A Month in Full Bloom
A reflection on July, a small calendar confession, and a first peek at August.
🌸This letter is a look back at July, a month that lived up to its In Full Bloom theme in every possible way. Inside you'll find a small confession about mixed-up calendar dates, news of what's still to come (including the flower pounding demo), a cake flop, and glimpses of the gatherings and celebrations that filled my days. Then we'll turn the page together and peek at what's coming in August here at The Hummingbird Nest.🌸
You'll notice this letter is arriving a little early. I'll be away on vacation the last week of July, so I'm sending my month-end reflections before I go. Consider it one thing crossed off my very full calendar.
I let out a little cheer this week when my horoscope report arrived in my inbox. Mercury retrograde ends on Thursday, it said, which means fewer delays, fewer transportation troubles, and less confusion.
Confusion. That’s the word that caught me.
Lately I’ve had my fair share of it. When I look at my July calendar, almost every day holds something. Too much something, if I’m honest. And somewhere in all that activity, a few dates got mixed up. I had scheduled several gatherings here in The Hummingbird Nest with the best of intentions, and I even published a calendar with those activities on it. You can imagine my surprise when I realized the dates on my personal hard copy calendar (I’m an old school gal who likes paper) didn’t match.
So consider this letter part confession, part catch-up, and part invitation.
What’s still coming
The flower pounding demo is still on its way, and I can't wait to show you this one. There's something wonderfully satisfying about coaxing color out of petals with nothing but a hammer and a little patience. This live takes place on Thursday, July 23 at 9:30am MDT and will be shared on The Hummingbird Nest site afterwards if you miss it.
If you’d like to make some along with me, here’s what you’ll need:
Supplies:
Fresh flowers and leaves (see list below for what works best)
Watercolor paper or cardstock
Parchment paper (to place over the flowers)
Hammer or mallet
Hard, flat surface (like a cutting board)
Tweezers (for removing petal bits after pounding) optional
Masking tape (to hold flowers in place before pounding)
If gathering flowers ahead of time, here’s a little guidance on what works well:
🌸 Flowers That Work Well:
Pansies & Violas, high pigment, great detail
Coreopsis, brilliant orange/yellow
Cosmos, soft but vibrant imprint
Ferns & Herbs, lovely shapes & greens
Roses, juicy, but can bleed heavily
Petunias, deep color, may need blotting
And if you missed the Pressed Flower Stickers Live earlier this month, the video is waiting for you - just hit the button below.
One small note: the recording picks up just after our arrival practice, which seems to have wandered off somewhere. Mercury retrograde in action, perhaps. Everything else is there, and it's a lovely warm-up if you're planning to join me for the flower pounding on July 23.
A small confession
On my calendar this month was a plan to make flower pot cakes for a birthday celebration. I had grand plans to turn them into a tutorial for you. The cakes had other ideas. They flopped, and so there won’t be a tutorial after all. Some things bloom, and some things don’t, and July taught me both.
What’s been filling my days
Beyond the nest, my calendar has been full of the kind of things that make summer feel special.
An afternoon of pedicures and manicures with my granddaughter Ellie, who is super creative. She did my nails herself, and never did I ever think I'd be walking around at age 69 with flower designs on my fingertips and toes. In a month called In Full Bloom, it feels exactly right.
Our Kitchen Table gathering, which was truly something. I’m still holding pieces of it close, and I’m planning to share part of it with you soon on a live. Here’s our menu, aka agenda.
A watercolor painting gathering at my home. We painted hummingbirds, of course. There were refreshments and cake and so much conversation that the painting almost became the excuse rather than the point. One guest gifted me a painted rock that I will treasure, and she also shared these perfect fruit masterpieces.
My granddaughter Avery’s horse show, where I mostly spent the time in awe. She amazes me every time she mounts the horse and jumps. It’s been her passion since she was seven years old.
My daughter’s birthday, celebrated at a famous restaurant where we had to book one year in advance. It was wonderful to be in the country with family to celebrate. The meal was outstanding. When we arrived back at her home for cake, her neighbour had surprised her with many grumpy garden frogs hidden throughout the garden - hilarious.
In full bloom, indeed
When I chose In Full Bloom as July’s theme, I imagined flowers. What I got was a month that bloomed in every direction at once. Gatherings, celebrations, mixed-up dates, flopped cakes, painted hummingbirds, and a calendar that couldn’t quite contain it all. That feels about right for a theme, doesn’t it? Full bloom is beautiful, and it is also a lot. And it was so amazing how flowers continued to show up in the most unexpected ways throughout the month.
A peek at August
Here’s what’s taking shape for next month:
🌿A Guest Creative session: Journaling for Creative Nourishment with Jennifer Zarin. Jennifer has nearly twenty years of experience as a mindful expressive writing and journaling facilitator, coach, and creative arts therapist. Coming to The Creativity Studio on Thursday, August 6 at 11:00 am MDT.
🌿Our Kitchen Table gathering on Friday, August 14, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm MDT, with a theme I already love: Make Something, It Helps.
🌿And plenty of lives. Now that I’ve found my rhythm with them, I plan to show up on your screen often.
Thank you for being here through a full and blooming July. May Mercury behave itself, may our calendars agree with us, and may August arrive at a gentler pace.
Warmly,
Kathy
A little about me
Hi, I’m Kathy. A guide, a gatherer, a maker of sacred space, and a woman who found her way home to herself after years of putting everyone else first.
For years, I wore many hats at once. Single parent, community manager in a role I was promoted into before I believed I deserved it, event organizer. And later, a family caregiver. Learning all over again how to give without losing yourself in the giving. Caring for everyone, in every direction, all at the same time. What I had to learn, slowly and imperfectly, was that I mattered too. What I found on the other side of that, through stillness, creativity, and the women who gathered around my table, became everything I now offer.
There’s a place at the table with your name on it.
I’m excited to share a glimpse of The Hummingbird Nest. Here’s a snapshot of the home page. Come on in for a visit.
