Visiting Lost Valley (Boxley)

We love and crave adventure in our family.  I sometimes lament to Brett that I drive myself crazy with ideas, always wanting to try new things and go new places.  Sometimes I tell myself to calm down and just be pleased with a stroll in the yard.  This is the funny, absolute truth.  But what is also true is that I crave adventure. Lucky for us we live quite close to several adventure spots, all within an hour drive or so.  

Lost Valley is one of those spots and is simply our favorite.  We've gone here for several years now, the girls graduating from the stroller to walking along the trails on their own! 

During our last visit a couple of weekends ago Anna Ruth wanted to take her camera (which really does take pictures), and take photos and video of the hike.  Proud, proud moment for her mama. 

We've been during varying degrees of crowds, as well as water levels and all are pleasant! Everyone is always very friendly, even in passing on the trails. 

You first walk along a pretty rocky path, which is not particularly easy for a stroller.  However, once you pass this section the path widens and the gravel becomes much, much smoother.  This is where we would push both girls in the double stroller when they were smaller.  The trail then forks off to the right and that's when you walk down to the water.  In visit's past Brett and I have each held a girl and walked down to the water.  This time they both had one of our hands and walked on the big rocks themselves.  Proud moment for us all! 

I love adventuring with him. 

Brett is such a good daddy.  There were several spots where the girls were just begging to go to and I thought it would be too much hassle but Brett patiently carried them both down. 

This little Sunday afternoon trip was such fun for us!  If you're anywhere in the area I encourage you to visit and take your camera! 

life in the kitchen lately..

(chickpea patties)

Some of the absolute best things in my life are incredibly hard to explain.  Things like why I traded the idea of big city lights for dark, country nights.  Or how I got started as an artist.  I tried to explain that one at the Mill St. Market a couple of weeks ago and there didn't seem to be enough words to fill in the gaps from "I used to be a teacher" to "Now I'm an artist".  

I would say the same is true of my passion for food and cooking.  I've always been interested in food, but not like this.  In years past I've been overwhelmed by cooking, while also trying to learn how to be a new mom.  Or I've been in a season of counting calories and discontent with my body, therefore stealing the fun from the kitchen. 

Now I'm in a just right place.  I'm focusing on eating real food and have fallen so in love with cooking.  I can't really say what did it.  This winter I began a new obsession with cookbooks and especially ones that were well-styled and beautiful and used real, non-processed ingredients. 

(Save your strawberry tops! Put them in a pitcher of ice-cold water and enjoy!)

Fast forward to our New York City trip where every kind of food imaginable (literally) is available at almost any given time.  I have no other words to describe it other than "food heaven."  I'm seriously so in love with the place I'm thinking like crazy how Brett and I can get back there.  That fascination, combined with my new hobby of listening to food podcasts while I fold the laundry, has me viewing cooking as an art these days. 

I'm really big into buying the basics at Aldi twice a month and trying not to have extra trips in-between, eating from the garden, cooking real food and limiting the junk, and making things up.  Literally.  We have "made-up" dinner several times a week, if not almost every night.  This means I go into the pantry and look around, while also taking stock of what the garden has.  Then I make a recipe up.  This method has yet to fail me. 

(Bread that's about to go old becomes croutons.  Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and season as you wish.  Then bake at 350 until crispy.)

For example, tonight I'm dreaming up a crispy corn tortilla topped with refried beans, charred garden greens and avocado, a fried egg, a bit of sour cream, maybe a few jalapeños, and some dip/dressing I made from leftover radish tops. 

THAT kind of thinking gets me excited.  A made-up meal that will be an art to make. 

I've also been really big on spending the time and logging in the hours in the kitchen. Not hours everyday, but I certainly devote a chunk of my time in the kitchen.  I want to nourish the girls and Brett and all who enter the doors of our house, well.  

This means a couple of days a week I deem "food prep days".  On these days you might find me blanching some garden greens, chopping strawberries to freeze, baking a loaf of bread, making granola, or cooking a whole chicken and making bone broth.  Or any other number of activities that could be considered "prep." 

 I've also started my first batch of kombucha (fermented tea) in the kitchen too!  I'll let you know in about a week how it tastes. 

 The girls are almost always welcome to join me in the kitchen.  I say *almost* because sometimes I just need to get in there and get things done! But they are learning too, right along-side me and they know that Mama loves to be in the kitchen.  The word that comes to mind over and over when I think of cooking for myself and others is "nourish." 

