Riss Floral - Merlyn's Funeral

Last week in the midst of family vacation, our sweet next door neighbor passed away. She had been sick for a long time and had been in a care facility for almost a year with her empty home next to us. We missed her greatly and will now more so. She was a spitfire and sassy. She loved her yard and loved gossip. She had great stories and adventures. Still single and loved her cat Lily.

I was honored to be the one to design her flowers. Knowing Merlyn and her personality and garden, I chose flowers specifically for her. They were bright, happy, and whimsical. 

Pallbearer boutonnieres

Tribute baskets-

Tribute spray-

This is a nosegay to place next to her in the casket. A sister and dear friend of Merlyn's ordered it for her.

The girls had me make a corsage for the kitty. It was our gift to Merlyn - that is how much she loved her cat.

Casket spray- so heavy with gorgeousness that Dan had to carry it-

When her sister and nieces saw the flowers they all burst into tears. They all loved them and kept telling me how much Merlyn approved of them. They were just like her. It felt very rewarding and peaceful. I also feel like she was looking out for me and helped me get more experience. 

Overall, I was pleased with my work which is saying something. I usually am really critical, but these were gorgeous. We love you Merlyn and cannot wait to hear of your new adventures when we meet again.

Uinta Backpacking

You can just leave it up to this Thomas family to be crazy. We came home from Yuba, unpacked, and packed one more time for a backpacking trip. We started on the trailhead at 9:30pm. As you can see by the photo below, it was dark (taken at the trailhead). I had some glowsticks and those paid for themselves too. 

I thought we were the only ones who called Chickadees "cheeseburger birds." 

After a great mile we pitched and camped at 11:30pm - our two man tent with all five of us - in two sleeping bags. It was a "she's touching me" kind of night and was kind of miserable sleeping on one side all night since I couldn't turn over, but we made it through-

We brought a can of cinnamon rolls to roast over the fire- I would recommend that to all!!! It was heaven and so much fun!

I cannot get enough of this cutie!

Or these two. Surprisingly they were good friends after the night the had in the same bag.

Abi was exclaiming that this was heaven for a florist like me. And it was. The flowers were in full bloom and SO gorgeous!!! Forgive all my photos, but I had forgotten my watercolors in the packing chaos (thirty mins) and I mourned it the whole time. So I compensated with photos I could paint later.

We caught up with Dan's family the next morning. Crazy enough, they were only about 15 mins from our camp. 

At least one of us was catching up from sleep-

We found a natural teeter totter - it was great fun!

Long Lake-

This girl only wanted flowers-

These two continuously stole each other's applesauces. They were never satisfied with their own. It is amazing how "comparison" and "equality" start so young. The grass is greener on their side. Must be a trait of the "natural man" which means I will work on it all my life... kind of a bummer there.

I love the movement in this camp photo. 

Brooklyn went and collected "acorns" in her hat. There was no telling her they weren't acorns. She wanted nothing to do with that notion. 

Hiking out Brooklyn hung onto this strap and controlled Dan. He is such a sucker for her. He ended up packing her at least 1.5 out of the 2.5 we hiked out. He was so wiped out and continuously put her down, but for some reason, I'd look back and he'd be carrying her again. She has the gift of persuasion so much!!!

There we are... so darn tired. We got back to the car and had a nice golden ticket waiting for us... we had parked in the wrong spot. Joyous... do we look it? Always an adventure, always costs us more money, and always memorable.