Julie's Musings | Julie Saffrin

CREATING YOUR OWN GIFT WRAP PAPER WITH SPOONFLOWER

November 8, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • 1 Comment

In September, 2018, I, along with four fabulous women, hosted a bridal shower for a friend’s future daughter-in-law, Sarah. During the opening of her presents, the bride received one wrapped in paper we all loved. It was gift wrap that held repeated images of the bride and groom. The bride’s mom had had it created in England. I loved the idea and wondered if I could find a place in the U. S. to do the same thing. Yup, at Spoonflower. I wanted to create an random, off-kilter black-and-white polka dot image so it could be used for anyone and…

HOLIDAY BOUTIQUE NOVEMBER 17 AT CHRIST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN EDINA, MN

November 7, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

If you’re looking for a holiday boutique to visit on Saturday, November 17, 2018, Christ Presbyterian church’s Holiday Boutique is back! Last year, the church was in the midst of a renovation and did not have boutique. This year, the renovation is complete! This is the 16th annual boutique they have done. Boutique hours: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The church is located at 6901 Normandale Road, Edina, Minnesota. I’ll be in the Multipurpose Room at Booth No. 5. Stop by and say hi, should you be dropping by! I’ll be signing BlessBack®: Thank Those Who Shaped Your Life…

WRITING RETREAT IN MITCHELL, SOUTH DAKOTA

November 5, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

So easy for me to put writing off and fill time with other things. Hard for me to say yes to shouting down my fears and just type. Really helps to get away and force myself to just write, without little shiny bulbs to distract me. The last weekend of October, my friend, Barbara Majchrzak and I, did just that. We got away on a writing retreat. And it was a time of great concentration, advancing my manuscript, and for Barb, celebrating a finished manuscript. Barb and I go back a long way, like I think at least twenty years.…

SAVORING

August 19, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

Seasons. Their endings are so different, aren’t they? Aside from it being my youngest son’s birthday month, I rush to April’s end, for the crusty, dirty icy mounds to disappear. But August? It’s the contrary. A month of days to savor the small things. The easy stroll of my grocery cart across the parking lot, the wind-whispering blond strands as I watch my granddaughter push her dolly in a stroller, the fine new grass on our lawn from hubby’s seed planting. And yesterday’s spontaneous stop at the Chanhassen Farmer’s Market. It’s where I met shop owner, Mary, who has an…

SUMMER’S DUSTY BLUES

July 8, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

Upon the hills of Garlingtown Beneath the summer sky, In many pleasant pastures On sunny slopes and high, Their skins abloom with dusty blue, Asleep the berries lie. —Frank Prentice Rand In the Saffrin house this summer of ’18, we’re about five weeks along in following the Keto diet. Some days it’s been harder to live without carbs and sugar than it’s been to slog being outside on a wet humid day. But, we’re doing it. Lots of time, for me at least, spent learning some new recipes. Where would I be without the internet? I’ve found amazing recipes online. Being…

NEW CROSS AND PEARL NECKLACE IN ETSY SHOP

May 6, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

Sometimes you need to send a sincere message in a simple but significant way. Like when you want a person to know what a treasure she is. Like when you want a graduate to have a memento to take to college to remind her that she is not alone, is loved, and is journeying with her God-given talents to be of significance to the world. Like when you want to remind your mom of how much she means to you. Like when you want your best friend to know that even though the miles separate you from each other, she…

A DAYTRIP TO KEY WEST

April 20, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

The gang from Minnesota, Kris Mestad, Yours Truly, rick Saffrin, Sue Mestad, Peggy and Randy Hamann

What comes to mind when you think of Key West? Before I visited this beautiful place, I knew it was about ninety miles from Cuba and Ernest Hemingway used to live there. Both are true. But Key West has so much to see and do, it is definitely worth scheduling into your Florida Keys trip if you have a day to spare. That said, a woman came up to me from Miami just after arriving and parking there at 11 a.m. and she, along with her husband and two mid-teen boys, were just getting into their car parked in back…

FLORIDA KEYS VACATION

April 15, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • 1 Comment

As we snow birds seem to say quite a bit in the early months of the year and now mid-survival of the April blizzard 2018, “Why do we live in Minnesota?” Family. My English, Norwegian and German ancestors, yes, decided that this part of the United States was a place to set down new roots. I’ve wondered, er grumbled, many a time, what was so enticing about this area? No sea, no mountains – of significance, just two seasons: Mosquito and Freezing Snow. Why, why, why? Especially when the Florida Keys exist? My husband, Rick, and I have visited the…

ADVENTURE AND REST IN ARIZONA

March 6, 2018 • Julie Saffrin • Leave a Comment

The first week of February 2018 we vacationed in Rio Verde, Arizona. While much of it was spent at the townhome we rented for the week with me soaking in the sun to get myself well from a season of cold and flu, we did do some adventuring too. It wasn’t long before we found a Starbucks. As we sat outside on the beautiful February day, I spied this woman about to enter into Target. I’ve never seen a dog stroller before and did not know they were allowed in public places. We learned that a couple we know from…

OLIVIA DAY, AN APPLE ORCHARD AND APPLE PIE

October 9, 2017 • Julie Saffrin • 2 Comments

Every Wednesday is Olivia Day for me and my husband, Rick. We’ve watched our only grandchild every Wednesday since April 2016. She delights our hearts every time her father, Sam – our firstborn – brings her through our door until her mom, Hallie – our sweet daughter-in-law, comes to pick her up after work. Olivia is 23 months old now and every time we see her, a little more of her personality emerges. This past Wednesday, the first Wednesday of October 2017, she came wanting cinnamon raisin toast, to make noodles and waffles with Play-Doh, and to listen to me read to her “I Can…

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