time to re-invent yourself?

We all come to turning points in our lives, often provoked by a change of circumstances:  getting married;  a new career; a divorce; a change  of health; simply moving house ....  there are many situations that provide us with  an opportunity to re-invent ourselves.  

Some of you may know that I started writing this blog at a turning point in my life.  My youngest child left primary school and suddenly my role as a full-time hands-on mum became part-time.  It was a shock! 

I found myself at a loose end.  A friend introduced me to the world of blogging.  I quickly began to enjoy the writing and the interaction with readers, never for a moment suspecting all the other doors that the blog would open for me.

 

Because that is surely the beauty of a period of change.  We find ourselves being gently coaxed, or even outright shoved onto a path we hadn't planned to tread.  From there it is up to us how we react.   Keep looking forward, eager to discover new territory and new friends.  Or continually looking over our shoulder, regretting the familiar places we left behind and longing to get back.

photo by Jeanne from Collage of Life - thank you Jeanne!

 I've noticed that it is easy to see life in 'sections'.  To each part of our life belong particular pleasures, particular joys, particular duties.  The more we manage to live each stage of our path to the full, the less regrets we have when we move onto the next step.  

I'm not in a hurry to grow any older, nor to move on from this 'section' in my life,  but I do have a growing list of things I am looking forward to doing in about 20 years time.

 The bottom line is  we only have one life.  And only we can live it.  Family and friends may shape us but they can't live our life in our place.  And it's not because we re-invent ourselves that we leave them behind.  The more fulfilled we are, the better a person we can be for them.

So how do you feel?  Are you already at a crossroad?  Do you feel you are ready to reinvent yourself?    then I would humbly say "go for it!".    Change can feel scary or exciting, it's up to us.  One things is for sure, unless we walk that new path, we'll never know where it's going!

Thank you for reading me, hope your week is going well.

This and That........and Giveaway Winners

This has been a good week. Lots of things going on around here, but all good. Gorgeous fall weather has swept through Chicago and I'm loving every minute of it. Fall is definitely my favorite time of year, how about you?

This past weekend it was the perfect weather for us to go on our annual apple picking excursion. Our regular orchard wasn't open this season due to the unpredictable, crazy weather we had this last spring. But we decided to try a new one that turned out to be lots of fun.....

Gigi (Brett's mom) came along on our fun apple picking adventure.

Earlier this week, we made a giant apple pie from the apples we picked. I went back and forth about whether or not I wanted to do a crumble or crust on top, but I ended up doing a crust since our apples were almost falling off the top of the pie. This was only four of the apples we picked....they were huge! And the pie was delish!

Instagram Photo 

(follow me @thecottagemama)

We also brought out all the fall decorations so our house looks nice and cozy. The girls had so much fun sipping hot chocolate and helping me decorate. We made this vintage yo-yo garland together and I think it turned out really cute.

These pretties arrived in the mail this week from Riley Blake Designs for my next Design Team Project. This is from the line "The Sweetest Thing" and the small little flower print is the new knit fabric they are carrying. I've already washed it and it came out beautifully. I can't wait to start creating my next project!

There has been A LOT of sewing going on this week as I prepare for our first styled book shoot this weekend! I'm so excited to meet all of the little models and work with my book photographer. Fun, fun!

We have had quite a few giveaways in the last couple weeks, so it's probably about time that announce the winners. Sorry to keep you hanging. Here they are.........

Jo Totes Camera Bag:

Simply Color Charm Packs and Jelly Roll:

Modes4U Japanese Fat Quarter Bundle and Washi Tape:

Congratulations to our winners! Please email me at thecottagemama[at]gmail[dot]com with your contact information and we will get you your prizes as soon as possible! Don't worry if you didn't win, just keep trying. We have more giveaways coming up and you just never know when the random number generator might pick you!

So that's what has been going on around here. Some of those pictures are from Instagram and if you want to check out our daily life around here, you can follow me @thecottagemama. I hope you all had a great week and are finally getting a little taste of this beautiful fall weather.

Happy Weekend!

{Fall DIY's - Day 4 - Modge Podge & Pumpkins}

Today is day 4 of Fall DIY week, and it might be the simplest project yet.

It's the modge podge pumpkin.

If you haven't modge podge before, don't be intimidated. It's simple, sloppy, and can be be used in so many ways.

Today we are going to make vintage paper modge podge pumpkins. Say that 10x's fast.

Start with ripping some book pages into 1' strips.

Apply the modge podge liberally to one side of the pumpkin with the cheapest brush you own.

Overlap the pages and add modge podge over top of the paper too.

Let that half of the pumpkin dry before you start work on the other side.

Don't worry about crinkles and bubbles. It will only add to the homemade look. 

I used the modge podge jar to hold the pumpkin while it dried.

A little glitter would be fun too, but I'm out of that at the moment.

Gather a few pinecones from your yard and ta-da. Instant charm.

I think I'd like a little cluster of these cuties. So, I'll be make more today.

Happy Fall!