Goat Day

Today we had friends up for a "farm day" and we walked up the road to visit the neighbors' goats. A good time was had by all, with the possible exception of the goats themselves, who may not have enjoyed being chased all over the place by a couple of wild three year olds. The mommies had fun - here we are, me and my two Jens. :) I didn't realize until uploading this picture that poor Titus was being smothered by hair.

Did you know that goats like Saltines? And did you know that three year old boys could probably spend an entire day chasing goats? As my mom used to say: cheap thrills.

The Painted Robot

Our friend Danny, who also happens to live at my Dad's house and is thus our closest neighbor, has been working on a pretty cool project that I've been waiting to show you. He is restoring neglected old furniture and painting delightful murals on it. This is his first piece, a totally awesome chest of drawers. This thing is so cute - if it was mine I wouldn't be able to put anything on top of it. I always knew Danny was artistic, but the attention to detail and the whimsical fun characters he's created are just so sweet.

Yep, that's a robot feeding squirrels. There is also a pile of books at the base of the tree at the very bottom of the chest. See it? So cool. This piece is already taken, but he's working on the cutest toddler bed right now and I hear there is another bigger chest of drawers in the works. I think he's planning on opening an etsy shop... are you drooling yet? I'm hoping he starts making smaller things for those of us with no room for more furniture - wouldn't you buy a set of blocks painted with this fun stuff? Or hang a picture in your child's room? I would (Danny, I know you're reading this...). :)

Holy Fiber Attack

Over the last two days I have had one mission: use zucchini. My dad's zucchini plants started going crazy at the same time as ours, and it seems that the farm air is making them huge. Since we both planted about three times the amount of plants we expected to survive, and since the vermin went after the corn and sunflowers instead, we are now faced with a bit of a zucchini plague. Seriously, these things are enormous.

I have made several batches of pureed zucchini into baby food, made about a dozen loaves of zucchini bread, and grated it into pretty much everything we've eaten for dinner over the last few weeks. If you know me, you know I'm in heaven - I've always wanted to "live off the land" and we've be doing just that. Titus did poop 6 times yesterday - I think the combination of zucchini and pureed apricots has kicked his system into over-drive.

Yep, we have just as many apricots as we do zucchini. I discovered that pureed apricots make a really nice substitute for oil in baking recipes. I usually substitute apple sauce for oil, but the apricots work just as well. I'm gearing up to make jam, but I'm always a bit scared to get started on that project. Hopefully I get myself going on that before they all go bad.

Oh, and I just have to say that I LOVE my Vita Mix blender. That thing could pulverize a cantaloupe. Thanks Grandma!

Work Space

As in: space in the day. To work. I've been struggling to find time to sew - the house seems messier, the kids seem fussier, I seem tireder (say it out loud - I know it isn't a real word.) BUT, today in the midst of wiping up prunes and giving timeouts and playing "ball attack" and sweeping cinnamon and sugar off the floor for the millionth time, I found a bit of time to (almost) finish the custom order I've been working on. (Thanks for being so patient!!) And I got a little bit inspired, and this is what happened:

SO CUTE! I love it. I want to put one on everything in the shop. :)

Things making me happy this morning:

The flowers Brett gave me for our 9 year anniversary

Same flowers, next to my new (super cheap) lamp

Baby playing with his toys after waking me up at the crack of dawn. Better than coffee.

BIBS

Bibs are finally in the shop! I'm working on more as the boys' napping schedule allows...
I really do love these bibs - I use them on Titus and they are nice and big to cover his shoulders and neck, the two places that all the other bibs miss. (Those are prunes, in case you were wondering.) A quick run under the sink to wash off the food before it dries, lay it out flat, and it's dry by the next meal. Pretty great!

And he doesn't mind the flowers. In fact, I think he likes them. :)

A day not to be repeated

This is Moses' new shirt. It says "San Francisco," but what it should say is "I survived almost pooping my pants in the Krispy Kreme parking lot, watching a car burst into flames on the Bay Bridge, listening to my mom curse while driving lost through the city, projectile vomiting all over myself and the back seat of the car, sitting covered in said vomit until it dried out due to a lack of parking spaces, watching my dad try to jerry-rig a parking meter with the car keys, and nearly witnessing the deaths of several elderly asian women, and all I got was this stupid shirt."
Thank the Lord I live on a farm.

New Skilz

Today I busted out my new sewing tool and I'm PUMPED (if I can borrow one of Moses' favorite phrases...)! I've always been disenchanted with the pre-made bias binding tape, and that has made my bib making endeavors annoying. I'll make a super cute bib and then have to bind it with this ugly, plain colored, scratchy feeling binding tape that I hate. BUT, a few months ago I was perusing the Pink Penguin (go there!) and found this tutorial, and learned that I can make my own bias tape.
It turned out so cute and was actually much easier to sew onto the bib than the stuff I've used in the past. Thanks Ayumi!

Lazy Afternoon

This is a picture of Moses' room. I started redecorating it when I was pregnant with Titus and got as far as hanging these paper lanterns when I got put on bed rest. It isn't as finished as I want it to be, but I love the look of the afternoon sunlight on the wall next to the jumbled book shelf. Very kid friendly and cozy.

The boys and I are sick today - having a cold in the middle of summer feels so insulting. But it has forced us to have a day at home, laying around and playing. As I write this Moses is asleep in the middle of the living room floor and Titus is sitting next to him playing with a basket of toys. Pretty sweet. Makes me almost forget that I'm sick.

Scenes from Vacation

Oops - did I go out of town without telling you I was leaving? Sorry - I was excited! (And trying to get the house clean.) Here are a few snapshots of our trip.

Breakfast on the deck - one of the best things EVER!

Silly boys ready for the lake.

Love, love, love.

Nice to be back - hope you are well!