Curious Bird

:art party:

The boys are into collage big time lately. Lots of images cut from old books I've found while thrifting have been pasted on paper, boxes, you name it. I love seeing what they gravitate toward. Felix likes all the strange unknown creatures (is it a mouse with a reeeealllly long tail or is it some kind of super small flying squirrel?) and Roman is keen on butterflies and bugs. 

I stumbled across some good parenting advice recently. Good for me anyway. Thought I'd share.

"Be the last to know. Refrain from making judgments and foregone conclusions about your children. Watch their lives unfold, and be surprised. The show is marvelous, and yours is the best seat in the house." 

-Karen Maezen Miller, author of Momma Zen: Walking the Crooked Path of Motherhood

:snaps from the weekend:

This weekend...

I took Felix on a date to the Planetarium at UNC. According to him it was truly one of our best "dates" yet. 

Romy practiced walking in heels while attending the birthday party of a friend. He was pretty good and really wants a pair of his own. Must get on that. 

we had lunch out  two days in a row, which is something we never do. Sometimes you just gotta treat yourself.

another batch of ricotta was made. I'm hooked. 

D and I binged on The Returned. So creepy, that show. 

there was lots of outside playtime. the cardials and chickadees finally found the new feeder I hung up. 

our car started acting weird. Ugh! Off to the repair shop it goes. Sigh. 

Romy requested we play cars and/or trains for hours. He is relentless these days. 

we had gin and tonics and snacks with friends. They have a new baby girl and seeing that tired look in their eyes took me right back to the early days with both my boys.

we went to the pool. Only a few more weeks until it closes for the season. We love it there.  

Hope your days were sweet. 

More soon, 

L. 

:this moment:

A Friday ritual started by SouleMama. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.  

Cheers!

Leya

:shucking corn in a cardigan:

Can't decide what he likes best, his new cardigan or fresh corn. Silly child of mine. 

 

:good belly:

I've been on a fermenting kick lately. Quite honestly, I've been on a yogurt-making, pickle-making, kraut-making kick. And, if things go as planned, I'm hoping to make a batch of fresh ricotta this afternoon. Clearly I'm on more than a fermenting kick; I suppose I'm just on a making kick. 

This book has been my inspiration. Please pick up a copy at your library if you can. It's definitely worth a look. And the homemade handpies on the cover are good. Really good. 

Have you been making much in the kitchen lately? Do you ferment any veggies? What's your go-to pickle or fermentd veggie recipe? This recipe looks good, right? It's definitely on my list. 

More soon, 

L. 

p.s. Today at lunch Felix practically ate his weight in the kraut in the photos above. He is certainly my son. 

 

:dizzy:

 

:snaps from the weekend:

This weekend...

the boys and I attended a birthday party with the best food -- It's no surprise because the birthday girl's parents are major foodies. Lucky us. 

I watched Felix feed grapes to a goat named Mulberry and take his very first pony ride. He was beside himself with joy. He told me he is going to spend all the money in his piggy bank for a pony of his own. Oh dear. 

D and I got a babysitter and walked a few blocks to a friend's party. It was like the pre-kid days all over again. Well, except for having to wake up the next morning at 6am. Kids...

It rained A LOT. So much that I had to buy a new umbrella. Felix has already told me the new umbrella belongs to him. 

I started a big batch of kraut. Have you fermented veggies before? So easy and so good. I highly recommend it. 

Dustin and I watched Nebraska, a sad, yet beautiful film by Alexander Payne. 

All of our basil plants had to be pulled. Sadly. All the rain finally did them in. 

A big batch of chocolate chip cookies was made. I rolled half the dough in parchment and put it in the freezer, something I hadn't done in a while. Now we can bake a few cookies whenever we want. 

I started reading this and this. Sometimes I really enjoy reading two books at once. 

Here is what some of our weekend looked like.

 

More soon,

L.  

 

 

:this moment:

A Friday ritual started by SouleMama. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.  

Happy weekend!

Leya

:small cake, big love:

 

 

We celebrated our favorite guy's birthday yesterday. We had a wee little and very delicious cake with the boys and then a real date night out just the two of us. Our sitter took the bottom photo. Can you tell how excited we are to be on our way to a nice restaurant together? 

Happy Birthday to my sweetheart. So grateful for him. 

:snaps from the weekend:

This weekend there was...

plenty of rain. I didn't mind; it reminded me of my days living in Oregon. those were good days.
 
homemade handpies. the ones with cream cheese and strawberry jam were the best. 

a trip to the farmers market. the bubble man was there. we met up with friends. and the tomatoes were the prettiest yet. 

some work on the house. stuff was actually put on the walls. we're making more headway than I expected.

a morning all to myself. wish I had listened to a podcast. next time I'll remember to. 

a walk in the new neighborhood. the yard down the street has the best black-eyed susans. I want some. 

a phone call that made me wish I lived closer to family. missing my grandmother and the funny phrases she tends to use.  

 

More soon, 
L.