Friday

Maddie started this seed at school & today I noticed how happy it looked:)
Happy Friday!

Cursive Writing..

I see him growing up
I watch him
I envy the innocence
I love him so

Yesterday, Jack brought home some classwork in cursive writing. They have been learning their "curly" letters for a few weeks & now I see his "grown up" autograph. It makes me think back to when he first learned to write his name in those big block letters & it reminds me of how quickly they grow up.

Potatoes & Apples

Today I picked up our first delivery from "Easy Acres Co-Op Farm!!" We are excited to be a part of a "CSA" (community supported agriculture) this year. Every Monday we get a delivery from the farm till October. I never thought I'd be so excited about food. Tonight's menu..potato salad:) The kids are loving the apples too!

Monday Music

I love this song:)

Off the beaten trail...

I love finding things close to home that you've somehow missed before.

Earth Day! 2day

I was reading that 40 years ago Earth Day celebrations began, & now our Earth, despite climate change is appearing cleaner. I'm hopeful that our kids, who are unique in that they are growing up in a society where the environment is a hot topic & are aware of how important little things like recycling are, will continue this progress. I'm hopeful & sad all at the same time when we visit places that don't recycle & still think it's not important enough to offer to their residents. Shouldn't there be curbside recycling available to everyone? Dublin recently gave it's residents big blue rollers to dump all recycles into & I wish this could be a national policy. You can visit http://www.sierraclub.org/earthday/sweepstakes/default.aspx?s_src=E10DEDZU02 & pledge to do something "green." I pledged to write a letter on a green issue...curbside recycling seems like a good topic to start with.
Happy Earth Day...old school!

Phoebe in Wonderland

I love when I have a stretch of "bad" movie viewing, I stumble onto a sweet little jewel!

seasons

Carolina on my mind..

We're settling back into our routine here, after being in NC for the weekend. It was a busy one filled with lots of family time.
Some of the highlights of our trip..

**Spending time with faces we don't see very often..




**Visiting Mr. Darnell's farm again! He's only a few minutes from my moms house & always invites us out to go exploring. On this trip, we were happy to hear about 3 week old kittens in the barn. Oh my goodness!!! I haven't held a newborn kitty in a long time & it's hard to explain how amazing it was to see the kids hold them & get so excited about it. love sweet little surprises..
another first was taking his "gator"..a four-wheeler/cart around the Tar River. The kids giggled the whole way around!



**Watching my niece, Caitlyn play softball & be back at a dusty ball-field, like the one I grew up wandering around with my bff, Dana! I didnt get to see Dana, but I did see her sister & lots of old faces from high school. Maddie had fun continuously asking for something from the concession stand & Jack wandered around looking for rocks & exploring, what he thought a graveyard behind the field.


John had a great time seeing old friends at Methodist & playing with alot of his old team. Hopefully we'll get some pics of that:)

Tulips in Bloom

Yellow

This pattern has become a favorite; courtesy of "aware knits" by adrienne armstrong & vickie howell. I'm thinking I could make this a few inches longer & this would make an adorabe sundress..maybe stripes:) Until then I have a purple one half done..maybe a good present for a special little girl:)

Weekending

Lots of birthday parties & soccer games this weekend.
Off to do some spring cleaning.. & knitting:)

Favorite Music.. 89.3

This is such a cool station to check out 89.3 minneapolis public radio www.thecurrent.org
http://www.youtube.com/user/893TheCurrent
Beware..you can spend hours watching live studio viedos.
One of my favorites.

Spring Tops for Maddie

I can't wait to see how Maddie's knitted tank tops turn out. I got a bit side tracked with the lovely purple yarn. I really wasn't feeling the yellow texture of the original yarn I had started with from my stash, so I bought a softer yellow (not a perfect match..) but while shopping for the yellow, I found this awesome purple recycled blend yarn. I now have two tanks half way done... onto the backs:)

Listening to..

Feeling like a child today...

April already!!

Spring has a way of motivating me. I've been thinking about baking bread lately..yes, yummy, crusty, warm bread. Wondering if I could make a few loaves a week for all of us to enjoy. I read about bread making alot on some of my favorite blogs; thanks soulemama & bluebird.. & I thought I'd give it a try today.

I loved making the bread..something about the process is really fun & relaxing & definately rewarding!! Two loaves of "white bread" courtesy of my well-loved "Fanny Farmer Cookbook" came out really yummy! I do love that cookbook & have found the best, most used recipes in it.

I made alittle bread bag from an old dishtowel/apron to hopefully keep the bread fresh. John & I enjoyed a few slices with blackberry jam after the kids went to bed. Warm bread is sooo good! I can't wait to see how J&M like their toast with jam for breakfast!

**My green goal for the month..bake more bread & buy as much local food as possible.
I'm looking forward to trying new twist to the "white bread" recipe.

Treasures..

Maddie & Moo

Jack's treasures from panning..

Maddie's treasures..

A cardigan I made for Maddie last year, & it was way too big then. She pulled out of her closet to surprise me with. I had forgotten about that sweater!

Jack & Maddie coloring..notice the similarity:) Maddie likes to color like her brother.