tomatoes

a blueberry day

at home

Have you heard that weeding is the new yoga?

 The Parisian Cucumbers are about to climb their willow trellis, and I think we are about to have our first tomatoes. I have seen a jalapeno, and the children have been loving fresh dill on potatoes.

The moonflowers and hyacinth beans are about to climb the fence, and I'm planting more sunflowers and zinnias. The arugula is coming out and more lettuce is being planted.

John, Michael, and Milko cut up most of the dead tree , and last years woodpile has been neatly stacked and added to. Blackberries are almost ready to be picked, and we'll fit in a trip to the berry farm this week for blueberries.

I think the littles will love these homemade hot dog buns.

Pretty soon I'm going to have to drive to Richmond for some KimKim Sauce.

backyard

We are turning our focus west of the back door these days.

summer

emerald isle

 

dolphins

orlando

We are home from the great pleasure houses of Orlando, Florida. The children are having a hard time coming down from the constant stimulation and entertainment. We stayed at a gorgeous resort in Universal Studios, and the kids enjoyed nighttime movies in the lagoon pool. We spent a day at SeaWorld and a day at Universal. Ella was fully immersed in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter {she has perhaps officially joined the house of Ravensclaw}, and John was all about rides. Ruby loved it all, riding every ride in Dr. Seuss with her new friend Camille. I took her on  roller coasters and rides, and she loved every one. I think her favorite was the Pteradon Flyers in Jurassic Park. It is a hanging seat beneath pteradon wings and swings high above palm trees and flowering tropical plants. When the ride came to a stop she looked at the person helping her out of her seat and said, "That was beautiful". She loved all the animals at SeaWorld, especially dolphins, whales, and stingrays.

The two littlest had never been on an airplane. Ella flew several times when we were living in Portland, but she doesn't remember it. When Ruby realized that the plane had left the ground she shouted, "We are flying"!


Thanks Joe, Ren, Jen, and Manu for the wonderful whirlwind weekend.

birthday girl

When school got out we headed down to Emerald Isle, North Carolina with two other families for a week on the beach. I'd go back there in a second.

Ruby turned five while we were there, and we spent her birthday at Hammocks Beach State Park. We took a ferry to Bear Island to swim in the beautiful green water. John and John hiked to the point to collect seashells, and Ruby flew a kite by herself for the first time.

5

our house for a week

boogie

castles

june

One quarter of the garden is weeded and mulched. Since only tomatoes are planted in here, I let the ladies in in hopes that they might nibble a few of the weeds. They thoroughly enjoyed kicking the hay around.

egg girl

into the woods

We spent Saturday morning in the Mountain Lake Wilderness. My children think they are moutain goats on the rocky overlooks. Ruby made the whole three miles on foot, carrying her panda bear the whole time.  

inspiration

I want to make my own tea towels.

I could make some things out of old books. 

Who doesn't want to go to a Ladies Ladyslipper boozy tea party?

There are so many things I plan on doing once I start sleeping through the night again. Apparently I merely thrash, gnash my teeth, kick, and gasp through the night. Back in 2002 I started telling doctors that I was tired to the bone, and the anwer was always a brush off, "Oh, you have a toddler. All mothers of small children are exhausted." Really? I don't think so.

I have sleep apnea and am getting a CPAP machine in the in the next day or so.  {Monday} While waiting for that I've been using oxygen at night. It is loud and vibrating, but when I wake up I don't feel like my eyeballs are filled with weights. Apparently I'll feel even better with the CPAP.

It is liberating to know that I'm not crazy. And maybe not even lazy. {I think I'm always going to be a fan of sloth.}

happy mother's day

the clara barton crankie

Ella finished her big Civil War paper and project this week. I think this has been going on since Christmas. She also had  a four day math assessment and lots of theater practice and performance, so I'm pretty relieved that the weekend is here. Here is a link to what a crankie is. The paper roll has about twelve scenes, pictures of Clara, quotes, and some pictures that we took at Civil War sites. She puts her Nook behind the rolling page with some Civil War era music. We have been talking about her project for next year already---maybe a crankie show that is sewn.

rabbit, rabbit

Sometimes I can't even believe we live here. This big apple tree didn't bloom last year--it blooms every other year. I wonder what the apples are like?