downtown – Catching Caterpillars

a day on a farm…

Kollene — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 16:42:00 +0000

Somedays I daydream about living on a farm… a simple life… I know I know, farming probably isn’t the simplest… maybe a “farmhouse” with a beautiful garden and a handful of chickens, a horse, and tons of basil and flowerpots full of geraniums on every window sill… five cats and two golden retrievers… my kids would be barefoot running from our wraparound porch into the sprinkler spraying well water all over our roses! The dogs would be dirty and hopping into the swimming pool which is where Mattias and I would be floating on our pool floats sipping sun tea! This is a dream life to me… one day… one day.

Until this dream comes true I plant my roots deep and enjoy the hell out of this life I have here! We visit farms and plant things in our own urban backyard! We wear garden clogs and have one cat so far! geraniums yep, got it!

Last month we visited this beautiful farm for a Honey Festival! So much funnnnnn!!! Lots of honey! Lots of bees! and lots of inspiration! We came home and the girls got to work in our garden and made two raised beds full of veggies! Things are about ready for a harvest and we’re about ready for some veggies!…

County Fair Fun!

Kollene — Wed, 20 Apr 2016 17:39:00 +0000

Warning!

before reading:

This blog may make you start to crave elephant ears and sticky caramel apples with rainbow sprinkles… You may find yourself needing to braid your hair the way your mom did your braids when you were 8… you may also find yourself digging through the attic for your old pair of converse chucks… that pair that you scribbled your BFF’s name on and that cute boy that sat in front of you. Have fun reading and remember back to your town’s fair days!
the cute parts…

This day to us was maybe the best day ever!!! There was something so fun about this county fair experience that makes my face scrunch up again and again and smile big! Maybe it was the fact that we got in for only a $1 each! That helps with the stress of places like Disney World… or?
Maybe it was just that we were all in such a fun mood! Could be that I drenched us all with Doterra Essential Oils in the parking lot! hahahaha! Whatever it was, I was happy, and we made some damn fine memories this day!

These girls are fun to watch! I love how my big girl totally protects her baby sister… Isabelle watches over her and waits for her to come off of rides, out of fun houses… makes sure that little Cecilia doesn’t drop her cotton candy. It’s so sweet and I hope it lasts forever and ever and I also hope that they are next door neighbors and never grow up, the end! But seriously, I love them so.

matching sister chucks… makes my heart skip a beat! I always wanted a sister to matchy match with… and although I PRRRROMISE I don’t make them dress alike! I swear! I will come home with something from Target for one of them and something for the other… and they are totally upset if they don’t have the same thing! “Mamma, you didn’t get one for Cecilia!” This will last forever right…?

If I close my eyes I can still hear them laughing… I can still feel their hands clenching mine as we criss crossed through the loud and noisy smoke filled midway. Sometimes when we are having a fun family time, I notice it, and really feel it and try to make it last and burn it into my heart! I do this every time! Because I do know, that life is fast… kids grow big even faster… but darn it I have to hang on to this time… Every time I am convinced, will be fun… even 17 year old fun… it will just be different… but as long as I feel it and breath and really enjoy it… I will tackle it with some grace!

…and can we just understand the sugar content of the county fair!
The cotton candy that fluffy sticky awesomeness that is so good that it even tends to end up in pigtail braids… yep, that good!
Cecilia had her first caramel apple this year… it’s been a long time coming and she was thrilled! even with rainbow sprinkles… what!

I highly recommend going to the fair a couple of times in your child’s life… I also recommend shoes and socks and a nice hot shower when you return home! This fair day to us was classic! We ended the night on the big ferris wheel and our girls silly and jacked up on sugar… they looked at us and we looked at them and smiled… the get it… we knew we held on to it the whole time and it now is burned into our hearts… chizzed in our minds like the way things are filed away in Riley’s mind in the movie, “Inside Out…” Sometimes our lives are a little like a Disney movie, and that’s ok… Mickey’s cool!

And lastly… a little slideshow…

feeling at home…

Kollene — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 07:33:00 +0000

a beautiful walk around this beautiful village is fantastic!
so many little things to see if only you look up… the architecture is absolutely magical! how they built things so long ago… so smart! everything has a purpose and a reason for being there… if it’s just for looks or to collect water… it’s a reason!

sometimes you just find things in and out of little nooks… sometimes you can find a hoola hoop… and gosh, when there’s a hoola hoop just sitting on the ground…. well you can’t help but hoop it up!

I feel like this village is my second home…
I know which creek to hop over, which shortcut is really a shortcut, and which route is ok for going out of the way… a route worth while just to see things… just to see that certain cat that I see every year… just to see that certain old duck with the googelie nose… I know it… and I love it!

