two

harper is busy digging clothes out of my dresser drawers. now esme' has joined the party. it is time to get out of bed whether i like it or not. i take breakfast orders- yogurt with granola for one, toast and banana for the other. easy enough. i beg the coffee pot to brew faster.

when breakfast is over it is time for bath. they needed one badly last night, but harper was ready for bed earlier than usual. once the grime is rinsed away we are ready to go outside and play before the afternoon heat sets in.

outside, harper immediately loses a shoe. i finish hanging the cloth diapers on the clothesline while esme' searches for it and harper follows close behind chanting "shoe! shoe!" when my laundry basket is empty i head over to water the garden where i find a little shoe tucked up under a pumpkin leaf. relief, it didn't go over the fence as i was beginning to suspect.

the garden was generous this morning. 6 cucumbers, 2 acorn squash, 3 zucchini, and a handful of cherry tomatoes. i ate every single ripe tomato right there in the yard. after watering i decided to clip the newly formed blooms off the tops of my neglected basil plants. the first couple handfuls went into the compost bin, but then i thought about my wilting herb bouquet on the mantle and saved the rest for a new arrangement. as i was clipping some lavender and wildflowers to accompany the basil blooms i heard wild laughter coming from the yard. i looked over my shoulder and saw a naked two year old streak by. whoops, i didn't sunscreen those areas. time to go inside, it was getting too hot anyway.

in the house now, eating popscicles, watching sesame street, thinking about lunch. and nap time. and more coffee. i am savoring the season, before it slips away. and savoring my babies even more...

photo by lucinda.

for the fairy that visits

guess who lost another tooth. and guess who didn't have a tooth pillow ready, again. in my defense she doesn't give me any warning or time to prepare for the event. she informs me of such things by emerging from her bedroom giggling like crazy and plops a tiny tooth into my hand.

within a half hour of the second tooth loss i was sitting in front of my sewing machine creating a proper tooth receptacle. i used some red hemp from a pair of pants i hemmed a few weeks ago, and wool felt for the pocket and heart. the whole thing came together in about 15 minutes. and my little creation, i am told, made the tooth fairy's job much easier than digging under the pillow of an excited, light sleeper... i'm happy to have helped!

silly ol' chicken bowl

while we were on vacation we spent a day in anaconda, montana. it is a tiny, little town very close to the resort we stayed at in fairmont. as we were driving the downtown streets my husband saw a small outdoor flea market and parked the car and let us out. then he complained and got grouchy while i browsed and thoughtfully looked at every item on and under each table. "i didn't think we would have to look at everything" he whined. my response was "ummm, helloooo, have you met me?!"

then this sweet little chicken crock caught my eye. i picked it up, looked it over and happily paid a couple dollars for it. tony rolled his eyes and told me i was silly as i carefully carried it to back the car for safe keeping while we finished our small town tour. he would have just left the chicken bowl there, all lonely on the table, and would have never thought about it again. now that is silly!

it's a big sock, folks!

the big sock is hanging out in my neighborhood for a few days and then it will be on it's way to the sock summit with my friend heidi. she has blogged about it here and again here, at the big sock blog.

three words come to mind... second sock syndrome!!

there is no place like right here

we are home, safe and sound. we had ourselves a whole bunch of much needed fun!
lessons we learned during our road trip ::

throwing rocks into the river is therapeutic.

but we don't throw the pretty rocks.

bare feet in a cold stream on a hot day is heavenly.

animals eating straight out of your palm is a good way to start the day.

goggles are silly.

sensible shoes are essential.

a small hike does a body good after riding in the car for 6 hours.

on the road adventures are wonderful, but it is good to be home.

inspired to roam

our bags are packed. the car is full of fuel and ready to go. we have all of our favorite traveling snacks on hand. so off we go for a fun filled family adventure. we will visit loved ones, find pretty rocks by the river, pick cherries, sing in the car, soak our bones at the hot springs and whatever else we fancy.

also, i have a guest post up at living senses today about local living. please check it out!

see you next week, friends!

july, so far

july has been keeping us busy! here is a brief run down on what we've been up to.

i received a wonderful seasonal celebrations swap package from my partner. poems, photos, recipes (ginger beer! YUM!) and sweet little books of blank writing and coloring paper which the kids happily collected right away.

she also sent this adorable fabric neck tie for harper and a wool felt crown for esme'.

and look, harper says, reversible!
(truth be told, this photo shoot required us to play a beloved kid songs video to keep 2 year old boy stationary for a few seconds. see the hypnotic look on his face? sigh, whatever works, i guess.)

we have been visiting the BUGS produce stand every wednesday, for both the fresh veggies and the ambiance. it has become a favorite outing, for sure!

and, big, huge news in our home - this little girl lost her very first tooth on the 4th of july! she told me it was loose at the picnic we attended that afternoon, and by dinner time she emerged from the bathroom with a teeny, tiny tooth in her palm. i had these grand ideas of sewing a little pillow with a tooth pocket a few weeks ago but never did make one. so her first tooth went into a small drawstring bag under her pillow and hopefully i will have a few weeks before the next loss to make a super-special pillow/pocket/pouch.

today i am washing fabric so i can sew tank tops for the kids. we are taking a little road trip next week to camp, swim, visit family and friends, and whatever else falls in our path. of course such a trip requires new mama made clothes for the littles, no?

yours on the run,
erika

season

currently loving ::

organically grown produce from the small farm stand ran by kids up the road from us. i got the last bunch of garlic scapes! hooray! and esme' got a new painted gourd for her backyard friends.

bundles of herbs and wildflowers in jars throughout the house. i do wish we had sunflowers or daisies though. and more lavender. next year...

fresh basil for our pasta

picnic lunches made especially lovely by our new, red picnic basket and our picnic place mats and cloth napkins.

my new hat

painted faces

free concerts and movies in the park
{if you look really close you can see inspired daddy kicking back on our blanket in the center of the photo. i think you can see our bright red picnic basket in action too!}