what's up

went to Suwanee Springfest, had fun in the sun (and moon)

the roses are blooming!

we've taken some naps in the sun

my fat, happy chickens are doing some chicken yoga

made these yummy waffles from Good to the Grain.

that is all.

where i use the word fancy possibly too much

I've had an inexplicably rough few weeks, and now I'm finally making my way back to my studio. It feels so good to make things.

R & I had a date night last night and I stayed up wayyyyy too late and it was totally worth it. I was ready to get in my pajamas at about 6 pm and almost cancelled the evening, but then decided to go put on my fancy underthings-- and I'm so glad I did. That almost never fails. We laughed with a very nice runner from England at our favorite fancy bar and danced to a friend's reggae band in a total dive. Today I'm making chai, picking out paint colors for the bedroom (so hard!!), making cookies for a potluck, and driving to Sopchoppy to meet a new babe.

I really enjoyed watching this beautiful thing, which reminded me to be happy. Always a good thing.

2011: the year of the oyster

I have no idea where the past few months have gone.

For the record, though....2010 highlights:

- Remodeled our storage room (cedar walls! pine floors!) and now it's a real part of the house, instead of a wreck that we hurried through on the way to the laundry room

- Got engaged

- Got an awesome new job

- Finally finished that quilt (my dad loves it)

- Traveled in California, North Carolina and the Virgin Islands

- Joined a wonderful women's circle

- Spent a lot of time with the special people in my life

What I hope for 2011:

- Learn to enjoy a raw oyster

- Practice NVC
- Have a blast at our wedding (and keep my sense of humor while planning it with my family)

- Make cream cheese

- Do my Sugar Loom project

- Be joyful, creative and accepting

Happy New Year.

let the holiday crafting begin!

Tote for KATE, from Simple Sewing With a French Twist

Origami bag for MANDY, from this tutorial, via Maggie Makes.

My go-to clutch bag, from Bend The Rules Sewing.

aji dulce

This is the aji dulce pepper. It's also known as the sweet habanero, and it's delicious! It's not at all hot, and it's very crispy, sweet and firm. It's my current favorite pepper, and next year I am going to plant at least 10! Here in Florida, they are still growing and ripening for us.

My favorite way to enjoy these peppers is sauteed with shiitake mushrooms. I cook the mushrooms down a lot before adding the peppers, because I like my mushrooms crispy, and the peppers are best when they are mostly still raw, just scorched in a few places. Tonight we're having them on a pizza, which is in the oven right now! We have pizza night once a week, on our busiest night, and it's something I look forward to on the other six days.

We are just settling back in after a long weekend of camping at MagFest. Ruben's band played twice, and the rest of the time we walked and biked and heard tons of good music and hung out around the camp fire eating chili and brownies. Even though I should be doing loads of laundry and unpacking, I wanted to show off the sparkling new greenhouse, complete with ledges for my vintage planter collection. Just as I'm sitting down to type this we are getting our first drops of rain this month!

Also, please notice the photo of my gorgeous grandma in that first photo-- she was sixteen and soooo lovely.

Fall!

Fall.
Bonfires. Chai. Greens and sweet potatoes. Using the oven again! Socks. Leaving the windows open. Smoke in the air. Pumpkins. Shedding layers on my walk to work. Festivity on the horizon. New beginnings.

Whew. What a week! I am so happy that it's Sunday. I've finally shaken off that schoolgirl homework dread that Sundays always brought when I was growing up, and now Sundays are my favorite. And so is fall. A fall Sunday just about can't be beat.

Things I'm looking forward to:

hakurai turnips

making smores with homemade marshmallows & graham crackers

experimenting with ferments and pastry dough

building a new table

a tropical vacation in December

spending more time in my sewing room

sitting by the fire at my mom's house

eggnog

working on a family tree with my grandma

getting to know the amazing ladies in my women's circle

planning a wedding*

pumpkins

crunching leaves

the day when we gain an hour on our clocks! I look forward to it all year.

Happy fall!

*That's right...I said Yes!

fine jewels

I had my first experience with jewelry making this week. I was inspired to try it out when I came across this tutorial. It was surprisingly easy! Fun, too. I want to come up with my own design and try again.

promise sink

Today I turned 29.

We went swimming at Promise sink, snacked on wild grapes, and walked 2 miles barefoot in a light rain on the way back to car. It was so cool to stop and really listen to the rain, and watch the leaves dance under the drops. I was happy for the chance to be out in the elements-- I've been hiding out indoors a lot lately to get away from the heat.

Ruben dug up some sassafras root so we can make tea tonight. Also, my family is taking us out to a fancy dinner! I can't wait to put on some earrings and a dress. It's been all yoga pants all the time around here lately.

what a lovely

What a lovely long weekend.

I didn't do all the things I had planned, but I did:

work on linen squares for a pillow inspired by this project

juice limes for limeade

make goat milk kefir

soak in one long mineral bath

read some of this book

take two naps

make pizza with my granny

process muscadine grapes into pie filling

watch this funny movie

visit Thomasville GA for Saturday brunch

rescue a baby squirrel from our cat, and take it to St. Francis

wash many, many dishes and loads of laundry

make a menu plan for the week, primarily from this cookbook

think about making curtains for my sewing room

There has been the tiniest bit of fall in the air in the mornings! Autumn is my favorite season and I feel as if I'm buzzing with excitement when I think about hot chai and pumpkins and red leaves and wearing my sweaters and socks again.

Tonight I'm going to raise my glass to the short work week. Cheers!