I have been coming here for so long that I have lost count… it always feels new again… but seeing familiar faces… children growing each year… shop keepers rearranging their storefronts… saying hello to me in English… it’s a sweet feeling and a feeling that makes me feel
“at home…”

market day…

Kollene — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 20:20:00 +0000

a day at the market is one of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday… especially springtime in Florida…

all the farmers bring the most amazing vegetables and fruits… there are plants, honeys, flowers… it’s a feast for your senses and I truly love to feast! I love to run my hands over the soft tomatoes… smell the leaves of the basil… sneak a grape… test the citrus… say hello to friends and families and dogs we recognize… it’s a beautiful day for all!

we let our girls pick out things to try… the bright colors of all the vegetables is hard to resist! they feel quite proud when they pick out something… and they love to try most things… especially the berries.

we love to take our purchases and find a tree to sit under and indulge! This pepper that I sliced into was so juicy and perfect we ate the entire thing like an apple! almost wanted to eat the stem! It was so red that it stained the girls clothes but I don’t mind a little red pepper stain… it adds character!

best of all was the baby green surprise inside! made us all giggle!

we can never resist a stop at our favorite French Cafe… they make the most amazing pastries!

just outside of our town’s toystore was this adorable band playing! check out the guitars made of cereal boxes!!! wow… they sounded amazing!

so yes, spring is here and we are truly feeling so happy to be out in this weather! the days are hot with a cool breeze… nights you need a sweater… the trees are covered with little spring green leaves and beautiful flowers… I feel so happy!

The rest of our Canada Adventure…

Kollene — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 22:03:00 +0000

we went to an amazing indoor market… so many things to do inside this huge market… girls rode along on the wagon… petting zoo.. mini golf.. food… vegetable stands… all in a huge greenhouse! smart!

makes me so happy to see spring bulbs… the scents are amazing… how something that fragrant could be living under ground for the year… the magic is probably just that…. it saves up all year to explode in the spring time… sweet bulbs!

Pappa Mattias was floored when this adorable deer walked right up to him for a nice pat…

then we went for a sledding adventure… in -18degrees… we were so bundled I could barely walk… can you imagine the littles… they hardly noticed… well our oldest enjoyed every minute! youngest… a little tricky to walk that small…

the beauty of winter… the sounds of silence… it’s quite lovely actually. everything is so quiet when the snow has fallen… the birds are hiding… the winds are still… it’s fantastic… and something wonderful for the girls to experience!

a big frozen lake!

just look at that tear… that face… I really could eat her up!

giving ice skating a try… well with snow boots… close enough…

had lunch at this old food market… oh wow… so many different cuisines all under one roof… I was quite happy here!

true happiness was had by this little girl… she loved every minute of the fluffy white snow… her inner Viking was coming out for sure!

nope we’re not back in Florida… but at our hotel we stayed at for my cousin’s wedding… gorgeous atrium pool… 80 degrees!

the initial reason for a winter vacation to Canada was my cousin’s wedding (I photographed their amazing day!)… but we love a big adventure so why not make a family vacation out of it…

here is the most amazing shot I may have ever photographed… I love the snow and sun…. ahhh takes my breath away!

love our town!

Kollene — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 19:34:00 +0000

this little town I live in… this little town I grew up in… well… it’s not so little but still IS a small town and I love it dearly! I love all of the art support that is constantly going on… our town has so much culture and heart which to me… is fantastic! our studio is in Historical Burns Square and every year has a chalk festival! wow… such an artform! we took the family to marvel at the beautiful pieces and oooo and ahhh…

it just means so much to me as an artist… for communities to support art… let the children… let the people of the community be CREATIVE… it’s beautiful! when people are able to be creative… it just opens their minds up to so much possibilities! so much is at their fingertips… it’s a great feeling to create! it’s also a great feeling to see so many fellow neighbors looking and awing at art!

are little one giving it a go at chalk… usually our driveway is covered in chalk… almost every evening we love to sit on our driveway and say hello to our neighbors… have a beer… watch the dogs get walked by… the girls color all over the driveway and up and down our sidewalk… I think this was quite cool for them to see that what that do… is substantial… it’s art… it’s real.

fun to bump into our friends..

all the little children covered each of these squares with beautiful creations… I was so impressed!

a little cupcake break of course…

oh what a night!

Kollene — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 18:00:00 +0000

back a few weeks we got an idea to go bowling… one of our favorite family nights! we practiced all week with stacks of blocks and little balls… knocking things over… getting so excited… I love that about having kids… the excitement… their eyes lighting up over the smallest things that to them… are the biggest things…

it was so cute to see our girls trying so hard… just to lift those big heavy balls… and poke their tiny fingers into the holes… hefty hefty lugging them to the lane… the excitement when a pin gets knocked over… it’s just perfect!

we had so much fun! then after to celebrate we went into the city and got some ice cream and gobbled it up under the moonlight… doesn’t get much better than this… this life… I’m a big fan!

happy weekend…

Kollene — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 12:32:00 +0000

I love love love to go to the farmer’s market in our downtown! we went when I was a little girl and now I see my own littles happy to go… I would go every week … but Pappa loves to spend the wee morning hours tucked in bed with the girls sipping his coffee slowly and reading the paper from over to cover… Our farmer’s market tends to get quite busy… dogs… people… baskets… it’s quite the show… and for someone like Pappa, who just does not deal too good with that so early … well it’s only maybe twice a month we go…. and since it’s only on Saturday we space it out…..

so happy to be here …. skippy happy!

then we stop at my favorite cafe which is where I used to work actually… I see a lot of familiar faces… my old customers… ahhh my old latte… lovely!

and this little sourpuss… well… she was getting quite impatient here waiting for her croissant!… yikes!