Baking Weekend of DREAMS

The delightful Pioneer Woman has done it again: she is having a getaway weekend giveaway on her blog! This time the winner (and guest) will spend the whole weekend relaxing, making new friends, feeding cows, and... wait for it... BAKING!

Now, I enjoy some time in the kitchen, I really do. I even enjoy making dessert, but "baking" by definition isn't my strong suit. I make cakes from box mixes (which are pretty dang good, thank you very much), and making cookies from scratch is extremely rare, though always worth it.

What I would look forward to most about the baking experience is decorating: I want to learn how to make pretty cookies and fun frosting toppings. I want to focus on DIY gifts this year (and I mentioned in this blog) and many of those ideas will be edible gifts. This weekend would give me a great head start - especially with all of the swag I would be bringing home!!!

Also, I haven't been on a ranch in so very long, and I would love to just see and smell and hear it all. Anyone who has ever stood near a horse and taken a deep breath knows the smell I mean. Yes, there would be unpleasant smells as well, but such is life. Scrape off the boot bottoms and keep walkin'.

If you want to check it out, her blog has all of the details you need.

Sara Norris Photography Giveaway

Thanks to Kate over at Centsational Girl and Sara Norris for this amazing giveaway!

I spend quite a bit of my time during the workday emailing back and forth with a good friend in Ft Worth. We may as well be instant messaging, because it usually turns into one long conversation. One thing we often do is a "pic request", where one of us requests pictures of whatever random thing we think will bring us cheer. Lately it tends to involve decorating, food or Zachary Quinto. The visuals we receive act to recharge our emotional batteries, a bit of sunshine to solar-power through the day.

If you need a visual pick-me-up, try hopping over to Sara Norris' Etsy shop. Her stunning photography has a very light and natural air, ranging from whimsical to ethereal, with lots of depth in between. I personally fell head over heels in love with this print, which she calls Summer Daydream:

I don't know about you, but that photo is a breath of fresh air to me. I want to lie beneath it and feel that sun beam warm my cheeks while I breathe in the grass around me.



This one also speaks to me, although it is very different in style. It comes from her Roots Series:

Despite the cold, stark lighting and background, something about this picture resonates in my depth with a deep, warm tone. It is hard to explain, but I have always felt a near-guttural connection to trees.

But enough of me sounding like a hippie, and on to the good stuff. Kate is have a giveaway over on her Centsational Girl blog for a $50 gift certificate to Sara Norris' shop! All you need to do to enter is leave a comment describing which prints you love. She also describes over ways to enter this giveaway, so hop on over and fall in love with Norris' view of the world.