Abby sipping hot apple cider out of her handpainted elephant mug
Getting back into the swing of things after a long three day weekend, and a visit from my husband’s parents and brother (since last Wednesday). Breakfast with the whole family is now the treat instead of the norm…
A few weeks ago a storm rolled in and down went the lights. It wasn’t even a good, raging storm. I think it was all of 5-10 minutes with high winds – and I do count our lucky stars that there wasn’t much damage.
So in the dark for almost two hours, the kids were getting a little restless. Mind you, it was only 7 pm? It felt like midnight. I thought, OH, let’s have some fun with the camera! They LOVED it. So, here are a few tips for at least an hour of fun in the dark with your flashlights.
This was a quick photo of my mug on Monday (Rae Dunn. Love her work.) and my favorite art supplies. No matter how much I enjoy most forms of art and crafts, I think it always comes back to drawing. It’s so portable, so easy. I had a big rediscovery about six years ago with doodling and Zentangles. But right now, I have a love affair with drawing and sewing.
If you’re into art and crafting, I’m curious about what all you readers enjoy using… day-to-day, maybe once a month? Do you make time to create?
In other “news”:
School finally started last week. No tears to report, and everyone got to school on time.
I’m looking forward to crafting and exercising more often.
So excited about reorganizing the website (and my house).
Can’t wait to do a brain core dump and write down all these ideas that have been floating around in my head.
Monday Mugshot prompts
Not a lot of sunshine here yesterday, and the weather has been so mild for summer. It’s been so mild that last weekend it felt like football weather – sunny, crisp breeze, and downright chilly in the evening. Even my daughter said, “It feels like, like, October.” It’ll be harsh when the temps go past 80 degrees later today and tomorrow – my kids start complaining. The bright side… I’ve been in drawing-and-doodling mode lately. (Check out some of my drawings at Instagram.) And in my mug is a blend of green and black tea with notes of vanilla and fruit (Mystic Moons and Madagascar Fine Bourbon from TeaLula).
I could have taken a picture outside, clouds and all, but I was preoccupied with preparing for my husband’s parents coming back to town for a week. Nothing refreshes a dormant house like opening up the windows and a good cleaning.
So excited to have our young niece around too… she’ll get lots of attention from her big cous’.
I’m heading out of town with my family… and ready to bring snippets of beautiful scenery, cool shops, and awesome food pics straight to you. Here are a few shots from last year.
See what I mean, gorgeous, just gorgeous. We love the Pacific Northwest.
So, while you so patiently hang around, this is what I like to bring with me when I travel. Aside from the “mom purse” full of fruit snacks, crayons and markers, and medicine:
Hello, friends. What’s been going on with you? It’s finally Spring!! Tell me I’m not the only one running around with soccer games, t-ball games and trying to do stuff outside the house.
In some few spare moments, I made progress on sewing projects until my iron blew up on me. Oops. But, thankfully, before that happened I taught my big kid how to use the sewing machine for a class project. (She can sew!) We didn’t get snippy with each other – I’m grateful for that. Because you know, it’s so easy to get frustrated teaching your own kid.
Took a break from sewing and worked in the garden beds and in the wasteland of our very clayey backyard. (Clayey, it’s a legit soils engineering word.)
Then – ouch. Not in my back, but my hands. It took a few weeks to shake off. (I’m sad about that. Means I’m getting old.)
Working the soil on your own was pretty satisfying, and I thought I did pretty well all things considered. But basically, I was using muscles in my hands that haven’t been stressed for a while, and it didn’t occur to me that they would hurt so much. It was pretty unpleasant for someone with a high threshold for discomfort. So I started to wonder if this was it… arthritis. It’s prevalent in my family. Are my genes catching up to me? (Did I ever write about being tested for rheumatoid arthritis? I’m good. No signs.)
I even made sure I wore my wrist braces to sleep (yes, both wrists) to make sure I didn’t wake up with numb hands. (Yeah, carpal tunnel too.) So when I woke up the next morning with awfully sore hands, I thought, okay, let’s take some Advil and all will be well. Right hand, good. Left hand, not so good. So, there’s been a slowdown of sewing/work around the house. But, I’m glad to say, my hands have returned to mostly-normal.
We were gone for a few days… visited friends, worked on bicycles. So. Much. Fun.
