Terra Studios Part 2 More Dragons and Blue Birds



 

These photos can do most of the talking for the enchantment of Terra Studios.  It is home to the original Bluebird of Happiness and is nestled in a quiet little valley about an hour away from our home in Northwest Arkansas.

 

 

If you missed Terra Studios Part 1, just click HERE!  ;-)

 



This pretty setting near the pond hosts a tea party for two

or three



 

or four.  You can even

 



share a chair with a bear!  ;-)

 

'So charming! 



The girls had a ball

running and exploring!

As hard as I tried, there are not any good shots of this awesome play house.

 

Throughout Terra Studios

 

 

you can find creativity wherever you choose to look.

Where have you been playing?

;-)  -Marci

And the Winners Are...

Being an engineer of The Great Blog Train is so much fun.  My favorite part?  Announcing Winners!
_________________________________
Checkout the top 3 "Boxcars" (Bloggers) who received the most "clicks" from the August Great Blog Train (blog hop)!

<a href="http://www.godsgrowinggarden.com/p/great-blog-train.html" rel="”nofollow”" target="_blank"><img alt=" Great Blog Train" src="http://i1145.photobucket.com/albums/o501/AngieOuelletteTower/My%20Blog%20Stuff/BlogTrainNewest300_zpse83d52e1.jpg" /></a>

The 32nd GREAT BLOG TRAIN was a blast! - We all safely reached our destination: St. Helens, ENGLAND, UK.  It was a wonderful trip with 43 boxcars!!  We (the Engineers) would like to thank all of you for travelling with us and we hope that you all had a wonderful time!

The Giveaway Winners are: N.O. & B.N. (The winners have been contacted by email)
Congrats!!!

 

W   A   N   T   E   D  :

(Being a "Destination Cohost" means that you get to pick our next destination!!  It also means that you will post The Great Blog Train on your blog on the first Wednesday of whatever month you will be cohosting (1 different cohost per month).  We (the engineers or hosts) will provide you with the html code for the blog hop & for the Giveaway - all you will have to do is add into that post some information on the destination that you picked (like population, known for, location etc - basic family friendly facts) and add a few pictures.  Also, if you cohost we ask that you promote it on your social media sites) (We are now scheduling for December 2015).

If you are interested in being a Destination Co-host for the Great Blog Train then please click HERE and fill out the form (THANK YOU!!)

We are now featuring the top 3 Boxcars!  (These are the links that received the most clicks)
All of the featured Boxcars will be pinned to the
Great Blog Train Pinterest Board
(click HERE to follow the board)

Photo a Day - Toronto by "Jenn's Random Scraps"



Zucchini Bread by "Back to My Roots"
 
A Spoiled Church Part 7 by "Homespun Devotions"

Please join us for the SEPTEMBER Great Blog Train

on September 2nd, 2015!

 

Sign up to receive emails about The Great Blog Train

Book Review: The Queen's Rival

by Diane Haeger

 

 

PHOTO SOURCE

 

A Partial Synopsis from the Author:  As the beautiful daughter of courtiers, Elizabeth "Bessie" Blount is overjoyed when she secures a coveted position as maid of honor to Katherine of Aragon. Her beauty and charm captivate many at court, but all are shocked when she captures the attention of the King himself. Though Henry has always felt kindly toward his Queen, no one has ever ignited his passions the way Bess does. Both are swept up in a Royal affair, and there are whispers that the Queen ought to be worried for her throne.

 

 

 

My Thoughts:  I judge a book by how much I think about it when finished.  The characters from this one continue to live on in my thoughts.  That's a big compliment!  I love how Diane moves the characters in and out of one another's days.  They are each human and fallible, trying to survive in Henry VIII's court.  Some make more mistakes than others at the games the courtiers play.  Tangled webs are woven.  Not all endings are happy, but I will definitely be reading more from Diane Haeger.

 

What are you reading?

 

;-)  -Marci

Let's have a Party! Tuesdays with a Twist

 We're your co-hosts:

 

Mary @ Back to the Basics

 Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures

Angie @ God's Growing Garden

Danielle @ Homesteading McCoy

 

Each co-host will be sharing her own picks for Features. This gives everyone a better chance of being featured.  Be sure to check all of our blogs!

 
 Y'all make choosing features so difficult!  There were GOBS of great links last week!  Thank you!  Drum roll, please...


Can you believe Autumn is just around the corner?  I chose this feature because it would be a perfect project for cool evenings.

Weave Your Home a Little Happy Rug from Stacey at The Farmhouse in the Field



Seriously, step by step directions how to weave your own rug!  How cool is that?!  Well, OK, how WARM is that?!  ;-)  LOL!  A little rug humor...

 

If you've been featured we'd love for you to grab a button.

We all love comments!  Please hop around and show some love!

The party starts every Tuesday at 7am EST and will continue until Friday at 11:59pm.  Feel free to stop back any time and "like" your favorites.  Please visit other blogs if you have a moment. 

Share older posts as well as new ones.  No limit on links!

*Pictures should be your own* 

By linking up you give us permission to use these photos

 (with proper link backs) in our features. 

And now for the party!

