honeyflake

apron strings

hello new vintage apron. welcome to summer 2007. oh that bright thing in the sky? that is the sun. where have you been hiding that you haven't seen daylight in so long? yes of course, in a box of vintage tablecloths deep in nonnie's basement. sweet. and aren't you just the brightest old treasure to surprisingly be found... here, let me just tie on those strings and give you a whirl.

very cool. like a little ticket for a ride in a time machine... this morning, after taking my grandmother for a quick trip to the hair dresser, we had the opportunity to sit in her yard and sort through a box of her old retired tablecloths. right on top was this fantastic apron. i tried it on immediately and haven't taken it off.

i wore it in her yard while perusing one of her numerous cookbooks, hoping to find a recipe for the kohlrabi we received in the csa box this week. i kept it tied on while turning the summer heat up in the kitchen by cooking said kohlrabi (a little butter, stock and tarragon — i'm a new fan). i continued wearing it as i then cooked up a batch of zucchinni fritters (yes, in this heat i was frying up fritters, but with a cheerful apron like this who would be troubled by such things), screen door open, listening to etta james. and i'm wearing it while i type. i'm thinking i'll pass on wearing it to yoga, but tomorrow i just might be ready to tie it on again.

w is for wednesday

w is for wash day.
lights. darks. all of it has been needing a little attention the past few days and finally today i got around to it. fluff and fold. fluff and fold. fluff and fold. fluff and fold...

w is for windsocks.
the windsock project that i started a few weeks ago at a festival (but didn't have enough time to finish there) is finally all stitched up and hanging from a tree in the yard. this was such a simple project and a really good way to use up some fabric scraps, i thought i'd share a little more of the details... the shape was sewn freehand placing some scraps of fabric to be sewn in the seems for fins (that should eventually fray in the wind). a large plastic yogurt container was used for the mouth, which the fabric was folded over and sewn. it was finished with more fabric for the eyes and string to hang it with. a little breeze is all we need now...

w is for warm and muggy.
that was today. the first day of summerish heat. humidity building all day and finally now as i type the skies have opened up with an early evening shower to cool things down a bit.

critters

the good: ladybirds are much welcomed guests in the garden as we heard they like to eat the aphids who are busily multiplying on our tomato plants.

the not so good: little slugs who munched through many of our crunchy spinach leaves (which have since been harvested and eaten)

the very sweet: the lovable elusive ten-fingered critter that finds a way to sample a little bit of everything edible growing in the yard — ripe or not. gardeners beware.

at last

ahh... nothing says summer more than being barefoot in the grass, picking fresh flowers and wearing a warm, fuzzy wool sweater. yikes. after many autumn and winter months in progress my first attempt at a knitted sweater is complete! i promised myself that i wouldn't begin a new knitting project until all the pieces of this cardigan were stitched together and ready to be worn, so lately i've been eager to complete it. the project sat on hold for a while (three months! an entire season) because i really couldn't quite figure out the construction no matter how many times i reviewed the instructions... well friday, yesterday, i was motivated to just sit down and get it done and i somehow figured it out. when i studied the photos in the knitting book i realized that i had mistakenly flipped part of the pattern on both front sides of the sweater - making the nice garter stitched border on the seams instead of on the open edges where it belonged. hmmmm... my inner perfectionist briefly contemplated unravelling the sweater fronts and recreating them knit-by-knit, purl by purl, but then, well, i let go of the idea of having it be perfect and just got it all together, mistakes and all. why not. i figured it might add to the homemade and organic charm a "knitted-by-mama" sweater has... so, a season or so late it is complete. before we put it away for fall, i wanted it to go out for a test drive. here are some photos of the completed knitted creation on my model... (luckily there was a bit of a chill to the air and some breezes so margaret didn't mind helping me out with this backyard photoshoot. her only critique is the sweater does not have a green zipper? i don't know where she got that from. i told her perhaps i can come up with some sort of button attachment as a compromise) i'm pretty excited to have this project finished. a real sweater. and now i can allow myself to think ahead and browse some new yarns for something new to knit next...

notice that nice border running up the seam? yeah, that should be running along the front opening of the sweater.

midsummer's evening

last night, while dashing around the kitchen — trying to whip up a last minute strawberry rhubarb crisp before heading out the door to my yoga teacher training class, and enjoying the late solstice evening rays of the sun coming in through the window— i observed the sun suddenly being covered up by clouds. after a long day of sun i wasn't expecting it to end with clouds, it was the summer solstice after all. so i assumed that the longest day of sunshine would just get dim a little bit earlier. i continued cooking and some rain quickly came. then as soon as it came it started to leave, letting the sun once again return, orange and bright... i couldn't resist going to the front of the house to see if a solstice rainbow would follow, and to our deilght it did - a full arc, up and over the treetops. i grabbed the camera and tried to capture it on film, which was pretty tricky. margaret too was impressed and inspired and she grabbed her crayons to capture it all in a drawing for chuck. we watched the colorful solar display glow in the gray sky and then fade quietly away. leaving us excited and thankful for the wonderful summer to come.

