: Wash Wednesday :

A lovely tradition, started by GardenMama, Wash Wednesday is a growing collection of eclectic clothesline photos across the nation and around the world. Who says hanging clothes out to dry is mundane and boring? In actuality, it is refreshing and spiritual, though that sounds corny.

....I love little boys and summer......

.....Tribute to Daniel and his hard work.....

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: Wednesday : Love :

Being given the gift of deciding how one would like to raise their own children is something I love. I deeply enjoy being able to give such happiness to my children by doing the simplest of things and showing them the simplicity of the world and the beauty therein. Furthermore, being able to "design" Jared's birthday filled with fun and without spending much money at all is very gratifying.

I love how it still literally makes my eyes water when I see pictures of the boys when they were much younger. Oh, I love photos!

Staying home with the children in this major economic slump is something I love and truly appreciate. I thank Daniel for his enduring strength and my mother-in-law for her unceasing support.

I was browsing vintage on Etsy and I found many things I love. Check out this Pyrex Bowl or this Cookbook or even this Apron. This white dress is gorgeous....oh and so is this one.....oh my, this one is beautiful, too. This blouse is simply fantastic, as is this one.

In addition, I have noticed I am infatuated with Eric Clapton and the Blues within the last couple of months. He is particularly growing on me, though I have listened to him my entire life, along with several other blues musicians.

Speaking of music, Daniel and I have been drooling over the Wanderlust Festival for several months. It is a combination of yoga and music...talk about good vibes. It is so close to us...only about 40 minutes away, yet so far off...we just can't go this year...plus, I don't know what we would do with the kids. Here are a couple shots of last year's in Tahoe...

Photograph by Nancy Dionne.

Photograph by Seth Lightcap.

Photograph by Ryan Salm.

Photograph by Ryan Salm.

So Much Fun!!

So, now that I have devulged some things I love this week, how about you? I always love when you share.

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: Furthermore : Birthday :

Jared was born on this day at 12:34 am.......... He is now beginning his 6th year of life.

Oh, I love to see him as a little one!!!...the memory is sometimes vague, but when I see him, I remember so much of our life at that time. ((Sigh))...he is growing up too fast. I love him so much!! I look forward to giving him a happy birthday.

: Tuesday : Creations :

~Checkers~

I found a darning needle recently and I was able to finish up the experimental knitted checker board game. I didn't have a pattern so I had to improvise on the entire project.

I simply used bulky yarn that I had in my stash (I didn't have red, but I like the brown and black). Using size 10 needles, I casted on 36 stitches, and did 2 rows of garter stitch. Then each odd row thereafter was knit 2, knit alternating colors every 4 stitches, knit 2 at the end. Each even row was knit 2, purl the same alternating colors every 4 stitches, knit 2 at the end. Every 5 rows, the alternating colors need to be reversed. Make 8 sets of 5 rows (40 rows) and then garter stitch the last 2 rows in black. Cast off and tie in the loose ends.

For the bag, I used magic loop (double pointed needles work well, too). I casted on 36 stitches and knit in garter for several rounds, switched to stockinette for a few rounds, then continued in stockinette with brown until it was long enough to house the rolled up checker board mat and rock game pieces. I knitted 2 together and knitted one along the entire round to make 24 stitches now. Next round, I knit 2 together all the way around to yield 12 stitches. Then, I knit 2 together all the way around again, leaving 6 stitches. I pulled those tight, pulled the bag inside out, pulled the excess yarn through and tied in all loose ends.

For the rocks, I simply gathered several, painted them black and brown, and put them in a muslin bag with a yarn tie. Note ~ Flatter rocks are preferable because you have to be able to king your opponent.

~Birthday Crown~

I worked so hard on this crown to begin with and yet the elastic strap in the back that I just made today is mediocre. That is okay, Jared doesn't care about a silly old strap in the back. Neither do I. This crown will be well-loved. So, here is finally the end result.

~Pillow Cases~

I was going through some of my closet mess today and I came across these vintage pillow cases that scream out Summer and are just begging to be made into something new. Now, what to make?.......

Well, any ideas?

Beyond the finishing of these projects and the pondering of new projects, I have nearly completed a green knit bandana, which only needs knit ties on either side of the triangle. I am also about a third of the way through a wool brown one with various other colors throughout.

The quilt patchwork is complete. I just need to add a "frame", a backside, the batting inside, and figure out how to put it together.

The puppet is coming along slowly, but surely. Hopefully I can finish by Saturday when Jared gets the remainder of his presents (today is his exact birthday, but Saturday is when we will celebrate it).

I should probably make his card, too, and see if I can find those little wooden/knitted gnomes...I would like to embroider on them and give them to him as gifts, as well.

Busy, busy, busy.....

: Monday : Nourishment :

~Breakfast~

I made a few batches of oatmeal pancakes this week with fruit and eggs, but I think we've seen enough pancakes for a while. So, instead, I will feature a simple breakfast of essentially oatmeal with almonds, flax seeds, milk, and a little brown sugar for the boys. I would have included dry fruit instead of the sugar if we would have had some on hand.

