Yarn Along

Joining in with Ginny of Small Things for this week's yarn along. Our internet is down at home, so I am at hubby's office for a few minutes to check email- so this post is going to be quick!

I have set aside Phoebe's poncho for now and have started to work on some fun arm warmers for a festival I am going to late this summer. The colorway isn't quite what I had expected, but I think I am liking them.

I am reading Michael Pollan's newest book Cooked. So far, it's not quite what I expected... his other books focus a lot on health and the environment, but so far, this one has been more of a litarary cookbook with a history on cooking.

What are you reading? What are you knitting?

Rocky Mountain High

Just got back from a week in lovely Colorado. I lived there for about 9 of my formative years (college and grad school) and I will always hold a very special place for it in my heart. Even after 9 years of not living there, it still feels like home to me. We had a wonderful time. We visited a bunch of friends, met some new babies, went to a wedding, hiked around in the mountains, watched hummingbirds, danced, played, and ate lots of good food. It was wonderful and even with a week, there wasn't nearly enough time to see everyone we wanted to or do all of the things we had planned.
But, I am exhausted, as usually happens after traveling, and although I was sad to part ways with Colorado, I am happy to be home. I didn't bring my camera, because the kids and I flew out first (sans Todd) and we just had too much stuff, so I could only take pictures with my phone. Not the greatest quality, but I guess it will have to do!

This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soulemama.

Yarn Along

Joining in with Ginny of Small Things for this week's yarn along.

Phoebe's poncho is coming along. I only have about 6 more rows of stripes (so around 24 rows). I am really dreading weaving in those ends.... it is going to take forever! I am taking a break from knitting the poncho this week though.. instead  I am hoping to start some fun arm warmers for some camping I am doing this summer.

I am reading The Condition by Jennifer Haigh, which is a fictional story about a girl with Turner' Syndrome and hoping to start Michael Pollan's Cooked. Have you read it?

What are you reading? What are you knitting?

Our July Garden and A Link Up Party

It's time for another garden link-up party! Our garden is in full bloom!  We are enjoying beets, strawberries,  zucchinis, fresh herbs and flowers, and the start of our cherry tomatoes.
We have acorn squash and a mystery squash that are thriving, lots of green tomatoes (3 varieties of heirlooms), raspberries just starting to change color, blackberries that will be ready soon, corn, serranos, jalapenos, a mystery yellow pepper plant, hops starting to flower and grapes that we are anxiously awaiting.

We have had some gardening disappointments this year, like our pickling cucumbers that look straggly and our bush beans that are growing one bean per plant. Most of our potato plants mysteriously died before they even flowered. As I was cleaning them up the other day, we decided to dig around, and found quite a few lovely potatoes that had somehow managed to grow. And they were delicious!

We have been really enjoying watching our pollinator friends work in our garden. I know that bee populations across the United States have been on the decline, but the bees sure seem to be thriving in our yard!

 

What is planted in your July garden? If you would like to share pictures (of a blog post, flickr, etc.) please link up below! Can't wait to see your gardens!

Our Not-So-Little Duckings!

The last time I posted about the ducks, Dottie had just suffered 2 puncture wounds into her skull, and her future was a bit precarious. So, I thought it was time for a quick update (and, of course, a lot of photos).
Dottie is doing great and appears to be completely recovered. I think there is always a chance that she could have some injuries that we can't see, but for now, she is acting just like her brother and sister. Rye (who got wry neck at about a week old) also seems to be doing well... his neck is still slightly askew, but he is swimming and managing just fine. In fact, if I hadn't seen him before, when his neck was basically hanging upside down, I don't think I would even notice it. All three babes are growing like crazy and their downy fluff is being replaced with feathers. We have a couple of trips planned in the upcoming weeks, and I feel like by the time I get back home, they will be grown up ducks!
So, for now, I am enjoying their clumsiness and their antics.

 

This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soulemama.

DIY Spa: Flower Petal Sugar Scrub

I found and adapted this easy recipe for a homemade face and body scrub that uses fresh herbs from my garden... so now I can have some spa time at home!

Here's what you need:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• fresh lavender and calendula petals
• 6 drops lavender essential oil

Combine together.
Rub over face and/or body and rinse!

I have no idea how long this concoction will keep.... I am guessing it will stay good for several months?  I'll have to keep you posted (if it doesn't all get used right up!).

Day at the Beach

A couple of days ago I realized that nearly every day between now and the end of summer is already booked up: we have trips, visitors, occupational therapy camps... you know how it goes. It will all be fantastic, I am sure, but I think our summer days of lounging without a thing to do have come to an end. Don't get me wrong, we will still have plenty of leisure time, just not really any full days to do whatever we want with. So yesterday, the kids and I decided to head to the coast. Even though it's only an hour and a half away, we probably won't make it there again until my mom comes in the middle of August. And, in Oregon, days to lounge on the beach are pretty numbered because it is normally so cool and rainy. I need to get my fill during the summer!
We decided to make a whole day of it. We first stopped off at the Tillamook Forest Center where we learned about the 4 Tillamook fires that happened in the first half of the twentieth century, explored some forest ecosystems, and walked across their really cool suspension bridge. Next stop: Oceanside. The beach was overcast, but it warmed up as the afternoon wore on, and we even ended up needed some sunscreen. The kids had a blast digging and finding shells, and I even got a (very) few minutes to read my book.
On the way home we decided to stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory for the self-guided tour and some ice cream for the kids. That was insane. It was super crowded and the tour was mostly just informational signs on the wall with a viewing area where you could see factory workers weighing and cutting cheese. Actually, they weren't weighing or cutting.. they were watching machines do it and there just to interfere if something went wrong. And the ice cream line was insane. All I could think of was they had us lined up like we were cows in a dairy, herding us from one space to another. I guess Sunday afternoon in July is not the best time to visit the cheese factory, but I can say that I am not planning to go back anytime soon.

Summer TeePee

Apparently, backyard teepees are all the rage this summer. I have seen them posted all over the blogosphere, and I guess I was feeling either jealous or inspired (or both). This morning, the kids and I made our own front-yard teepee. Neither our front or back yards have grass, but inside our fenced in front yard, we do have a patch of mow-able clover. The area was originally supposed to be a planting area, but our dog, Moshi, ate everything that we planted (including a whole apple tree). A few days ago, Todd and I decided that a teepee would be the perfect thing to cover up the weeds: cute, and hopefully, the dog won't be able to eat it.
I gathered some bamboo poles, an old sheet, some hemp twine, and some clothespins. I found some simple instructions here, but honestly, I mostly just winged it. I think next time around, I will be more orderly when I pin the sheet to the poles, but hey- it works. And the kids do love it.

Yarn Along

 Joining in with Ginny of Small Things for this week's yarn along.

Still working on this poncho for Phoebe using leftover yarn from my stash. I haven't made much progress since last week, but such is summer and all the fun and adventure that comes along with it. My cat, Flash, apparently really likes it though...

Still reading Everything I Want to Do Is Illegal, which talks about how regulations make life awful hard for small, non-corporate farmers. The author is pretty intense, but I am really enjoying the read so far.  I am also reading The Condition by Jennifer Haigh, which is a fictional story about a girl with Turner' Syndrome. I am still only a few chapters in, but it is interesting so far.

What are you reading? What are you knitting?