frozen peas and muddy toes...

summer...

 

summer, summer, summer...

In one giant leap, we went from a cold rainy spring and landed knee deep in the middle of summer and we've pretty much embraced it with both arms.

The girls have gotten quite a lot of swimming in. I had to smile once when they were floating on tubes in the pool with Taylor Swift blasting on their ipod, singing along, chatting, and just generally enjoying life. I will never forgot those times with friends as an early pre-teen and I'm so glad my girls have each other to share that with...

We've been eating every type of in season fruit we can get our hands on. Today, it was blueberries from Emery's fresh and in these pancakes... that are our new favorite. I would be making these pancakes minus the apples (because they are like dessert) but #2 pickywicker doesn't like the strong lemon flavor. 

We're waiting patiently for sweet corn and tomatoes. The garden is starting to get that overgrown look (why did I plant everything so close together??? again?) that I simultaneously wait for, love, and find overwhelming. We've been working hard this year to keep everything under control but after giving up last year and letting everything go wild, it's been pretty tough. There's also been so much rain that I've been worrying about rot and other similar issues. 

We've been to picnics with hayrides, flea markets, parties, festivals, and camping. We've eaten A LOT of ice cream and done our fair share of laying around on the hammock or in front of the fan doing nothing. We've been enjoying our CSA basket and our chicken share. We've brought stacks of books home from the library and slept in a tent... 

and there's still so much more to do!

rain, rain, and more rain...

 

I love cool rainy days. I love having a reason to snuggle down and relax -maybe bake a cake or read a book... but lately, I need to remember to take my vitamin D! Enough already! I fear some of the seeds that I planted are rotting in the ground. There's no sun to warm them. The weeds do not seem to be bothered by this. Amaranth that was left too long last year is popping up everywhere in the garden beds along with the ever present lambs quarters.  It is lovely though, that wet green... The occasional sunny day finds us running around mowing and weeding, trying to make some headway in the ongoing early summer battle of the grass and weeds. The new hammock isn't getting any use... But in the back of my mind, I think about trying to bottle up some of this cool rain for August when days like today will be few and far between...  

 

it is a serious thing...

I'm having a day...Things aren't going my way. Feeling a little sorry for myself, if I'm honest. I feel tired and overwhelmed and like I want to crawl back in bed... but that's kind of too bad for me, isn't it? 

I'm in love with Mary Oliver. Her poems have renewed a love of poetry that was long dead to me. Her words consistently speak to me. I am constantly writing them out and pinning them places, so I can read them over and over...

Invitation
by Mary Oliver

from the book Red Bird Poems

Oh do you have time
to linger
for just a little while
out of your busy

and very important day
for the goldfinches
that have gathered
in a field of thistles

for a musical battle,
to see who can sing
the highest note,
or the lowest,

or the most expressive of mirth,
or the most tender?
Their strong, blunt beaks
drink the air

as they strive
melodiously
not for your sake
and not for mine

and not for the sake of winning
but for sheer delight and gratitude—
believe us, they say,
it is a serious thing

just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in the broken world.
I beg of you,

do not walk by
without pausing
to attend to this
rather ridiculous performance.

It could mean something.
It could mean everything.
It could be what Rilke meant, when he wrote:
You must change your life.

 

this moment...

 A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. thanks~ Soulemama

 

more time...

I want it to still be daylight... I'm not finished with today yet...

making...

I've had a sudden rush of creativity lately... Of course, necessity is the mother of invention, right? I made this baby quilt for friends who are due with their first baby very soon. I also made the 2 skirts below (+3 more) for a dance routine that the girls did with their dance class on Palm Sunday.They all looked so cute. I may rip the side seems out and add pockets because these skirts are screaming for some big pockets... I'm (not so) patiently waiting for school to be over for the year, so that there's a little more time to work on sewing projects and the garden. I also can't take a picture of my sewing to save my life. 

Did I tell you how much I love the hands on those hips, that little belly button, and all those cute knees? No shortage of color (or cuteness) around here. I hate making anything in pastels. I do like the brights with black and gray though. I need to restock my stash with some black and grey prints. 

what do you see...

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. -

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

for you...

It was rainy today... a day for ducks, you might say... So, I thought that a little tea party on the front porch was in order, complete with vanilla bean cupcakes and raspberry buttercream. As soon as they were finished, the sun came out...