on my camera

I'm trying to get on my camera more often.  It recently occurred to me that I had gotten super lazy about capturing our daily lives.  Partly because sometimes it doesn't seem worth capturing.  But then I thought, there's my challenge;  To capture our slow, peaceful life, in an interesting way.


For a couple days this week, we just didn't leave the house.  
When we did, we had to walk a block to get the car.


Books, Books, Books. 


 Getting ready for the Stitch Market.


Basketball, Basketball, Basketball.


Basketball.


Beach, Beach, Beach.

a peaceful afternoon nap


ahh...the ever sweet, ever restful, afternoon nap.  Last week was one of those weeks. I couldn't think of any other duties more important than the sweet drifting off to sleep, upstairs, shades open, door closed.  I love hearing the afternoon neighborhood sounds drift by, and the warm sun filtering through the eucalyptus tree just outside my window.  I think I know exactly how Simon the Cat feels most of the time.
  Do you ever indulge in  napping?

break's over



School's back in session.  We had a fun week off with special guests visiting, birthday celebrations, plenty of beach and sunshine. 

I really enjoyed watching their little minds work this morning.  I could almost see the gears spinning.  After a few mental push ups and crunches, it's usually time for a salty hot chocolate and a read aloud cuddle on the couch.  So thankful.


home time

I fell off my photo a day wagon about a month ago.  It seemed so harmless at first, but the longer I stayed off, the harder it was to get back on.  I'm back on now, but feeling rather rusty.

I noticed this last week that most of my photos are cozy "at home" shots.  This has definitely been my love lately.  Although it's summer time and we're out and about all day and loving it, there is a special spot in my heart for my cozy home time.

This has been a skill I've had to relearn since having kids.  There was a time when they were babies that I packed them up and got out of the house as quickly as I could.  I think this was the only way I knew how to relax with them, to be away from all the duties I just wasn't accomplishing at home.

Now those days have past, and I have learned how to relax, with my family, at home.  
I wish I learned it sooner.








when a surfer likes wood too

 I spent some time taking some photos of Mark in his second favorite place this afternoon. 
 He's been so crafty lately, in such a manly way, of course!

  His work space is so different than mine.  But so the same, too.  He has sawdust all over the floor, I have threads.  He has stacks of lumber, I have stacks of fabric.

 
His perfect weekend day starts off with an early morning surf, spending time with the family, 
and then into the wood shop.

He's busy making some surf toys I will tell you more about as they progress, 
and perfecting his bowl making on the lathe.

I love to see the notes he leaves for himself on scraps of wood.  
He brings these home all the time from work, too.  
My favorite was when he forgot his fork, 
and I found a stick of wood in his lunch bag that he used to eat his spaghetti with!

on being balanced, and a few things to share


I have been enjoying the wonderful feeling of having balance in my life lately.  We all know it when we don't have it.  I know I do.  And I'm so happy to have noticed that right now, I DO have it.  By balanced, I mean that I don't feel that any one section of my busy life as a homeschooling mother is out weighing the other.  I'm finding time for exercising, cleaning, meal planning, home schooling, praying, sewing, and resting.  This is how it always should be.  Now I need to figure out how to keep it this way...

I also have some fun things to share:

1) I'm so proud of my friend Toni, for doing an excellent job on her first vlog ever!  You must go see her lovely self in person.

2)  I have recently discovered vegan meal planning inspiration!  We are not vegan, but we used to be for 15 years.  So, even though we eat meat and dairy, we always enjoy a good vegan meal.  Oh She Glows is definitly worth a looksie.

3) I have broken another plate! (darn that porcelain sink).  Now I have a reason to pick up the next cute set of dishes I find at the thrift shop.  I'm particularly looking for simple white... I think.

4) The girls have a new chore chart.  This is a good one.  And I am not nagging.  And the house is cleaner!  And the girls are not complaining.  And that means I just get to eat bonbons in the afternoons.

happy feet

 Yesterday was one of those days.  The girls knew exactly what to do with themselves.  What girl doesn't?  
The sun was shining in the afternoon sky.  The air was still and warm.  They all ran inside from the car ride home, grabbed the beach blanket, a snack, and headed for the backyard to soak up the day.

