Almost like Christmas

Opening a kiln after it has fired for more than 9 hours and then cooled for 12,  is a little like gifts on Christmas morning. There's all that anticipation. You remember when you were a kid looking at the bounty under the tree, all wrapped up with its mysteries inside? Even when you've rattled and poked you never know exactly what might be in there. Unless of course you are one of those naughty children who've peeked before things got all wrapped up. I've only heard about this. I've never actually done the peeking :-)

There's no peeking when it comes to firing ceramic goodies. You just have to wait it out till things are cooked and cool enough to look at. This is what I looked at yesterday morning as I opened the lid of the kiln.  For the most part, the kiln gods smiled on this firing. Which is a really good thing because this was a totally mixed up firing. New clay, new glaze, no testing. Just kind of went for it. Liberating!

And just like Christmas, there are those gifts that maybe aren't just what you expected. See that up there? Two beads perfectly and forever fused together. And then there are the truly hideous that went straight to the bin without ever making it into the studio. Nope, you are not seeing those. I've spared you the sight of them. It happens and I am totally over them. Mostly.

And I think I can let those failures pass me by because I've got so much more to look forward to. That cheeky monkey is coming to visit Nana and PaPa this weekend. Oh, and she's even bringing her daddy and mama. She's so special and not just because she loves to go fishing and will even bait her own hook. Wowser, I won't even do that. Actually, I don't go fishing.

Miss Alyssa is turning 4 at the end of the month. We'll be partying away here at Summers Studio. We've got bubbles, we've got side walk chalk. We've even got beads! I haven't seen her for a few months. I haven't seen her and Mama and Daddy together since Daddy got back from Afghanistan.

So we'll be taking a bit of a blog siesta over the weekend to eat cake and make merry.

Happy weekend all!

Homeward Bound

This boy is on his way home. Late Friday night we got a text message from our son that he was a couple hours from getting on the plane. There are no words to really describe how happy we all are. Except for 2 weeks mid tour, he's been gone for nearly a year now. It's been a very rough deployment in the moutains in the eastern part of Afghanistan on the border of  Pakistan. We don't any us talk about it much. We've just been looking to that day when we hear that he'll be home safe and sound.

The other emotion I feel deeply is relief. His last mission was brutal. They lost 6 soldiers and had 15 medevaced out with injuries. He's a medic and I know how this effects him deep in the core of his being. But I also know how strong he is and that time heals when you have the strength to face your memories.

Sometimes, I feel shame at my happiness. My son is coming home. Other sons and daughters are not. I know this is a normal feeling. I know other mother's who have felt it. The feeling will pass.  

I feel enormous pride in this son of mine. He's chosen a path that I would not have chosen for him. But it is his path and he has walked it with pride doing a job that not many would do. He's done it well. He's good medic and a good soldier.

I feel blessed.

Mostly, I feel this almost overwhelming love.

26 glaze tests and other stuff

I've been playing around with glazes again. 26 tests went into the kiln and one came out acceptable. But it's a colour I've been trying to make for a long time now. I even think I can repeat it. I hope so! There are other possibles in there but it will take a bit of fiddling with the formula. But I like doing that.

In other news, the beads and I are off to Wichita for our daughter's graduation with her Bachelor of Nursing. We couldn't be prouder of her. She graduating cum laude from the university that she did very poorly at years ago when she was probably way to young to be there. Then it's graduate nursing school in the fall. I just love seeing her get where she's always wanted to go!

Then it's up to Mum's to sort a few things out. She was recently admitted to the nursing home and now it's time to see if this is a permanent arrangement. It is a little tough seeing my mum at this stage of her life.

I'm also more than a little sad for other reasons. My son deploys to Afghanistan later this evening. It seems like such a short time since he came back from Iraq (15 months). He's off to Kunar province on the eastern border with Pakistan. I know very little about the area, except that it has been an area of intense insurgency and a cross roads for smuggling. But we've been through this before. It will be alright.

My son with his lucky charms, my dad's dog tags

Old Friends, New Memories

silver falls state park, oregon

Nearly 10 years is too long! We've just returned from a visit to Portland where we had something of a family reunion with my dear friend Susan. We moved to Australia, she moved to Portland and the time between visits has been far too long. Susan and I have known each other since we were young mothers of under fivers. In fact when I looked into her daughter's face I could clearly see the 6 month old baby I once knew. Ah, but she is such a beautiful adult now.

