26 March 2008

Ah, Tuesday

It all started with the apron....
These aprons were given to my husband and myself as a gift from my grandmother years ago, I sure she probably wouldn't even remember. They are Gardeners Aprons, why, can't you see the tools, the pipe, the overalls and the bowtie?
I believe this one is Chads.
So, anyways, the apron, that's where it started today. Picking O up from school, we had plans, big plans! We were dyeing eggs that Spring Bunny forgot to bring on Easter morning.
We tye-dyed, wrapped rubber bands and crocheted dollies around eggs, even tye- dying our hands.I was inspired by Martha Stewart's show on egg dyeing. However, our eggs did not turn out like hers, to say the least. I used a crocheted dollie that I found in the bag. It looked so beautiful wrapped around the egg, I had to try it! Although, I may have had to use fancy lace on the egg to get the pretty design MS got.

The rubber bands were pretty cool and they did leave a design around the eggs.
Over all it was a pretty fun project.....Oscars hands tell all......


So, speaking of the dollies, I was going through my sewing and fabric boxes trying to find some lace and I found a bag, that I knew was in the box just have never really sat down to look through it. I found some, crocheted, (I think, although, there was a needle gauge in the bag) flowers and such.

If you look beyond the flowers, at the top of the photo, there is what looks like a knitted or crocheted baby shoe. So delicate and small! So, it was really cool to think that these we my Grandmothers or maybe my Great Grandmothers hands working on the very things that I am now that interest in.

So, just when you thought we were finished and could sit down and relax for a second....
O wants to make a smoothie!

Oh boy, my first thought is to distract him, then I remember how much he does love smoothies!
Ok, out comes the blender, the berries, fresh and frozen, milk, oj, flax seeds.....
Wanting to "do it all by myself" I went out of the kitchen and return with the camera.
And yes, that is blueberries stained on his upper lip!
Stained hands and face....HA HA
No time to rest now, must make dinner.... luckily I had made a dinner plan this weekend for each night this week. Tonight, (last night): Angel hair pasta with zucchini, feta, garlic and oil. Boiled kale on the side with sesame seed dressing.....yummy! Even O loves these!!

Ah, now time to relax?? Yeah right!!

25 March 2008

Breath of Spring

Ah, the seeds are hatching and the bulbs are blooming.
My two sweeties brought home some tulips, from their weekend grocery store trip and then cut some fresh flowers from our yard.
We planted these bulbs a few years ago, I remember walking around the yard with Oscar tied onto my back. Digging up the earth to plant these fresh bulbs.
I did plant some red tulips, we are waiting for those to blossom....not too much longer!





And the seedlings have sprouted and are growing about as fast as Oscar is!! Really!
You can almost watch them grow!
We have started, tomatoes, peppers; sweet and hot, eggplant, zucchini, squash, and lots of sunflowers, gourds and a few other different flowers.
We grew them last year, and did well with them, just hope to do better with them this year!
I think it's only natural to learn something from each plant and teach yourself new things year to year!

23 March 2008

Blueberry Surprise

That's a funny name, I just named one of my soaps Petitgrain Surprise.
I just love one of my new cookbooks, Apples for Jam!
It's so colorful and the art on the pages is simply divine!
She makes wonderful treats, some with sugar some without.


So here a different take on one of the recipes.

I think hers calls for pomegranates, greek yogurt, cinnamon and honey.
Mine: Plain yogurt, orange juice, blueberries, granola and honey.
O, "ummm, mommy, this is good!"

20 March 2008

Spring Fever!


Spring has welcomed herself right into our home.
Last night we painted eggs, blocks, little people, butterflies and made paper eggs in the hopes that Spring Bunny will come a little earlier to our home.





I added an art piece that was traded last year, from Cheri. I just love her stuff!!
So, being an egg- head the piece had to get added to our Spring collection above our fireplace!
I love the freshness that Spring brings except my sinses don't really...

19 March 2008

It's a Girl!

So, Pinky died and returned to the biggest fish bowl ever! It was very sad to see him go, he had such personality and was so very friendly. He loved Oscar's art work. Oscar would set up paintings for him to see on the side of the tank and Pinky just loved it, made him feel right at home!Anyways, so we went out and purchased a new fish, Fishy Nixy is her name.
Oscar wanted a red fish, so we found one that had red stripes....mostly blue though.
He adores her, as you can tell from the picture.