 How about you and where are you on the food spectrum?

Do you consider yourself a foodie or interested in food?  

I am all about finding ways to include art in everyday life and food is such a fun outlet for me to do that!  I'm not looking to win Top Chef or anything, but judging from my first burned meal as a newlywed 'till now, I'd say it's fair to call myself a good cook. 

Life is good around the table! 

Join me for a Party on the Porch, farm-style!

Good morning! How are you, after the weekend and Mother's Day?  Brett was/is sick with sinus stuff so my role as mama was very much needed yesterday and my cup of coffee is very much needed today!  Just like the winds that are starting to blow outside bringing with them a change of weather, there are changes happening inside my art world and announcements I'm excited to share with you! 

At the start of the new year I really wasn't brainstorming new ideas for my art and photography because I thought we'd just sure have a newborn to hold.  I was certainly ready to trade my paintbrush for a tiny newborn and instead of running hard after artistic dreams sit and savor my baby instead.  

You know our story if you've been here long.  We are still waiting on baby and in the meantime God has dropped little ideas for my art here and there in my mind.  The excitement over a new season (and spring at that! My favorite!) in my life as an artist has snuck up on me.  Through giving myself some space and rest and getting back to painting or sketching everyday, I've felt my inspiration return.  

With all that said, I have some fun ideas and announcements I'm going to be sharing with you over the next couple of months!  Things like new products in the shop and today an announcement about an art sale happening at the farm! 

First, enjoy a peek at some new art coming to the shop soon and what I've been up to in my sketchbook! 

And now, I hope you'll join me for a "party on the porch", farm style!

This evening will be full of fun and fellowship as we meet new friends and enjoy the old. I'm hoping that many of us that are social media friends can meet in real life!  I will have a pop-up shop with art  prints and originals at a deep discount (like prices marked way down).  There will also be snacks and music, plus a glimpse at our farm and the place that keeps me so incredibly inspired. 

The party and pop-up shop will take place at the cabin on our farm. 

Here is a glimpse into that dreamy space, the same spot I hosted the photography workshop last year!

I hope you'll put this date on your calendar and join me! 

If you would, please RSVP by emailing me at sunshinebysara@hotmail.com by June 6th!  

I did this event on a Monday night hoping that even if you were like me and your weekends are jammed packed, you could still join us.  Feel free to invite your friends and gather up some art to add some rosy to your home. 

I look forward to sharing some new paintings and products with you also in the next few weeks and months! Thanks for joining me for this incredibly fun adventure. 

Don't just look. See.

 I often get pegged as the "head in the clouds", super cheerful, always rosy kinda gal.  The one who has a cliche' happy quote for literally any situation.  This is actually entirely not true.   Yes, I'm typically a "glass is half full" kinda gal.  But I also struggle with being down in the dumps just like anyone else does.  Maybe even more than you do.  So when I meet someone or have a conversation where it feels like I'm being viewed as "cute" because I'm just so darn happy I'm always secretly thinking "Don't you need this as much as I do?"  This rosy view on the world isn't a mission to draw a crowd.  It's my real-life beckoning to worship, to counteract the discouragement and hard stuff of life. To put it quite simply, when I seek what I call "the rosy", I'm essentially seeking the fruits of the spirit in real life-love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  (Galatians 5:22-23)  This viewpoint isn't a social media campaign but instead as necessary to me as coffee, food, my family, and sleep.    

The real truth is that life is both beautiful and very messy.  And sometimes? Achingly sad.  But you know what else life is?  Jesus.  He's the reason for it, my hope when I rise and when I fall, the whisper that urges me to slow down and not just look, but really see. Jesus is the roar that reminds me how mighty He is to save.  

Around here we believe whole-heartedly in days or at least hours with "nothing" to do.  Time where we can just simply be each week and decide what we'd like to do, whether that be go for a walk, paint by the creek, or play freely in the yard.  One morning this week we weren't headed anywhere and I quickly glanced outside to see it was a pretty morning.  I could have stopped there, with the pretty morning thought.  But then this and that began to catch my eye and I excitedly threw my boots on, calling out to the girls and asking who wanted to experience this gorgeous morning with me.  Betsy Grace threw her boots on too and romped through the pasture with me.  

All of this was our reward. 

Today, don't just look.  See.