 The natural progression from sun soaking to pedicures is a phenomenon.  

 It can take quite some time picking just the right shade.
  Especially when you're relaxed.


These are some happy feet.

hello monday


hello back to work (or is that good bye spring break?)


 hello front porch flower garden showing it's spring colors.

hello spring cleaning!  I just love to purge.  This weekend I took 5 bags to the goodwill.

hello cassie from pop pilates.  These quick little ab workouts on YouTube are a must!

hello mint green toenails.  I borrowed this polish from my 7 year old.

hello my new favorite smoothie.  Mango, almond milk, plain yogurt, protein powder and spinach!

I'm linking up with Lisa Leonard today.  She posts a "hello monday" every monday and invites others to join her.  Lisa is a genuinely lovely lady from her head to her toes.  Thanks for the inspiration, Lisa!




texture all around

I've really been enjoying my photo a day challenge. I'm pleased to find that it hasn't been a burden at all to take at least one photo every day. Megan and I did find, however, that we were challenged with "what" to take a picture of. So we gave ourselves a category of the week. We decided that we would look for "texture" as inspired by Little Brown Pen.
I was actually surprised at how much texture I could find in my little world.



This little orange frog sits on the window sill above my kitchen sink, next to his buddy the turtle.



I loved this texture in such a massive scale on Morro Rock.



The texture on textiles has always grabbed my attention, but what about the texture of a bright ruffle?

I found even more texture photos this week over here.

just a few things...

Here's just a few things that have already happened around here, are happening around here, or will be happening around here soon...



1) Already happened: Over our winter holiday, I upgraded our front porch chairs to these plastic adirondack loungers. (A big improvement, trust me). And I made them more comfy and inviting with these super duper easy envelope style closure pillows. This is one of my favorite places to "be" at home.

2) Happening today: We will be making these cute heart garlands in sewing class today. I just love watching the busy little fingers at work!

3) Already happened: I've recently finished a crochet lap blanket inspired by this one. I started it over a year ago. This is not normal for me. I am the kind of person who very diligently finishes every project I start, whether it's a good idea to or not.

4) Will be happening soon: I'm looking forward to playing at least one scrabble game with my good buddy, while our husbands watch the super bowl while our kids quietly play in the back ground. (this may be a bit of exaggerated bliss, but my rose colored spectacles are usually not far out of reach)

Have a good weekend!

i use cloth napkins because they're pretty




I like the way they look. They make all our meals feel special. They feel good on our hands and faces. And it's just what we're used to.

Because I use them for their beauty, I was very sensitive to the fact that ours weren't beautiful anymore. After many years of service they had become faded, stained, and worn. It was time to make some new ones.




Along with the vintage linen white napkins (still in their package) my neighbor gave me, I also made about a dozen or so colorful napkins. They are so easy to make. If you start with a fat quarter of fabric (18" x 18") all you have to do is hem the edges 1". They are also equally easy to buy premade!




I keep a small basket in the kitchen where we throw our used napkins (after they're actually dirty). Then I wash them about once a week. The girls fold them and put them away. We have a large stack (about 30) so there are always clean ones ready.

Do you use cloth napkins? What's your reason?

a cleaning resolution



via here

I struggle with cleaning my house. My tendency is to spend time tidying up, but when it comes to the actual cleaning part, I can usually find something else to do instead. Anything else!

There are times though, when I have a bit more motivation to clean. The more of these happening at the same time, the more likely I am to clean:

  • when guests are coming over
  • when I get some cool new cleaning product
  • when someone tells me about their awesome cleaning routine
  • when I've put it on my New Years resolution list
  • when it's just plain disgusting, and possible a health hazard


via here

My sister in law shared with me her great cleaning system which I've used with good success in the past. It is basically a 2 week cleaning schedule, where every day you take one task. It ends up being about 20 minutes of cleaning a day (beyond the daily basics, like doing the dishes). And your house stays a consistent level of clean.