Oh, and finally Chad and I finished my brother's wedding gift.
It's a painting of a Native American wedding vase.
It's meant to bring luck, eternal love and happiness into their marriage.

Painting in progress....outside on our back deck.
It was so lovely outside yesterday that I sat outside and finished the painting, while Oscar and Chad ran around.

18 March 2008

Dig in

So occassionally I make a special treat for my little one.
I, personally feel that giving my child too much sugar is not good for him, or me or his dad...or anyone around him. Therefore, he gets special treats like maybe twice a month. He will literally turn into another child. And I'm like....where is my son!?!
So, it's simple, he and I whipped up some heavy cream and a tad bit of powdered sugar and layered berries in between.


We used strawberries and raspberries.....and he loved it, as did I.




One for me, one for him.

09 March 2008

Works in progress...

....Well, one finished and one a work in progress.


This is a pillow that I put together last year around Christmas time. I had finished everything but sewing up the top where I added the filler, (which was given to me by a dear friend, Sarah.)
I just love the blues and the flowers in this pillow!
So, yesterday, I hunkered down and finished the top. And might I say, Oscar loves 'his' pillow, that I sewed for him!
A
nyway, here's the front and the bottom is the back, just a demim blue.


I was actually thinking of just displaying it, it's too pretty to lay a head on.




Here is the painting Chad and I are working on for my brother, who got married last month.
But hey! better late than never, right?
It's a painting of a wedding vase. It's done on 2 canvases, with Chad's painting on the right side and mine is the left, of course, the one with flowers.
Hopefully, we can get them there next week for their 1 month anniversary (we'll see about that), along with their unity candles, that I brought all the way to Florida, in a car! (without breaking), and forgot to bring to the wedding......
Oh geez, I hope they don't break on the way down, in the mail truck!

06 March 2008

Gardening and Brunch

We went to Lowes last weekend to pick up some trays to start our seeds. usually we have a ton of them hanging around outside, however, I started some early Spring cleaning and threw away most of the trays and pots. But, I do think it's a good idea to freshen up your trays every year anyway so that disease is not spread to the seedlings.
So, at Lowes: Oscar decided he wanted his own garden. So, we found these seed in a cup, just add water. We bought him a couple cups and he is very excited!
The Sunflowers just started sprouting this week...they sit on the window sill in the bathroom where they get about 8 hours of sunlight.
He is thrilled!



Here we went out to a lovely Brunch at The Grit.


It was super delicious, Oscar loved his freshly squeezed Orange Juice!

I think we all wound up sharing with each other: Breakfast Burrito with eggs, beans, tomatoes; Biscuits and Vegan Gravy; Banana and Walnut Pancakes and some fresh hot coffee.....wow, this makes me really hungry!

02 March 2008

New Things

So I headed up to the mountains for the day on Friday.
I visited a dear dear friend, Amanda and we set out for some trouble, in a Thrift Store.
(A little plug: Amanda's husband, Matt Granberry has written and directed a play, Splitsville, going on this coming Thursday thru Saturday at the Sautee Comunity Center.
You can find out more about Matt Granberry, the play and how to get tickets here.)


So, back to thrifting.....I saw these wonderful (I call them) Port wine glasses. They are so beautiful and very delicate, only about 4 inches tall. I just knew they were meant to be mine, especially being 25% off!

The etching on these glasses (as you see below) is what sold me, really added such personality to these tiny, delicate glasses.
The picture doesn't do justice of how the etching is on the glass, but you get my point.


Along with my Port Wine glasses, I also picked up some grass green cloth napkins and two Sake cups. I really don't drink that often, however, when I do I like to drink with a little sophistication!


So after this excursion, I felt like a new woman, I had visited the mountains,drank some local coffee at Sweetwater Coffee House, did some good thrifting and was around lovely company!
Oh and thank you mom and dad for watching the little one!
Peace

Breakfast :: Friday

Breakfast: Creamy Rice Cereal added yogurt, soy milk, maple syrup, butter and a little salt.
I usually add raisins but didn't have any left.
With of course, the last of the Monday muffins, with a tad of butter.