midsummer's day

w is for wednesday

w is for warmest season.
summer. all the signs are here. flowers from the yard. fresh local fruit. sun still coming in the dinette window well after six pm... are we sure it hasn't begun? the warmest of the seasons, is officially hours away (in some parts of the world celebrations are already underway! cool.) and i am so ready...

w is for while they're still in season.
another rainy wednesday morning, another trip out to the strawberry fields. we didn't have anything planned for today so margaret and i decided to go see if the farms still had any berries growing in their strawberry patches. we were happy to learn that they did and that the little fruits were even sweeter than last week... must have been that fresh misty coating of raindrops.


w is for wine carafe.
something simple, just a used wine carafe i came across at a thrift store this afternoon. i actually have been looking for something like this for the small handfulls of fresh cut flowers i bring in during the summer.

w is for wehm.
after margaret wore herself out in the backseat singing "rain rain go away" and "mr. golden sun", we took a tour up and down the radio dial and picked up this laid-back station...

solar-powered good time

we seem to be developing a father's day weekend tradition. for the 4th year in a row we've travelled up through the land of ichabod crane to join in a gathering of musicians, artisits, environmentalists, political activists, smiling happy people and sunshine. clearwater festival 2007 was lots of fun. a solar powered music festival that also offered feltmaking workshops, hoola-hooping, storytelling, recycled-material koinobori making workshops, picnics by the river, dancing, sloop watching, etc... a sustainable good time as always.

checking my calendar...

oh look. according to my 2007 pocket calendar/organizer, sunday is father's day. i still have a day or so (plenty of time) to pencil in some things i need to schedule for that day... like stop over at my dad's (perhaps afternoonish - sharp), wish him a very happy father's day, thank him for his non-stop love and parenting efforts and for the many years of trying to keep me on track. oh yes, from the mini-spiral-lined assignments pads in elementary school (which he'd hoped would solve the problem of me always forgetting about book reports until the night before they were due) to the ultimate time management tool, the day planner (which i now secretly love filling in with commitments, important dates and to-do lists), my always prompt and on-time father has presented me with them all. i think over the years i've begun to figure this whole "writing-it-down-as-to-not-forget" thing out. but not to worry - written down in a calendar or not, there is no way i'd miss the chance to wish my dad a happy father's day. however, finding where i last placed my cars keys on sunday might hold me up a little on my way over there.

w is for wednesday

w is for while they're in season.
something we look forward to all winter long is here... the middle of june when all the little berries out in the local strawberry fields are ripening and at their sweet peak. lately i've been very inspired by many articles, books and websites talking up the virtues of eating local fruits and vegetables that are in season - how it was generations ago. i can totally get down with that this strawberry season. i'm ready to embrace the fresh ruby gems in all their glorious abundance until our pallettes have savoured enough until next year. we already received a container of these edible red treasures from our csa, which we devoured in about a day. today we were ready to head out and pick some more for ourselves. so margaret, nonni and i piled into the prius and took a ride, through some rain showers, to an organic u-pick strawberry field, where there was blue sky and not a drop of mud in sight. i think they must have been expecting us. we spent a bit of time out in the field, looking down, getting lost in our own search - but sticking together. i think the highlight for me was hearing something, a noise, and looking up to realize it was nonni singing a song as she was reaching down to pick another strawberry for herself. i was just really appreciating this time together.

w is for wandering.
getting to the strawberry field was a pretty direct route, with one destination in mind. returning home was a bit different. my grandmother is one for scenic routes and stopping for things along the way. driving home we meandered, wandered and stopped to smell the roses (as well as the sunflowers, cosmos and a few fresh baked pies) and eventually found ourselves back home.

w is for waking up.
on the ride home, margaret surprised me by falling asleep. this is something that hasn't happened in quite some time. and since i usually don't get to carry her sleepy-self in from the car that often, i decided to keep on holding her in the house for a bit longer until she woke up and realized we were back home.

magical

all these sunny june days lately have me spending a lot of time out in the yard. i've been weeding, planting and watering all the little corners that make up our garden. lots of colors are now in full bloom and many more are on their way. i find enjoyment in it all from the smallest sweet clover to the largest magical sunflower yet to come. thinking about it, i'd like to thank two of my earliest botanical mentors... press play and enjoy.
(if the video doesn't show up - link is here)

from little hands

beach day

today's beach bag contents:

1 beach blanket
2 towels
2 sunscreens
handful of sand toys (shovels, scoops)
1 camera
2 water bottles
1 bento box (packed with radish tea sandwiches)
1 book
1 extra set clothes size 4T

w is for wednesday

w is for wun-hundred and wun.
cue the music, start the fireworks display, and enjoy the celebration. today's post is number 101!!!!! release the recycled confetti!!! i'm quite pleased to have made it this far with this blog. all the photos, the words, the w's on wednesday, i can remember... oh, what's that? i don't have it quite right? wait, let me see, last time i checked it was something like ninety-eight, ninety-nine, wun-hundred, wun-hundred and wun? isn't that it? ok, yes, i know... well, anyway, i hope you choose to sit back and enjoy today's summer-like fanfare photo and keep on visiting. cheers to fun, happy blog posts and wun-hundred and wun more! as always thanks for stopping by.

