Hawthorne Knoll Folk Art Painting

To stay cool inside while it's 105 outside, I've been painting this autumn scene.  I listed it on eBay this evening.

"Hawthorne Knoll"

This is the favorite time of year at Hawthorne Knoll. Autumn is the time of year for making caramel apples, raking huge piles of leaves to jump in, and hayrides with hay bales for seats. It's fall ya'll when hot cider is served, pumpkin pies are baked, and the aroma of soup tempts your taste buds. A chill is in the air and out come the sweaters, jeans, and blankets as the family warms up around a cozy fire.

Are you staying cool today?  

Catherine Holman 

More Gardening and What's On My Paint Table

Thanks for putting up with all my garden photos, but gardening is what I'd rather be doing in the summer.

Here is the entrance to the back yard....

our front entrance.... don't look at those bushes. I'm trimming them next week.  I've always waited until the first of July so I don't have to trim them twice.

coneflowers that seem to come up in different places each year....

roses and hydrangeas....

vibrant petunias....

flowers inside the back gate....

and more....

I had to drag myself inside to get going on this new folk art painting.

It should be finished tomorrow and I'll be listing it on eBay.

Please keep all the people across the country who are suffering from fires and floods in your prayers.  My sister in law and her family are in Colorado and are pretty near one of the fires.

Our Backyard Project

Come with me, grab your coffee, and we'll head out the back door where I'll show you around.

Oh, just a second, let me stop off at my laundry room and grab my garden hat.

The view from my laundry room window...

This summer we the guys replaced the floorboards on our deck and I scrubbed the boards that were replaced last year.  I just love the smell of new wood!

Earlier in the spring we did some landscaping filling in some vacant areas where the grass wouldn't grow and I transplanted some hostas.  

That stone patio in the lower right was put in a couple summers ago.

This is the view from that stone patio...

Looking back at my laundry room window from the deck...

Our deck is very shady all day long and impatiens really flourish here.

If you don't have one of these chairs you need to rush to Lowe's and get you one.  I got this for Rick for Father's Day a couple years ago.  It's like an outdoor recliner.  Just push back on the arms and you glide back into the reclined napping postion.  It also has a little shade protector that can be flipped up to keep the sun off your face. 

I keep that basket handy to throw the pillows into when rain threatens and I need to make a mad dash for the door.

Behind the deck is another little cobblestone path and lots of hostas....

I spend most mornings out here working and watering.  I do have another little painting that I've been working on when it's too hot to be out here.  I'll share it with you soon and other areas of my garden.



Catherine Holman

I Love You Like Biscuits and Gravy

Look what came in the mail last week.  Don't you just love packages in the mail.  I ordered this on Etsy from Sweet Magnolia's Farm and couldn't wait to rip open the package.

My husband was overwhelmed that I loved him as much as Biscuits and Gravy!

I Love You Like Biscuits and Gravy

This flour sack towel comes with the printed fabric unless you want the white ruffle.  My kitchen is yellow and red so I opted for the white.

Well Butter My Buns 'n Call Me A Biscuit

I love this saying and this one will probably be my next purchase!

As for me and my House We will serve the Lord

 I love this one too...

Sweet Tea & Jesus

 and this one matches my kitchen....Hallelujah!

American as Apple Pie

and this would be oh so cute for a 4th of July celebration!

Sara and Abbey, a mother and daughter team, offer so much more for your country kitchen so please stop by and tell them hello and check out their shop!  These two ladies have a great blog, Sweet Magnolias Farm where you could spend hours sipping your sweet tea and reading the afternoon away on  your porch swing.

Catherine Holman 

Gifts From Russia

Look what came in the mail all the way from Russia.  Nika was the winner of a little cupcake painting in one of my "Giveaways".  She and her two little daughters, Polina and Lily are big cupcake fans and I was so honored to send my paintings all the way to them in Russia.  You can see her two girls with the painting on their blog Craft for Christ Glory.

