The start of our woodpile at the new house... plenty to keep us warm on those cool, autumn nights to come.



"If we can't change life, then we must change our response to life and see the magic of the world in which we live."

Dream Variations

To fling my arms wide

In some place of the sun,

To whirl and dance

Till the white day is done.

Then rest at cool evening

Beneath a tall tree

While night comes on gently,

Dark like me --

That is my dream!

To fling my arms wide

In the face of the sun,

Dance! Whirl! Whirl!

Till the quick day is done.

Rest at pale evening . . .

A tall, slim tree . . .

Night coming tenderly

Black like me.

--Langston Hughes

-Photo by Sabrina Ward Harrison

Loverly

Love these prints by Australian artist Kareem Rizk. 

via: Design Sponge

Tender Grace

"But the tender grace of a day that is dead

Will never come back to me."

 - Alfred Lord Tennyson

Babies having babies!

I just heard the most wonderful news the other day - my cousin Rachel, who is a newlywed, is expecting! This will be her and JJ's first child and I couldn't be more thrilled for them! I was at their wedding this past year, and I took their wedding photos for them. I remember when Rachel wasn't even a teenager - just kids! I'm only a few years older than her, but I feel like a proud mama at how well she's doing for herself and her little family.

Congrats, Rachel - I'm tickled pink for you! :)

Waiting for summer

As the winds pass through the needles of pine trees, it creates a quiet song of summer, lulling us to peaceful thoughts. It makes us pause and look at clouds, stuffed like pillows, floating gently across the sky.

HA!!

This is exactly the reason people from elsewhere in the world think that all Southerners are rednecks... *L* Saw this sign in Bristol, GA in front of the smallest BBQ stand you've ever seen! Only in south GA...

Never underestimate the value of the little moment.

My Peyton feeling sleepy on the couch.

Cravings...

I'm totally in lust with this bathroom from Pottery Barn. Wish, wish, WISH I could afford such things... but I will have to settle for the knockoff. We are getting custom cabinets made throughout the house, so it should be easy to get the same finish of the cabinets, and we already have the venetian bronze faucets... now we just need to find that gorgeous countertop and sink!

Lovely...

Inspiration

Ben and I have been looking at paint colors recently. Got to make some decisions in that department in a week or so, and we've been having a rough time of it. So, I started looking back through my Inspiration folder on my computer (divided into so many sub-categories that I don't know what's what, and where from and who did!! - New Year's Resolution #458 - Get Organized!!) to see if I could find some great ideas... and of course, I did! Just not necessarily for wall color!

Here are a few of my favs... and please bear with me - I'm not sure where all these photos come from, so if you see something of yours, please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due!! :)

Love the baskets with tags hanging off identifying it's contents. :) So lovely and organized!!

Good color palette - B/W with pops of vintage blue and soft yellows... very modern and vintage at the same time. Hmmm.... that's a thought.

And this one -

GORGEOUS shelves with so many pretty colors and accesories! I crave something like this in my home office.

Alicia Bock photos lined up on a shelf... and I'm in lust with the grey wall color behind them!! :)

I've seen these signs all over the place lately - even Pottery Barn (my heaven!!) has them. Easily done at home... it's on my list of projects, filed under "someday".

New House!

House stuff!! Lookie, lookie at my beautiful new house! Still a work in progress, but coming along quite nicely. Lots more pictures to post - so stay tuned!! :)

Blue Grey Monday

It's a dreary, rainy morning in south GA and if it was the weekend, I wouldn't mind a bit - knowing that I could curl up in my insanely HUGE, soft, warm bed and have a truly wonderful movie day. I'm in the mood for a little Jane Austen at the moment, so I would play a little Pride and Prejudice, Emma, and Sense and Sensibility. Lovely movies for a not-so-lovely day. But, (and isn't there always a but!) it's a Monday and I'm at work on a grey day, stuck in an equally grey cubicle.

So, to cheer myself up, I've been playing a little computer hooky from the ho-hum of my Monday morning by looking at one of my favorite artist's website. Alicia Bock is a truly wonderul photographer who produces these beautiful images of simple pleasures. In her own words - "My photography is the search of light and shadows, pretty things in pink, the feeling of the ocean, and a blue moon. I strive to create photographs that evoke memories of our favorite days." How can you not possibly fall in love with that notion!!

One of my absolute favorites of hers is titles "Blue Grey Monday" and I desperately want to own it!! Actually, I crave so many of her beautiful prints and as soon as we get the house built, I'm going to start acquiring them one by one. :) One day, one day... But I thought it appropriate for today.

Conspiracy Theory

I have this theory. And I have had it for quite some time and anyone who knows me has heard me say it at least ten times. This theory states that there are some days in our lives where the universe conspires against us. That Murphy's Law will apply and everything that can go wrong will. Well, I was happy to discover that I'm apparently not the only one with this theory. I discovered this bronze sign while checking out Design Crush and it perfectly applies to me. Made by the artist Jenny Holzer, it was recently acquired by MOMA. I'd like my own mini version to hang above my desk, please.

Handmade books

I have this fascination and appreciation for handmade books that is quickly becoming an obsession. I love the art of bookbinding and papermaking and I find so many beautiful books for inspiration. I'd love to spend some more time working on my own handmade books, but until I find a spare moment or two, I'll drool over these!

Heaven

More Hawaii photos!

Just thought I would share some more photos of our trip to Hawaii. Trying to get caught up on last year's news! Sooner or later I'm hoping I'll catch up to this year!

Sailing and snorkeling at Molokini

Summit of Haleakala

Fell in LOVE with these purple trees!!

Hanging out in Lahaina and at Bubba Gumps!

(Late) New Year's Resolution!

I've made a promise to update this site a little more frequently so that our family and friends can stay in the loop on what's been happening in our little corner of the world. Have a little patience with me and I'll get some new posts up soon!! Till then I will leave you with a little taste. :)

241 New Town Road

The Wilsons of New Town Road. That's us! We've been working really hard towards this dream of building our own home and it's finally becoming a reality. I can hardly believe that we've only owned this piece of land a little more than a year! Ben has spent countless hours out there, clearing and burning, leveling and digging. After a year's worth of work, we are finally building the home we've always dreamed of.

Seeing the whole process really makes you appreciate every little detail of the home and land that it sits on. We have six acres, mostly wooded. A small pond, which Ben dug himself. And a lovely little dock that Ben built for us. Peyton loves it down by the water! She's completely at home splashing back and forth, barking at us to throw the stick. The driveway is nice and long and sort of meanders it's way to the back of the property, where our work-in-progress now sits. We have a foundation now! And the framing is still going up. But I can see the shape of my living room and kitchen, the huge, FANTASTIC master bedroom closet, the two-car garage... all of it is slowly appearing before our eyes, board by board. 2350sq feet total... not including the garage and porches. Perfect size to settle down and start a family in (NOT YET PEOPLE! We're waiting for the little ones!) *L*

Well, here's to the holidays and looking back on a year that I can't believe actually happened to me. So many good things. Really good things. But, we're not done yet... lots more to come for the Wilsons on New Town Road.