Seasons...

It is one of the busiest times of the year for us - with planting season, bridal meetings & weddings, Mother's Day flower arranging (done), and the normal routine of being a mom of 3 sweet kids.  I've not posted in a bit as a result.

Mother's Day was also our youngest daughter's birthday. 

The idea for this fun banner came from this great book:

We had a small wedding to provide flowers for this past weekend, and another one coming up.

Besides planting in our cutting garden, I'm planting all of the landscaping around the house and filling some fun containers that I picked up at a garage sale last fall...

Once these plants and the seeds we have are in the ground, I'll probably be making a run for more to plant.  With several upcoming weddings that are requesting all Michigan grown flowers, the more the merrier!

In the midst of it all, I'm praying for my favorite blooms, because as busy as the season can be, it is always the season to cover your kids in prayer!  Loved this video that I saw today by The Neverclaim.  Watch video here.

Warning, it might bring you to tears!  God bless our kids and steal their hearts as only you can do!

Creativity Abounds!

Are you ever over the top amazed at how creative some people can be? I am.  Today I was able to have an adventure with a friend of mine.  We ventured to a local flea market and bumped into so many creative people through out the day. 

First, the sweet owner of Maple Valley Farms, Angela.  

Here's a photo from their website: 

We took a jaunt through a nearby town and stopped at Haack and Sons Antiques.  I often bump into the owner, Angie, at different locations, but today we had the pleasure of meeting her husband, Fred.  (Funny, I bumped into Angie a bit later at a grocery store.)  There were so some great items in their shop, but my favorite was a vintage Sunoco sign.  My dad had owned a Sunoco Station in Grand Rapids when I was little.  We still find the Sunoco stickers, that my siblings and I loved to use, scattered randomly at my parent's house.

A place that I've heard many things about, but have never had an opportunity to stop is Kindel & Company.  What a great store with a great restaurant nearby, Latitudes Roadhouse.

On our way back toward home, we had to stop at a friend's store.  The Barn Vintage Decor and Consignment!  Victoria, the owner, is so sweet.  She has a heart for God and a much bigger mission than just offering fabulous finds from her wonderful shop.  My friend who I was with today also has a booth space in Victoria's shop.  It was great to see her fun display.

When you see other's creativity, do you celebrate?  

So often I'll hear people mention that they are not creative.  We are all created differently with different interests, but we were created by the Author of Creative, and so often I can't help but to be in awe!

Kentucky, Tennessee & a few Chicks

Spring Break week in Michigan.  It had been a long snowy winter and though my husband had travelled to warmer weather this winter due to work (San Antonio, TX and Long Beach, CA), the rest of the family was still waiting and hoping for some sun shine and thaw time!

A bucket list goal of mine, which was set after graduating from college, was to take my eventual family hiking & exploring in Kentucky and Tennessee.  After attending Outward Bound in CO shortly after graduating, I began working for an advertising company which sent me to Clarksville, TN and Hopkinsville, KY for a week at each location.  I loved the small town charm and the terrain which was so different than Oklahoma, where I'd spent all my college years and Michigan, where I was raised.  After discussing all different spring break options, including staying home, we decided that this was the year for the KY and TN adventure.  We would have loved for our college boy to join us, but he wasn't able to take the time away from school.

As we drove away from home, scattered snow flakes were falling and there were still piles of snow on the sides of our driveway.  The more miles south we travelled, the weather became warmer and we were able to take in the sights of green grass, flowering trees and blooming daffodils.  Truly a breath of fresh air.

First adventure stop... Mammoth Cave National Park.

We chose to do the Domes and Dripstones Tour.  While waiting for the shuttle to take us to the entrance to the cave, we discovered that at least half of the people there were from Michigan - on spring break.

We hiked, explored, learned new things and loved every minute of it.  We love supporting and experiencing local restaurants when we are able.  The Mellow Mushroom in Bowling Green, KY was just perfect!