;-)  -Marci





 

A Magical Place with Dragons and Blue Birds, Terra Studios Part 1

These photos can do most of the talking for the enchantment of Terra Studios.  It is home to the original Bluebird of Happiness and is nestled in a quiet little valley about an hour away from our home in Northwest Arkansas.

 

 We took so many photos, I'll have to break them into two posts!
 

 

The girls had a wonderful time exploring the gardens and grounds.

 

 

 

Sitting on their throne.

 



  

Avoiding paparazzi!  ;-)



We all loved the gazebo lined with glass blue birds as well as the

 

stunning murals. 

There are three play houses, but somehow, I only photographed two of them.

Where have you been playing?

 

;-)  -Marci

Do Your Best



"Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment, full effort is full victory" Gandhi

Fitness is important to me.  I am usually at the gym five times per week.  When I struggle, but know I've given all I have, I remember this quote.  It's a little more eloquent than "Do Your Best"!

What is your favorite quote for the tough workouts?

;-)  -Marci

Reversible Headbands

Thanks to THIS POST from Red Delicious Life I was inspired to create reversible headbands!

 

Reversible!  It's like sewing two headbands at the same time!

I wish I had purchased colorful elastic for these, but I have some now.  The white elastic seems a bit tame against the vibrant scraps from my stash.

One side of the headband has a big, bold fabric choice and the other side is a small print.

 

 I made one for my buddy, Gail!

I love this photo of us in our cool shades and reversible headbands!

What have you been creating?

;-)  -Marci

Jealousy is For the Birds!

 

 

Admire someone else's beauty without questioning your own.

 

;-)  -Marci

LINKY PARTY! Tuesdays with a Twist

 We're your co-hosts:

 

Mary @ Back to the Basics

 Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures

Angie @ God's Growing Garden

Danielle @ Homesteading McCoy

 

Each co-host will be sharing her own picks for Features. This gives everyone a better chance of being featured.  Be sure to check all of our blogs!

 
 Y'all make choosing features so difficult!  There were GOBS of great links last week!  Thank you!  Drum roll, please...


You are going to LOVE this one! 

Easy Homemade Strawberry Syrup from Your Trash!  I know, right?



Seriously, check out the recipe from Stone Family Farmstead!

 

If you've been featured we'd love for you to grab a button.

We all love comments!  Please hop around and show some love!

The party starts every Tuesday at 7am EST and will continue until Friday at 11:59pm.  Feel free to stop back any time and "like" your favorites.  Please visit other blogs if you have a moment. 

Share older posts as well as new ones.  No limit on links!

*Pictures should be your own* 

By linking up you give us permission to use these photos

 (with proper link backs) in our features. 

And now for the party!

;-)  -Marci






 

Book Review: Everyday Fashions of the Thirties

As Pictured in Sears Catalogs

 

Edited by Stella Blum

 

 

PHOTO SOURCE

 

A Partial Synopsis from Good Reads:  For thousands of women across America, hard hit when the frivolity of the twenties ended so resoundingly with the Crash of '29, the pages of the Sears catalog became an essential resource in maintaining a wardrobe. An ambitious marketing operation, it could not afford to take chances on haute couture; its fashions were geared as closely as possible to the prevailing tastes of the American people.

 

My Thoughts:  What a wonderful picture book!  I am so vey grateful ladies' under garments have improved!

 

What are you reading?

 

;-)  -Marci

Ready to Party? Tuesdays with a Twist Link Party

 We're your co-hosts:

 

Mary @ Back to the Basics

 Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures

Angie @ God's Growing Garden

Danielle @ Homesteading McCoy

 

Each co-host will be sharing her own picks for Features. This gives everyone a better chance of being featured.  Be sure to check all of our blogs!

 
 Y'all make choosing features so difficult!  There were GOBS of great links last week!  Thank you!  Drum roll, please...



Paper Chandelier from



Simple Joys



 

If you've been featured we'd love for you to grab a button.

We all love comments!  Please hop around and show some love!

The party starts every Tuesday at 7am EST and will continue until Friday at 11:59pm.  Feel free to stop back any time and "like" your favorites.  Please visit other blogs if you have a moment. 

Share older posts as well as new ones.  No limit on links!

*Pictures should be your own* 

By linking up you give us permission to use these photos

 (with proper link backs) in our features. 

And now for the party!

;-)  -Marci

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Garden Guest: Hummingbird 2015

The north side of our front yard is a certified  National Wildlife Federation Backyard Habitat.  Really!  We have a certificate!  You can do the same by providing food, water, cover and places for wildlife to raise their young.  It is so much fun to see all of the critters that stop by for a visit.  I have a series of posts to show you our Garden Guests.

 

If you would like to see more, please take a look at my Gardening Page

 

You probably recognize this little one as a hummingbird.  They seldom sit to eat.  I'm so glad the camera was close by when this one was being still.

 

'Lovely little thing, isn't it?  If you would like to see a couple more hummingbird photos from a previous summer, click HERE!

 

And now for a little bloggin' music.  I Am Light by India Arie

 

 

So, what's happening in your back yard?

 

;-)  -Marci