I also prefer using natural products. Check out the links below the pictures for great cleaning ideas.

Do you have any cleaning motivation you can share?

hello new year!




Oh, how I love fresh new things! I love that I get to make this year into whatever I want it to be. I can leave behind bad habits, I can prune the dead limbs, and make room for new, fresh growth.

I've had some ideas of what I want my new year to become, and just the other day took the time to write them down. For some reason, that makes me feel one step closer to making them happen. If I don't write them down, those ideas just float around in my head, bumping into each other, and possibly floating away, never to be seen again. Well, not this time. The ideas are trapped now in my notebook. Ideas about blogging, sewing, exercising, cooking, mothering, housecleaning...

I can't wait to start sharing them with you over the next few weeks, along with a few fun things I've been making to make my house feel new and fresh.

'tis the season

I just love holiday decorations! But I am always so dissappointed in my inability to get it right. Why, when I decorate for Christmas, does my house just look cluttered? And random? And wrong?

This year I am doing things different. This year we are in a different (bigger) house, so the cluttered feeling is not so much a problem. This year, I am incorporating some consistency. This year, I am consulting pinterest. This year, I am putting away some "regular" display items to make room for the extra Christmas decor.

I can't stop thinking about this, those colors, and shine.

What works for you at your house?

finding a light in the darkness

Sometimes it just feels like the darkness is creeping in closer and closer. It's out there, it always is. But sometimes it feels a world away, and sometimes it's right outside your door. We have had lots of bad news lately. A bad diagnosis for a loved family member, friends in pain, children suffering, and just today, news of a death. My heart hurts for all my loved ones going through such dark times.

Sometimes, when the times are too dark, it's hard to see the light. The joy giving, hope producing light. I saw some today. When I watched out the window at the kids selling bouquets at the edge of the driveway. The light just poured into the window, and into my heart.

The darkness is still out there. But I can feel so much more prepared to battle it, when my heart is filled with light.

grannys, chevrons, and color


I have found granny squares to be quite addictive. The actual crochet pattern, once you catch on to the rhythm, is so satisfying. And then there's the endless possibilities of color combinations. Not to mention the fact that I could just gaze upon anything made out of granny squares for countless hours, and maybe even more. I found the pattern at The Yvestown Blog, via wisecraft. (Both favorites).


These granny square pillows are 14 x 14 and backed with a piece of recycled vintage material, full of fun color combos, which inspire me daily. They also have an envelope style opening in the back. I'm bringing these babies to The Queen Bee Market, coming up on Nov.18th and 19th.


The other thing I can't stop making right now is anything with a chevron stripe. Again, the color combo's are endless. These scarves are now for sale in my shop, $20 each. Flower pins are sold separately.

a collection of quotes


Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers. ~Charles W. Eliot

The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them. ~Mark Twain, attributed

***

I am a lover of good quotes. And have often thought I would like to have a collection of them. What better way to collect quotes, then to collect them in a way as to share them with others!

So you will be seeing my quote collection grow, accompanied by a picture which may or may not have something to do with the quote.

I need to sweep


This post will be cut short due to other housewife-ly duties taking priority. The front porch needs to be tidied up. The fallen popcorn needs to be swept away.

We had a fun weekend (as you can see). With fun surf, and plenty of hang out time. Then the first part of this week was full with house guests, of the best kind! My dear friend and her daughter came for some r & r. And thankfully, her favorite things to do, are my favorite things to do. So we did them together, sometimes laughing, and sometimes crying, and all the time loving each other.

So, until the home front is ship shape, I will be back to my normal routines soon enough.

watching the grass grow








We watch the grass grow a lot around here. Not that we have a lot of grass. And not that our grass is always growing. But we spend a lot of time just hanging out. Not rushing off to somewhere else. Just spending time right where we are. Enjoying each other. Enjoying our projects. Enjoying watching the grass grow.