What a wonderful time we had and I am totally smitten with Portland. The city center reminds me of the life and vibrancy of Brunswick Street in my old Melbourne home. The Alberta Street last Thursday happening was a cornucopia of visual treats and fun. The layers of green in the Japanese garden and the hush of it's quiet beauty, the cool breeze on Manzanita beach, picnic and walking at Silver Falls....so many things, so many new memories.

But best of all were quiet evenings under the pergola in Susan's back garden. It was as if time had stood still for us and the years apart had never happened.

Seems that Susan has developed something of an obsession with photographing feet to remember special times. It somehow seems so appropriate that our five feet, hers, mine, her partner, my partner, and her daughters have all been captured in a circle on our last day. With old friends life is a circle. You move apart, but that loving circle of friendship remains intact.

And I would be completely remiss if I didn't mention Jack. Susan's first dog, a rescued border collie mix with a ton of energy, a love of belly rubs, and total devotion to Susan. Our brand new friend.

It's sooooo quiet!

Barbeque for 40, a trip to Carslband Caves, lasagne, carrot cake, TexMex, raspberry cream filled brownies, countless hours of intense board games, a son, a neice, a nephew, a brother, a sister, a brother -in-law. ...... Laughter...... 6 days.

It is so quiet here now.

I'll be joining Alice here on the sofa shortly for a little rest. Tomorrow, I'll be back in the studio. Meanwhile, I will hold close each precious moment that Peter and I were able to spend with our family who all live so far away.

Back Yard Chemistry

What is that man doing in my back yard? No, he's not testing the pool water. We don't have one of those but given the hot weather it would be nice. That is Peter testing the specific gravity (or something like that) of his latest batch of beer. It's a porter I'm told. Very nice I'm sure. But give me a glass of shiraz. Beer makes me burp! But a man's got to have a hobby. And there is a beer brewing brother coming into town soon. The competition is stiff and we have to have some of the good stuff on hand.

Meanwhile, I'm doing my own back yard chemistry. New glazes, new pieces. It always amazes me that something that looks so uninteresting in it's unfired state can come out all shiny, and hopefully nice. I'm never sure what the proper invocation is when I fire a kiln. But, may the kiln gods be with me tomorrow night. The proof is in the pudding, so they say. Wednesday will be pudding time.

Home Sweet Home

2,220.86 miles, 36 hours driving, 9 days, and 3 major storms, we are home. It was wonderful to see family and catch up. I haven't been back to my childhood home since my dad died a year and a half ago. I even bumped into a childhood friend that I haven't seen in more than 20 years. We are all bigger, not just the kids.


And green. I had forgotten how green Iowa is in June. Not just any old green either. But a million zillion shades of luscious greens. Greens I would love to bottle up and decant when I need a little pick me up.


But it is nice to be home again.


It seems like six months since I've worked in the studio. Just what was I up to? I'm sure there is a list somewhere. I'm also sure that the list has not been thrown away as I see no evidence that the fairies have been in to clean up my studio. You just can not get reliable fairies these days.

The mystery of the missing glove

This Alice, aka Miss Wiggle Bottom.

This is my garden glove. Usually they come in pairs. Indeed I had a pair. And the pair I had were completely intact in the fingertips.

This is my studio. A lot of work has been done here over the past couple of days.

I think that these three seemingly unrelated photos have something in common. What do you think, Miss Marple?

This is Bob, our early warning storm alert system. He denies any knowledge of the mystery of the missing glove. "I was in the closet for hours, mam. I was trying to keep you from harm, mam."

Have a great weekend everyone!

Musings on Remembrance and Poppies

Prompted by Sharon’s post yesterday on LiveWireJewelry, I looked a little more closely at the origin of using the poppy as a symbol of remembrance for fallen soldiers and those who’ve given service to their country during war. I read ‘In Flanders’s Field’ and some of the history of the movement. I read again about poppy seeds growing in disturbed soil. I spent much of the day thinking about this and my own son’s service in Iraq.


This photo is one my son sent me from Mosul. These two little boys are in hamming it up in front of a market that my son’s platoon patrolled. If you look very closely at the little boy in the red shirt’s right index finger you will see a band aid. That’s one my son applied when these little boys begged to be treated by the medic. After that, we sent many boxes of children’s band aids in rainbow colours, patterned with dinosaurs and sponge bob.

