business has been in my heart for many years, but I went to college, got married, pursued a career,raised children, and did everything else. Somewhere in between I got a taste of doing something I love--being creative. It has taken time and experience, but the benefits of nurturing and cultivating my dream have finally begun to spring forth. The Rosemary's Garden website is finally open! Please visit www.rosemarysgarden.biz/.

It seems almost incredulous to be pursuing a business during crazy economic times, but I guess I am one of those people who looks at the manure and says "Where's the pony?" If we have been called to do something, we will face obstacles, but I would rather try to do what I'm called to do than never try at all. Of course sometimes we have to pursue multiple tasks in order to reach our dreams, and I have been doing this for many years and will continue. But at least now, a seedling has sprung forth, and I will continue to cultivate and fertilize my little garden. Please visit the website and tell me what you think. I am so very interested in your comments. Please note that you must log in to blogger or your comments will not show up. You may also go to the contacts page on my website and send me an e-mail.

October Sunsets

Have you ever noticed the beauty of an October sunset? Have you ever thought about the awesome creativity of God? It almost seems to me that He wants to make this time of year the most beautiful of all so that we will notice.

I have been reluctant to write about the financial crisis in my blog because I want it to be a positive reading experience for visitors, but one can hardly ignore the things that are taking place in our country and world.

Have you ever heard of Dani Johnson's book, "Spirit Driven Success"? She does seminars to train business people for success, and you can visit her website at http://www.danijohnson.com/ In the book, she asks the question are you in a season of plenty or famine? If you are in plenty, it is preparation for famine. When you are in famine, it is preparation for plenty. She says it's all about what you do in the famine that determines what the plenty is going to look like. She tells the story of a man named Joseph in Genesis, who did all the right things in his life, but still ended up in prison. He continued to obey God (not just trust) even during the hard times and God not only brought him out of his prison, but used him to deliver a whole nation from famine. It was all a process that God used to develop character and faithfulness in a person.

Now is not the time to give up, but to look up. Look to our true Source. All hope is not lost in a recession or even a depression. Our parents and grandparents lived through a depression. We have a God who creates the sunsets. He even has some advice on finances. Read Malachi 3:7-18. Maybe He wants to develop some character in us. Let's start noticing Him, what He has to say,and....His beautiful sunsets.

Happy Fall!

Don't you just love the colors of fall? This just has to be my most favorite time of the year! The sky is blue, the mornings are crisp, and the sunsets are beautiful. Harvest time. Baking aromas of cinnamon and spice. Last week I went to pick apples at a friend's house so I will be coming up with ways to use the apples. Today I was inspired to bake an apple cake using a recipe from my Aunt Hilda. Her recipe is the most delicious apple cake I've ever tasted. I took a picture of the finished product. We will sample it this weekend.

Last Rose of Summer

I confess that I have not been a faithful blogger. I’m trying to improve. But I could not let summer completely pass without sharing a few of my favorite flower pictures. This year I grew zinnias, gardenias, and hydrangeas so I’m posting pictures of those. The blue hydrangeas were a view from my kitchen window. The gardenias bloomed early in the summer; the zinnias and white hydrangeas have bloomed most of the summer. I love how the white hydrangeas turn into a sage green color after blooming. They also dry very beautifully and can be used in arrangements. The picture of the roses blooming on the wall is not part of my garden, but a lovely one I found from www.sxc.hu. It reminds me of the poem—the Last Rose of Summer.

I hope all of you have had a nice summer. It has been a quick one for me—we took a trip to Tennessee, South Carolina, and Georgia to visit relatives, work on genealogy, and visit the University of Georgia-- my oldest son is considering attending graduate school there. We love to visit historical places, so we visited the Andrew Johnson home in Greenville, Tennessee, and Jonesbourgh, the oldest town in Tennessee. We also visited a quaint little town in South Carolina—Abbeville, which has been almost untouched by the rest of the world.

This was the hometown of my husband’s grandmother and we visited an old ancestral home-- the beautiful old Queen Anne Victorian. There were some wonderful antique shops along the way and, and of course I could not resist stopping in to look for a few treasures. It was a good summer.