Nautical triptych

Tomorrow's promise

What can I give you, Baby?
Tomorrow's charms…
Comfort and safety and shelter...
A father’s arms.

I'll give you grass underfoot, dear Baby,
paper and string...
Beginnings and What-ifs and Somedays,
grown from the simplest things.

You'll have earth-scented rain in April,

puddles and muck…

A search for a rare kind of clover,

timing and luck...

Watch as the leaves rust and redden,
summer to fall...
Seasons to measure your time by,
delight in them all...

I’ll give you laughter and kindred spirits,
four-legged ones too…
And hobbies and pastimes and passions,
a thing to create…
something to do.

Whoever you grow to be, Baby,

If you build, write, heal or teach,

Whatever your dreams,

may they find you

within your reach.

I want you to know the affect of all things
long after they’re gone…
After the shifting and swaying has settled

Hope flickers on...

Mostly I’ll give you this promise,

binding and long…

I promise you’ll always know you are loved…

Loved--

like a note loves a song.
There are people who love you already,
steadfast and true...
A family whose circle is waiting,
completed by you.

The moon, the moon, they danced by the light of the moon

Visions in Poetry:

a series of books I'm very fond of as of late, from Kids Can Press.

Each book features a different illustrator and the artists capture the mood of the poetry perfectly (as does the typography).

Here's a spread from The Owl and the Pussycat:

and another from My Letter to the World and Other Poems:

"Because I could not stop for Death--

He kindly stopped for me--

The carriage held but just Ourselves--

And Immortality."

It would appear I have a bit of a poetry obsession lately. And also an obsession with organizing and cleaning. Scott thinks I should have the bottle of multi-purpose cleaner hanging from a lanyard around my neck. I spray. I wipe. I spray. I wipe.

Over the long weekend, I began the process of setting up the baby's room. For me, one of the most important considerations is the art on the walls. Some of it will be of my own creation, but there is a slew of stuff on Etsy that I just might have to have, like these autumnal forest illustrations from Kristiana Parn's shop....

It's also time to re-focus on my own art projects after a summer-long hiatus. With September finally here, I have no excuse to put off crafting any further. Afterall, the clock is ticking (or, more accurately, kicking) toward October and soon there won't be a moment to spare.