All About Fabric

If you're like me and are obsessed with fabric, you are going to love, love, love this blog that I stumbled upon last week. It's called "True Up" and has all the latest on fabric trends, designers and shops. I felt like I had found a hidden gem. I hope you do too. Or you might just hate me for feeding your fabric obsession even more!

Rain, Rain Go Away

It has been raining the past two straight days. . . uugghhhhhhh. How do you keep busy and have fun in this kind of weather?

Anyone for a game of Bozo Buckets?

Please, please tell me you remember this game or am I really that old and outdated??

Field Trips

I always thought that once my kids got into school, I would have so much more "me" time (I know, it sounds pretty selfish doesn't it?). Boy, was I wrong! I seem to spend more time in my car and volunteering at their schools than anything else.

It's given me an opportunity to see a side of my kids that I normally don't get to see at home. To see how they're growing, maturing, and interacting with friends. Sometimes it's nice to step out of your normal routine and look at things through a different lens.

Camille asked me to go on her class trip to the pumpkin farm last week. I couldn't pass it up. One of my earliest memories is of my mom going on a field trip with my class to the zoo.

This may not seem like a big deal, but you have to know that I'm a middle child (Jan Brady syndrome, enough said!) and my parents worked a lot when I was younger. They were young and trying to make ends meet. So when my mom volunteered after hearing me beg and whine for awhile, I couldn't wait.

Inviting my mom into this new world of mine with new friends was so exciting to me. It was very important to me that she be a part of this too. It's like when your boyfriend meets your friends for the first time and you hope everyone gets along and everything meshes together perfectly. Okay, not so good of an analogy but you get the idea!

Everything that day was perfect ~ I got to ride the bus with my mom, I didn't have to share her with my sister or brother, and we now had a special memory that we shared together.

She was in charge of me & a small group of kids ~ we had to stay close and eat lunch together. There was a boy in our group that had opened his packed lunch to find a mayonnaise and cheese sandwich and a full ear of corn on the cob. Who would pack this kind of lunch on an 85 degree day? This was just not a good combination after walking around the zoo all morning. The sandwich smelt awful and my mom had to get rid of his lunch. My mom and I could not stop laughing about the whole scene for days. We shared this moment and the day together, uninterrupted, as corny as it was. 29 years later (yikes!) and I still remember this like it was yesterday.

So when I volunteered for the pumpkin trip I could only hope that it would be as special for Camille and create a fond memory.

She didn't even want to sit with me on the bus! She was too busy sitting with a different person each way. While this normally would have made me a little said, I couldn't help but be proud of what a big girl she's become. She's come out of her shy, timid shell and is making new friends. It made my heart swell that she didn't need to rely on me or use me as a crutch.

The pumpkin farm was a mudpit. Did I mention how muddy it was?? Oh, and that it was 40 degrees. We all survived though and laughed a lot about it (that was our mayonnaise sandwich moment).

I love, love, love that she invited me into her new world and shared her new experiences with me. I wish every parent could get an opportunity to do the same. I think it means more than we realize sometimes.

Favorite New Recipe

I came across a food blog last week that was like a hidden treasure ~ "My Kitchen Cafe". Lately I've been feeling like I make the same things everyday, but not any longer. Now I have much needed cooking inspiration.

I especially can't recommend this recipe for "Sweet and Sour Chicken" enough. My whole family gobbled it down which means a lot (even Camille who is going through an anti-chicken phase lately)!

So please give it a try and click "here". And if you live in a rinky dinky town like ours and can't get a decent Chinese takeout meal, you'll appreciate it that much more.

I'm in Love With

I.must.have.these.

I had big aspirations last Winter and decided to crochet my own slippers. I'd gone through so many store bought versions only to be disappointed. They'd fall apart, rip at the seam, you name it. I got one slipper done after a lot of cuss words and restarts. All I can say is Ronald McDonald was missing his slipper and I had it. The sucker was huge. And then when I finally got the stinkin' thing right, I couldn't remember what I had done so that I could repeat it on the other slipper. Ugghhh!

I don't think I want to go through all that again. I don't have the kind of life where I can crochet in peace and quiet and count my stitches and keep track (or maybe I'm just a little craft challenged???). I'm usually multi-tasking so I need a simple repetitive pattern. I have yet to accomplish this so I'm thinking I should just surrender myself to the fact that some things should just be bought.

These are from Natalya's Studio - check out her Etsy shop here. You might fall in love with a pair yourself. Double-cushioned soles, warm and cozy yarn, and stylish designs. These are sooo much better than the mass-produced slippers at chain stores.

Tomato Update

As most of you know, I started my own tomato garden this year ~ my very first ever. I can't believe how well it's done. Click here to see the Spring planting. Check 'em out now. . . We're now experiencing the fruit of our labor with a handful of tomatoes each day. The kids love picking them and I love eating them.
I seriously recommend this method for anyone that loves grape tomatoes and doesn't like to weed. All you have to do is water them daily (a gallon jug works great) and feed them with Miracle Gro for tomatoes once a week. The banana peppers and basil that were planted on the top of the buckets have done great as well. But we got attacked by Japanese beetles this Summer (can I tell you how much I hate these bugs!) so a lot of leaves got eaten. I guess I'm just grateful they didn't eat my tomatoes too.

Holiday Weekend Fun

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. I know we sure did. We spent one morning raspberry picking at a local farm and had a blast. You just can't beat fresh picked fruit in season. The kids' motto was "one for me, one for the container". Jonas couldn't wait to make a smoothie either when we got home. I turned around to see this and couldn't help but snap a shot:

We also camped out in our backyard. This is so much fun if you have younger kids and don't feel like messing around with an actual campsite and holiday crowds (added bonus is that you get to use your own bathroom!). We made smores, read books by camplight, and played bingo. It was a little chilly around 3am but we made it all night. Jonas woke us all up bright and early at 6am. There is one downside to camping, the sun is a natural alarm clock!

Here's pics of Doug putting up the tent with his two little helpers. Jonas has his working goggles on, of course. And there's an audience with front row seats. Camille thought they'd be interested in the whole set-up process.