pirate party recap (pt. 2)

pirate grub: what do pirates eat? grog, lemons, barnacle stew? well it was something more like quinoa salad and pizza... (we did have some flatbread crackers from trader joe's that passed as hardtack). for the cake i used the same recipe that i've used for each of her birthdays - a yellow lemon zest cake recipe from an old martha stewart kids magazine.

treasure hunt: after lunch we rounded up the tiny eye-patched crew for a treasure hunt. papa took on the roll of "captain" and led them around the yard, stopping to refer to the map along the way, until they found the hidden treasure chest. for the chest we hinged together two old wooden wine boxes and filled it with the treasures. (now that the party is over i've got my eye on these boxes for a possible cilantro garden.) anyway, the plan was to just go treasure hunting one time. the kids had so much fun they asked to do it again and again and i think they went on about 4 or 5 treasure hunts.

the loot: we had a lot of ideas for the pirate loot. and once we got the ideas it was hard to forget about them and not create them. so we have lots of treasure crafting going on here. first, out of white and red cardstock we made small matchbook-like boxes and filled them with starfish. kind of fun for them to discover these tiny sea creatures. another project was making natural pirate-island-like jewelry. we used some extra seashells that i had picked up and drilled them with holes so they could be strung onto some hemptwine for simple necklaces. and then there were the coins... chuck sawed up an old broom handle into discs and then we stamped them with the #4. what else... sandollars, parrot tattoos... we may have gone a little overboard in the loot department, but these were the projects that were the most fun for us i think, and i'm sure that the little party goers didn't mind.

i think, actually i know, that the best thing of all was the simple fact that the sun was shining and the kids were able to run around and celebrate together outside, and of course blow out a few candles... the rest of it - all the flags, treasures, party outfits, etc... well, they were just icing on the cake.

pirate party recap (pt. 1)

sunday our backyard was transformed into the high seas full of pint sized pirates. i think it worked out really well... the sun was out, all the crafty preparations came together and the kids really had a good time. let's set sail on a little post-party re-cap...

flags: oh yes there were pirate flags and banners, hoisted all around the yard. some were sewn, some were silkscreened, some were roughly cut out with scissors and painted free-hand. this was a great chance to use up some large pieces of fabric purchased a while ago at a thrift store. it felt great to know we would be using something old to make something new...

birthday girl outfit: to go along with her bandana and black hat there was a dress. since the silkscreen was all set and ready to go for some other projects, i decided to print our skull and crossbones onto a piece of linen. using the same quick and reliable dress pattern that i always use, i made margaret this party dress. in lieu of a torn bottom (like real pirate attire) we used a nice strand of red pompoms. i'm hoping since she is truly into playing pirates and dressing up that this dress will get a little extra wear throughout the summer.

pirate gear: using more of my thrift store fabric stash, we created little drawstring lootbags for each child (a little more silkscreening here). inside were eyepatches, bandanas and telescopes (yup. painted paper towel rolls. margaret was a big help on this painting project). these bags were given out at the beginning of the party so the wee guests could get dressed up and then use the bags to collect loot from the treasure hunt. we hope they like these little bags enough to keep on using them at home.

games: we had the fantastic fortune of having neighbors who were getting a new roof. really. from their debris we were able to find enough extra boards to create some simple games for the kids. very fun and very cool. we made a beanbag toss (looking like a pirate map) and a "get-your-picture-taken-like-a-pirate" board. simple ideas that the kids (and some adults) totally got into. i think every party from now on should have a "get-your-picture-taken-like-a-____" board! (and we pilfered enough lumber for that to be possible)

alright. this recap is getting quite lenghty. i've got more ideas to share, like the food, the cake, the treasure hunt and best of all the loot. that will need to be in a second post, possibly later or tomorrow. i hope you've enjoyed the adventure so far.

4•3•2•1

4. four years ago today we called a manhattan car service to take us from our apartment to the calm and peaceful birthing center across town. (due to morning construction 14th street was closed so we needed to take 13th, which of course was backed up with traffic). several, several, several hours later with the help of our two amazing midwives we naturally welcomed margaret into this world. we said hello, sang to her, held her close, ordered in some burritos and we've been holding her, singing to her and loving her ever since...

3. three of us have been a family since that day...

2. two days of birthday merriment this weekend. saturday and sunday both had their share of candles, cake and celebrating... (i plan on posting details of saturday's pirate party here once i sort through all the pictures.)

1. one very tired child is excited to spend her first night as a four year old sleeping on the floor in her new, fluffy kindercone sleeping bag dreaming about who knows what.... happy birthday margaret!