Randomness

some pics from a picnic for a birthday this weekend

Lots going on, but then again not so much. It's been way too long since a big adventure and I'm craving one. Haven't been out of the country in 5 years, this makes me sad!

-My brother Andy and his FIANCE are coming today, I'm excited. Hoping to do some cherry picking and find some huckleberries if we're lucky.

-We bought a bonsai tree at a show they were having at a park. We're going to be dorks and join the bonsai club, I'm kinda excited.

-This weekend was spent mainly outside. We had a BBQ on Sat. night, it was fun.

-Friday I had a craft night here. We sat out on the front porch and played with paint. Good times, just sad that it turned into only 2 people that could make it. Forgot to take pictures.

-My mom and my sister are coming next week and I'm hoping we can go an a mini adventure then. Haven't figured out quite what yet. Montana could be fun. We'll see.

-I have to pack- again! I've been putting it off. We'll be outta here in 19 days.

-I've been taking a pre-natal yoga class at Harmony yoga. I love it, it's been great. I've also been swimming at the closest pool on some mornings. I love swimming.

-It's July 27 and we haven't gone on a single camping trip yet. This makes me sad.

-This baby will be here in about 4 months. I haven't bought anything, other than a few clothes from a garage sale. (and lets be honest- they're girl clothes and I don't even know if we're having a girl- and they're summer clothes and this baby will be born at the end of November!)

-We've been looking at houses. I never thought we'd buy a house this way and now I find myself being so normal. It's all such a big cliche- have a baby- buy a house. This bothers me! It will all be good- but a big part of me still wants to buy a pretty airstream and take off. I think it might still happen down the road. I'm determined that kids are not going to change our life style, only enhance it!

-I'm getting a massage today, it's about time.

I think that kinda covers it. I'm overwhelmed with everything, but God is good and I have faith and know that we'll get through. Who knows what the future will bring.

Strawberry Picking

I went with a friend to pick the strawberries a few weeks ago. It was a nice hot day. We went fairly early, this was the day I got major sunburn. I just love going out to GreenBluff. We were at Knapp's farm. I also love to go there to pick pumpkins. They also have raspberries, tayberries, and blackberries.

Dehydrator Fail

I picked a ton of strawberries. I found a food dehydrator at a garage sale for $5. I remember eating strawberry chips when I was little. I love fruit roll ups. I thought I would make my own. Well, it took a long time to prep all the berries. Don't you love the photos, they look like a Ron Popeil infomercial right? Well, in the end the fruit leather got too dry. I didn't think you could over dry it, but apparently you can. Maybe I should just stick to freezer jam. The strawberry chips weren't too bad. I also froze a ton of fresh strawberries.

I'm still going to try to dry some peaches later on this season.

We're going to wake up early on Friday so we can get there bright and early to pick raspberries, tayberries, blackberries, and maybe a few more Strawberries. Cherries are ripe for the picking right now too!

Front Page

It's been so nice to be on the etsy team. Everyone has been so supportive and generous. A couple of weeks ago we decided to take turns featuring different shops in treasuries. I was featured last week, and it was so nice to get more exposure and hits. And yesterday Tera made an amazing treasury featuring many team members that landed on the front page! It was so exciting for me. This was my first time on the front page. Yay, the little yellow basket from my shop sold right away!

The Lake

Coeur D'Alene Idaho is not even an hour away from us. I love that lake. It reminds me of summers spent at the lakes of Minnesota and Wisconsin. I love swimming in the open lake water. Although this lake is a little different, as people are swimming, planes are landing, ferries are crossing, kayaks stroll by, people do stand up paddle surfing, jet skis fly by, people are parasailing- all on one lake, it's a little nuts! It was a really hot day. We were supposed to go away on a long camping trip, but plans changed and we were only able to sneak away for an afternoon but it was lovely. I had been craving a day of sitting on a beach reading, knitting, and swimming. The weather has just started to feel like summer around here, and I have a sunburn on my back to prove it.

FYI: I'm knitting a washcloth from the Mason Dixon Knitting book and the book I'm reading is wonderful- Tales of a Female Nomad

An Easy Wallet

I made this wallet for a friend for her birthday. I didn't really use a pattern. I based it off of this tutorial, but I did it my own way and I didn't bother printing off the pattern template. Combining felt and fabric is so fun and makes for less confusing sewing! Felt doesn't have to be hemmed, so you can fold and press fabric and top stitch it to felt and make things pretty easily without patterns or thinking too hard! Pretty nice for a beginner sewer like me!