In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson officially established June 14 as Flag Day. It commemorates the date in 1777 when the 2nd Continental Congress adopted the stars and stripes as the official flag of the United States. I decided to pull together a Maker’s Dozen collection around the Flag Day theme. I looked around the studio and in my collections and found 13 oddities inspired by red, white, and blue!
Farm days. They are always full of discovery, and the theme for last week’s trip seemed to be green, green and more green! We’ve returned from our annual sojourn to Noxubee County to kick-off summer vacation, and I’m always amazed at the new flora and fauna we find. It was unusually hot this year for May. At least it felt that way. So, lingering in some of our favorite activities was a little uncomfortable. But we enjoyed at least a few drives through the pastures and exploring. So many greens and blossoms. And, although some of my close-ups got a little grainy, we got to see a few critters, too. I hope you enjoy some of the sights of summer at Busy Bee, including some of the inspiration for the Small Pond…
Hello, June! It’s a new month, and that means a new printable calendar…. I’m sort of congratulating myself for being more regular with these printables this year. The school year finished up last week, so we are about a week and a half into our summer vacation – excitedly! We’ve spent this week getting lazy at Busy Bee for our annual summer kick-off trip to the farm. The weather seems unseasonably hot for May, but it hasn’t stopped us from enjoying these first days of summer slowness and freedom – early morning quiet time on the deck, pasture walks, pancakes for breakfast, a few wanders through county roads, water fun, bonfires for hot dogs and s’mores, and searching for ripe blackberries and wildflowers. It’s not quite time for wild blackberries yet. They are mostly green and red right now, but we’re spotting them everywhere and hoping to come back in a few weeks when more will be ready for picking.
I’ve been thinking lately about the things in our lives that help us create family, the experiences and qualities of “home” that knit us together and create the safe place we need to become confident in our best selves. After my husband, Mike, died, we were all engulfed in this wave of sorrow and change and uncertainty, and for my children, a sea of confusion and lack of understanding – an ill-defined sense of loss and insecurity. It was all very natural, and in many ways still an ongoing process at various stages of resolution, even six years later. But, during those early days of grief, I felt so strongly that I needed to focus on making sure our home was a place of security and honesty, where all feelings were welcome and peace would reign. Home-keeping. A tall order in a very chaotic and confusing time of adjustment.
Summer vacation begins for us on Wednesday. We have big plans for small schedules and fun with our summer jar and each other. I predict a few brain freezes.
Hello & welcome! I’m Haley Montgomery, and I’m the designer and owner of Small Pond Graphics. I sometimes fancy myself a frog kisser— a documentarian coaxing poignant moments from unexpected places. This blog has evolved from those moments.
The small Pond FIELD GUIDE is part diary, part sketchbook, and part wish list – an archive of ordinary wonders. For years, this space has housed my stories – creative ideas, vintage inspiration, our forays into curious places, and the simple artifacts of quiet of conscious living. Through watercolor, photography, and illustrated tales, these pages uncover the blessing of ordinary days and the wonder found in authentic places and pursuits.
I invite you to open the boxes.
Peek into the drawers.
Rustle through the pages.
I’m honored to have you here.
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Phone: 662.312.4001
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