A Place to Just Be.
Seasons come and seasons go…
but as long as there is a safe place
we can call home,
whether it be a house
or simply a place
where we are with those we love,
we can weather any storm
or any season,
and be ourselves.
No questions asked,
nothing to prove.
A place to just be.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Frozen Stream – Backyard – Mars, PA – January 2018
In Time – Seasons of Change.
Isn’t it so comforting?
Doesn’t it fill you with hope?
To know…
that the brittle frozen stream
will once again flow
with soft warm life…
in time.
Seasons of Change.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
First Snow – 11/19/17 – Mars, PA
First Snow.
There’s just something
about the first snow of the season…
That first snow that sticks to the ground and trees –
even if just a briefly passing dusting.
Especially when it happens on
a late Sunday afternoon.
And when it appears suddenly –
as if it wanted to be a special surprise.
And when you are settling in by a warm, crackling fire
in comfy home sweet home.
Cherish the Moments.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
With Jodi’s kind permission I’m sharing some of my favourite posts from her fantastic blog, of which you could say that I’m a devoted follower. If you enjoy beauty, art and inspiration (not to mention mouth-watering food recipes) then Jodi’s blog simply has it all! I feel honoured that Jodi so generously allows me to […]
I was so honored by this beautiful post created by Liz at Exploring Color, I had to share. Thank you my sweet friend Liz from the other side of the world in New Zealand!
I hope you enjoy this beautiful post she created about the Four Seasons from my blog. My heart is so touched. I hope you will check out her lovely blog.
I’m starting with Autumn because this recent post of Jodi’s prompted me to do ‘Four Seasons with Jodi’. It touched my heart…
I watched you as you sat proud and beautiful
while the rain fell on and around you.
You didn’t need
the sun to make you shine.
In fact,
you stood out even brighter in the cloudy drizzle.
And I was reminded
true beauty comes from within.
It can’t be soaked or drenched
or washed off.
It can’t be dampened or doused
by the storms of life.
Let the rain fall.
Let the storms crash.
And continue to shine
your authentic beautiful self.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Link for original post: Let the Rain Fall
Is anything crazier or more unpredictable than the weather?!
Where I live, we went from record highs one week
to record lows the next.
From open windows and shorts and bare feet –
to snow flurries and wool socks and sweaters.
And one cold day I painted this winter scene
(inspired by a photo I saw that I cannot find credit for).
It’s funny how the cold scene
gives me a warm feeling.
Almost as crazy as the weather!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Link for original post: Snowy Pines Watercolor
Your visit is so brief….
but your memory lingers,
and it is ceremoniously revived
each Spring when you surprise me yet again.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Link for original post: A Brief Visit
On the edge of a meadow lives a bumble bee named Buzz.
He lives near his aunt and his uncle and his cuz.
Aunt Sally, Uncle Sam, and Sherman they was.
They love Buzz more than any other in Americas.
Sherman and Buzz love to play and dance because
It is what all the bumble bees in the meadow does.
So if you see dancing bees and think your eyes are a fuzz,
don’t be surprised if it’s Sherman and Buzz.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Link for original post: A Bumble Bee Named Buzz
One of Jodi’s friends left a wonderful quote in the ‘comments’ on this post:
Buzz the bumble bee is one of many cute animal characters in Jodi’s newly published children’s book Klaus The Mouse
Klaus the Mouse by Jodi McKinney – Amazon
Jodi contributed a guest post in my Where and What is Beauty? series.
Please visit Liz’s beautiful blog – Exploring Colour.
via Four Seasons with Jodi — Exploring Colour
I hope you are enjoying whatever season of weather and of life you are in!
Cherish the Moments!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
The golden morning sunlight
on the frosty fallen oak leaf
sparkles more beautifully
than any diamond I’ve ever seen.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
The wind has picked up a determined strength.
And the cheerful orange leaves are all but lost.
The hours of daylight have grown shorter in length.
The morning’s dew has turned into frost.
Autumn’s time is growing near her blissful end,
And winter is waiting for her turn to shine.
Snowflakes and icicles will soon impend.
and warm crackling fires under woolen fleece blankets will be so divine.
One season’s sad retreat
makes room for the next’s joyful beginning.
Goodbye Autumn – it’s so bittersweet
as we prepare to welcome winter’s first inning.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
If I had to choose
a color
to describe
Bliss,
I believe it would be
the color of maple leaves
in the Autumn sunshine
dancing in the breeze.
They delight my senses
with their bright
and joyful display.
Until Spring…
when the color of Bliss
is again the color
of the maple leaves
even though that color has changed.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Focusing on peace.
The Old Dogwood,
in her Autumn crimson cloak,
steals the show again this season
on the green carpet.
Nature….
the best show in town.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
One of these things is not like the others…
Who remembers this song from Sesame Street?
One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn’t belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?
I took this picture of some chrysanthemums and pumpkins in my front yard, and when I looked at the picture, I was startled to see “the thing that doesn’t belong.”
Can you find it?
My oldest son, Jake, LOVED Sesame Street when he was little. He was transfixed when it came on, and he learned so much from it. Sometimes I joined him, and other times I did housework while he was pre-occupied and entertained, but so many of the songs still run through my brain triggered by the most unusual of things.
It is funny how something as simple as this can take your mind to a specific place and time and song.
Memories…
The wonderful, whimsical, wacky wonderment.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
An unseasonably warm day in February this week
started with bright sunshine,
drenched us in refreshing rain showers,
and ended with the brightest, most colorful rainbow.
Right in our very own back yard.
If you cannot find me,
look deep in the woods
amidst the moss and twigs and fallen leaves.
I’m searching for the pot of gold,
dancing and celebrating with the leprechauns.
It is the Season of Magic.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
the creative life in between 