Nika told me they would be sending a little cross stitch cupcake that they at made, and I was also surprized to open the package and see this lovely apron too.  I will be wearing this apron with the beautiful Russian dolls and thinking of those sweet little smiling faces of Polina and Lily when I make my next batch of cupcakes.  



The cross stitch cupcake is adorable and thanks for the little treat too!  Chocolate is my favorite!  My son brought me home chocolate a few years ago when he went to Russia.

Thanks Nika, Polina, and Lily,

From your far away friend in the USA!





Marshmallow Roasting Party & Ghostly Guests

My sister in law, Tammy, and her two great kids, Makayla & Aaron, came for a visit.  They are Betsy's (the yorkie) family.

We decided to roast marshmallows and I wanted to try some night time photos with my new camera.  Let me just say, I'm still learning.  It is fun to play around with the settings.

In the following photos, it looks like ghostly figures have decided to join the party. 

There's even a ghost dog....

Many people have told us that our house is haunted.  It's an old house that many different families have lived in.  We believe our ghosts are of the friendly sort.

Hey honey, I need a garden shed in place of that dog kennel when you can get around to it.

Men at Work

Recently we've been working hard in our backyard landscaping areas where the grass would not grow.   We added stone curbing to round out these areas and planted hostas and impatiens.  Other areas were filled in with pea gravel (the canine critters think it's pee gravel) so the dogs would have a place to get to the yard without walking on the flowers (I hope they are listening).  The dogs seem to think they need to water these hostas.  When I get on to them they look at me like, "You've left us very little grass lady so get used to it!"

This is my supervisor chair where I can keep an eye on the guys while they work and the dogs.

Come on boys, lets get with it.

Are you talking to me?

That t-shirt is great advertising for the Dari-B. It was established the same year my hubby and I were born. There are always long lines of people waiting to order their ice cream on hot summer days.  I might have to paint it sometime.

Make sure you measure twice and cut once bub....

Am I annoying you honey?  Honey....

I can't believe I got this job!  Last year a few of the deck floor boards got replaced and they were now grey.  I washed them with a mixture of Dawn dish soap, white vinegar, and liquid OxiClean.  I scrubbed with a brush on my hands and knees.  See the difference between the boards in the center and the ones at the bottom right.

Boys can you get me some tea?

A Little Visitor

Recently we had a little visitor.  Her name is Betsy and though she is tiny, she had my three dogs terrified for the first few days....

Isn't she scarey....

She's very brave too...  I know I can jump this!

(new decking was being replaced)

Jersey, on the other hand is not so brave.  She hides when you take her picture.  That camera is very scary!  The poor baby was at the groomers last week and decided to take a flying leap out of the tub when they took the leash off.  She broke three toes and has to wear this brace for 6 weeks.  

This beauty is Lady.  We think the real spelling for her name is Lazy.  She is the most gentle dog on the planet and Betsy fell in love with her even though she terrorized her the first few days.

She minds very well and is taking the sidewalk to stay off our new landscaping.

Annie is headed right for the hostas in the newly landscped area.

She is the oldest and is known by the others as "The Boss". 

Boss girl was pretty scared of Betsy for a while too.

How about that Harley Davidson collar?  That designates her "Boss" statis.

Hey Betsy,

Annie, Lady, Jersey, and Bailey (the cat) who remains inside with the airconditioner at all times, want you to know they miss you and can't wait for you to come back for another visit.  They really did!

We miss you already tuff girl.

Vanilla Lemon Floral Fantasy Cupcake Painting

Inspiration for this weeks cupcake painting came from my garden where I spend most of my time.   Simply click on the title to link to the eBay auction:

"Vanilla Lemon Cupcake"

A floral fantasy surrounds this lemon cupcake with sweet vanilla frosting and yellow sprinkles. A juicy lemon slice sits like a crown atop this golden jewel of a treat.

How is your garden growing?