~The Bakery~

Luke and I made our Sunday bread, which was thrice as much as what is shown below (not to mention, this hadn't risen in the photo as much as it ended up rising), but I wanted to feature his dragon. He was very proud and ate his creation with dinner that night.

I also made carrot bread. The recipe can be found through my other webpage, Busy Hands : Busy Minds. Of course, I made it slightly different, as usual. I didn't have pecans or almonds, so I used walnuts instead. Moist, sweet, and delicious.

And we also made super moist banana walnut bread...it was nearly gone in half an hour.

Super Moist Banana Walnut Bread

3/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups sugar, brown sugar, and/or honey

4 bananas, mashed

2 eggs, well beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour (I use wheat often times)

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup buttermilk

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

 

1. Cream your butter and sugar/honey.

2. Add bananas, eggs, and vanilla.

3. Sift dry ingredients together.

4. Alternate adding the dry mixture and buttermilk to your butter/sugar mixture.

5. Add walnuts.

6. Pour into a greased loaf dish and bake at 325 degrees for 70 minutes.

 

 

Now, shown below is the oatmeal muffins gone right. A couple weeks ago, I attempted these, and they didn't turn out so well. This time I used non-alum baking powder and buttermilk. It made all the difference. These ended up being moist, sweet, and very comforting.

~Dinner~

I made several yummy dinners from Everybody's Natural Foods Cookbook, including Super Veggie Burritos and a Cheese and Vegetable Pie. We also enjoyed a delicious Barley Casserole as shown below. Although, I didn't have cooked barley on hand, so I used leftover cooked wheat berries, which are very similar, and I used more greens than what was called for.

This was also topped off with wheat germ, a good replacement for bread crumbs.

This one was called Susan's Fritada, which included tons of zuchinni, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, parmesan cheese, butter, olive oil, garlic, and spices. Very delicious.

This one below, I threw together, but it was wonderful. I had sweet potatoes that needed to be used, so I peeled and diced them, sliced up a few organic carrots and an onion, grabbed a bunch of walnuts, and suateed them in spices (like nutmeg, cinnamon, italian seasoning, sea salt....) and olive oil. Meanwhile, I cooked some amaranth. I threw them altogether with some chopped red chard and popped it into the oven for about a half hour at 350 degrees. I served it with fresh dandelion greens and homemade vinegarette dressing. I think I might use this as a side dish come Thanksgiving. It was so good!

So, enjoy your life-sustaining meals this week. Slow down. Enjoy every bite. Savor the natural flavors. Take some time to do a little home cooking. Enjoy.

: Sunday : Reflection :

'Twas a pretty busy week. It usually is, whether we get out or not.

I washed my cat and dog. Actually our cat's name ended up being Kiki, which was short Kitty Kitty..so, I guess we never officially named him. Our dog's name is Little Girl, which started as Sydney, but she named herself thereafter, I suppose. She is just a sweet and energetic, yet docile little girl.

We also went on several walks through the neighborhood this week, but I failed to bring the children on very many lake hikes, as I have strived to do this summer. We did make it down to Coloma as a family, in pursuit of catching a free horse and carraige ride, but for some reason the gentleman who keeps reminding me of this wasn't there (he lives in our neighborhood and ocassionally walks his 2 horses while he rides in his carraige .....hmmm, maybe I could ask him for a ride through the neighborhood next time I see him...).

So, anyway, here are a few shots of us down in Coloma...

...Beer Garden...

They recently rebuilt the structure overhead at the old 1950s beer garden. The other one was unsafe, which was unfortunate because it had a lovely rustic feel and it was saturated with tangling vines.

....A Little Bit of Rustic...

...Trees....

...Pondering on what lives in the hole at the base of the tree...

...These leaves were so beautiful as the wind swept through them..they looked like angelic hands softly waving...

...The Younger Boys...

....Mommy and Dylan...

Ahhh, Coloma. It never fails to be a great day in Coloma, no matter what the weather is or how many times we have been down there. In fact, we would not mind buying a piece of property within that vicinity...'twould make a perfect family farm.

Furthermore, Daniel and I took the kids to see Rookie of the Year last night at a local baseball field under the stars, which was put on by the local library for free. We still have been watching maybe a movie a week, but we thought this would be fun for the kids and it really was a cute movie. They had tons of fun.

On another note, our garden is doing quite well. The hotbed is certainly the hotspot for cucumbers and tomatoes. I love to watch it grow daily. We had a few almost-ready strawberries, but those were gone yesterday when I checked on them. Perhaps, I will make a cloche to keep the birds away.

So, I am trying to finish up for Jared's actual birthday on Tuesday and celebration on Saturday. I still have to make a card for him, finish his puppet, and complete his quilt, which is actually almost done!! It is funny how when I decide not to set a goal for the quilt, I end up getting it nearly done in entirety. Though weeks before, I would set false goals that I kept putting off.

Anyway, this week I would like to continue getting on my bike more, continue visiting with old friends and new friends we seem to inevitably meet, complete the birthday thing, keep gardening and planting new varieties, maybe see Johnny Mojo this coming Friday at the Cozmic (Daniel wants to go this time...it is perfect for anyone who is on an extremely tight budget)...... We shall see what the near future holds.

Have a fantastic week!