This is another photo from my son of the Jonah (Yunis) Mosque. Built in the 8th century, BC, here it sits relatively untouched among the rubble of war. These little boys have never known anything else but war. Yet here they are hamming it up for the camera, laughing, joking, and behaving just like other little boys all over the world. I can not help but think of them as poppies rising up from disturbed soil. Who knows what will become of them? But it comforts me to think that they are the future and that as children they laughed. And that my son for one brief moment could share a band aid and a laugh with them.

Many thanks. to the many of you, who remembered our soldiers on Memorial Day. Remembering their service helps those who, like my son are fortunate enough to return, to heal from the many memories they must now carry with them. As the mother of a soldier, I am truly touched.

We've been having fun

My daughter has been visiting for a few days over a long weekend and we've been having heaps of fun making jewelry. This is something I rarely do and she rarely has time for. Oh and Michaels had a 50% off sale so we did a bit of a bead extravaganza. Sarah snagged some lovely rose quartz beads and came home and immediately snagged my one and only coral barnacle pendant. A very simple necklace she's made, but I love what she's done.

It's been such a lovely time to do this together. We've been sitting together long hours at the dining room table, with all of our things spread out, chatting, comparing, suggesting. It has been quite a long time since we've been able to have so many hours of mummy daughter time. As your children grow older and leave the nest, it gets harder and harder to have gentle quiet communication. Our daughter is 8 hours away and when we see each other, we've usually got all sorts of things to go and do. This time we deliberately dedicated our time together to making things. And we've grown closer just being able to share our common interest. Although I am deemed the slowest beader in the universe. But that's OK.

One of the other things Sarah and I did together was unload a kiln and then paw through all of the goodies. I made up a smaller size pendant and a couple of different variations. Used some of the suggestions for glaze colours and I must say I'm quite pleased with the blue version. Sarah has generously allowed me to list these in the Etsy shop. All I had to do was promise to make more.

We're Back!

We had a wonderful time. None of us have been to this part of Oklahoma before. Robber's Cave State Park is nestled into the forests of the San Bois Mountain range and it is truly a stunning area.

This is our little home away from home. The cabin is up on a rocky ridge surronded by short needle pine forest. Our front 'lawn' was carpeted with yellow and white spring flowers. Such a treat.

Morning is not always my friend. But when looking out the window from your bed gives you this, it is not too much of a chore!

Much of our hiking was more properly rock scrambling.

Not everyone in the park was happy to share their home with us. This cotton mouth snake took exception to sharing his fishing hole with my son and husband. Fortunately, this photo is as close as I got to him. I am uneasy with snakes, especially cranky venomous ones.

No television, no internet, no newspaper... A trip like this an indulgence for me. It is like being able to turn off a switch for a few days. I found myself spending a lot of time just sitting on a rock behind the cabin, absorbing the sound, the smell, the view. I find myself being able to truly enjoy small things like lichen on a rock, the intricacy of a pine cone, hawks overhead. I would love to bottle it all up and take it out like a magic potion that I could use to revitalize myself when I am on sensory overload from daily life. But in a way it is bottled up in my memory.

I spent a lot of time sketching, well, doodling, really. Just letting my mind wander aimlessly. It is spring and I feel fresh and new again. I'm ready to get back into the studio.

I hope all of you are feeling a bit of that spring time magic!

Cheers, LeAnn

We're going on an adventure

And this is where we are going. This is Robber's Cave State Park in south east Oklahoma. We've never been before. But it is always exciting to go somewhere new. Our son did the internet research to find the park and we are meeting him there.

We'll be hiking, camp fire cooking, playing dominoes, and skipbo. No television. For me it is bliss to get away for a few days with nothing around but the trees and the wind. Usually we camp but this time we splurged on a small cabin. I like tent camping but at this time of year it will be a little slice of heaven to crawl into a nice warm bed at night.

This kind of trip always finds it's way back into my studio. For me experienceing new things is very inspirational and I'm quite drawn to nature. My sketch book will be going with me and my camera too. But more than anything, it is spending time with my family without the distractions of daily life that really revives my creative spirit. It gives my a great sense of peace and well being.

I'm off to pack. But before I go, I would like to say a big thank you to all of you generous people who gave me such great advice on jewelry components. Another rewarding source of inspiration for me has been this blog community!

Have a wonderful week all, LeAnn