Second adventure stop... The Hermitage. 

Home and Plantation on President Andrew Jackson

After walking the grounds and taking in the sights, we were able to meet a college friend and her family for dinner in Nashville.  Puckett's was the perfect place to catch up and enjoy some local fare.

On the way to Puckett's, we had just enough time to stop at Antique Archaeology.  Loved seeing some items in the shop that we had watched Mike and Frank "pick" on their show.

view from the outside of the shop...

Adventure Day 3... exploring the quaint town of Franklin, TN.

Specifically, I wanted to visit City Farmhouse, as I've been following them on facebook and pinterest.  

We were also able to visit and enjoy Scarlett Scales Antiques, the Winchester Antique Mall, Arbor Antiques, Marridee's for lunch and several other quaint shops in downtown Franklin.

Due to some family news, we cut our trip a little bit shorter than initially anticipated, but the time we spent in Kentucky and Tennessee was so therapeutic and enjoyable!  We returned home to see just a few piles of snow, but nothing like when we left.  The remaining spring break days has been spent with the girls having friends over, picking out new baby chicks to add to our flock and working on property clean up - which our sweet college boy had already made a dent in while we were gone.

Even Bobby, our bunny, has been able to enjoy some outside time in his makeshift playpen.

Thankfully, the last of the snow has melted in the past couple days and we've enjoyed temps in the 60's!  We'll enjoy it and forget about the fact that the weatherman is forecasting snow for Monday!

New Website Coming Soon....

I love our Forrester Farm website.  I've gotten so many compliments on it since it first launched.  I add photos both to the site and to our Forrester Farm facebook page often.  Unfortunately, as technology has changed, my website template didn't.  This update is just for the purpose of being Apple product friendly.  Yes, iphone, ipad, ipod users, this change is for you!

The bonus of creating a new website, though it takes time, is for me to learn some new technology and to go through the amazing amount of photos that have been accumulated through the Forrester Farm years.  Some photos are my personal snapshots and some came from amazing photographers.

Just a recap of a few weddings we've provided flowers for through the years.  There are so many photos to go through, but with the new website on the horizon, our future looks sunflower sunny!

Winter Bucket List in the Spring

It is officially spring.  March 20 marked the first day.  We woke up to more snowflakes falling today.  After winterizing our little getaway place up north in November, my husband said that he would still like to go a few times during the winter - we would still have heat and electric, but would be without running water.  If I was remembering correctly, the winter of 2012-2013 was fairly mild, and a few mid-winter get away times sounded fabulous and relaxing.  If I could handle Outward Bound for 23 days in the great outdoors, surely a night without running water would be just fine.

 The reality was, it was so bitter cold for most of the winter, that we couldn't imagine going and trying to use our little furnace and a couple space heaters to stay warm! Between a full schedule and the weather, we kept delaying our "bucket list" goal.

A couple weeks ago, my husband received an invitation for an Italian Dinner that was going to take place on March 22 at the local Conservation Club that he had joined up north. We had a clear schedule for that evening, and surely, by the first of "SPRING", it should warm up a bit! The dinner was delicious and the cottage was waiting for us just as we had left it.  Though the outside temps were in the 20's, we fired up the furnace, got cozy, watched movies with the kids and had a great time. Whenever we go there, we have to take a walk. Here are a few pics from the icy adventure.... 

Not sure if this sign is really all that politically correct...

The public access boat launch area is never very busy and upon occasion, you might spot an Amish couple with their horse and buggy parked to the side having a picnic.

Love the variety of styles for the various cottages.  This one is right next door to the public access spot.

This one was on the market last spring.  Adorable, but only a 1 bedroom.

Right next door to the sweet yellow one is this rustic woodsman style...

A view down the lane...

A view of ours from the lane.  The yellow and brick.  Summer to-do list includes a fresh coat of paint and a little fence addition.

Soon, the snow will melt and this will be our view once again!  I can't wait!