Monday Mumblings....

Happiness is not in the mere possession of money;
it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.

~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

Good Monday morning to you! Ben is out of town this week so my stamping space has been moved to the kitchen island. I LOVE IT! I am getting so much more done just because I can work a little bit at a time all day instead of just when Kat is asleep. This area is too high for her to get to and although she really wants to, she can't get into all my goodies.

And while I am getting tons done, there isn't too much that I can share...*yet!* {although, if you look really, really closely on that photo, you might catch a glimpse of a sneak or two} So today's post will likely be a rambling one about other things besides project specific art-shares.

1. Let's talk reading. I have some new Barnes & Noble buys that I have been loving lately so I thought that I would share a bit with you...

Somerset In Love. I had special ordered this publication when Somerset first announced it and I am so glad that I did. It's romantic, beautiful, and so inspirational if you like the collage-style shabby chic look that I LOVE. yum! I cannot say enough good about this magazine. If you like that style too (think Teresa McFayden Foofala style...and yes, she is in the book too!)...YOU NEED THIS BOOK! B&N is carrying it in their magazine section...

Robyn Carr's Virgin River series. I picked up this book from this series before Christmas (I am a sucker for a good holiday romance novel) and although it was book #4 from this series and I hadn't read the other 3, I still loved it. Immediately, I went and bought the other 3 and devoured them. A great series featured around a small mountain community and ex-Marines. YUM! And the good news...there are 3 more in the series coming within the next few months! A great read!

Claudine Hellmuth's new creativity book. I picked up this book after seeing a bit about it on the Memory Makers blog although I wasn't sure I was going to like it (oooh, and even better, when I went over there to get the link, they are giving a copy away this week...so go comment on their blog!) The actual book is very small, but chock-full of artsy-styled scrapbook layouts that are very inspirational...with scrapbooking greats like Rhonna Farrer, Ashley Calder, and Donna Downey. It also includes two decks of cards that are supposed to jump-start a project for you (one deck is full of colors and the other is full of words.) A really fun idea to get the creative juices flowing!!!

2. Let's talk snacking. I am a snacker...big time, but am also trying to stay a bit healthier/eat a bit less (like everyone else who believes in New Year's Resolutions...) and my newest snack obsession is Dried Cherries. Yum! Only 2 points per serving and sooooo yummy! Kat is just as obsessed as I am !

3. Let's talk journeying. Over the weekend, we took the family out to St. Louis for the day. After a bit of shopping (more on that in just a little bit,) we went to the Science Museum for fun and play.

Kat and I playing in the mirrors.

Watching big brother work his science knowledge.

Playing with the construction toys.

Looking out over seriously torn up I-64 (I feel so sorry for you St. Louis natives that have to deal with this construction mess every day!)

Loving some time together.

Someone always ends up in charge of Flopsy. I turned around and this is what I saw...LOL!

This is towards the end of the day. Can you tell that Kat is about through?!?!? LOL...I love that look on her face!

Checking out that big (and moving) dinosaur. She WAS NOT too sure about that thing!

After a day full of walking, you just have to let your piggies breathe! The first thing she did when we got in the car...rip off her shoes and socks.

And now just a bit about the shopping. We have always gone to a little suburb of St. Louis called Kirkwood. It's a really beautiful little town with tons of historic homes (think Meet Me in St. Louis {the movie} style.) DH's favorite outdoor store is there, Alpine Shop. They have an INCREDIBLE pizza place, Dewey's. There is even a model shop that Jacob likes to visit. So if we are going anywhere in the metro area, we tend to head on out to Kirkwood for at least a little bit. Well, you can imagine my surprise when I heard on SCS that one of the best stamp stores in St. Louis was there, the Inkspot. So of course, this weekend, we had to find this store too...OMG, it was seriously like only 4 buildings/houses down from the model store that Jacob always visits. And every bit as good as promised...LOTS of stamps that I have NEVER seen anywhere, but online! Yum!!! Definitely worth the trip and I had to pick up just a few little goodies too (pictured above), although they did totally kill my January scrappy budget!

I am finally finished with this novel of a blog post. Whew! If you stuck with me, thanks! I promise to reward you by sharing art the next time I post...promise!