weekend to do (done edition!)

last week sped by to a very busy (fun!) weekend. so no list made it here. there was little to do / that got done, aside from celebrating some big events with people we love!

saturday we celebrated a good friend's 50th in style with a rented limo, dinner at red o and dancing at the abbey with three other couples. we had a blast! i don't think i've had that much fun (adult fun) in years. it was the dancing (and the company) that made the night.

sunday we were up bright and early (ouch!) as i was co-hosting my eldest niece's bridal shower. i was tasked with tuna salad, fruit platters and centerpieces/favours (for 60). my niece is having a country wedding at saddlerock ranch next month, and in keeping with the country theme, her mom had been experimenting with decoration ideas. one was burlap flowers, and they were so sweet it was decided they would be used for the shower. she made hundreds of them, along with my mother-in-law, and e and i "potted" them in small ceramic pots with lavender and eucalyptus for some variation in texture. the remainders went into a wreath.

for all the fun, monday feels good. looking forward to a short week, and a long weekend on the horizon!

shelved!

another project checked off the list. d made a beautiful little walnut bedside table and matching shelving. here's a peek as we get the final touches on the room complete.





we went back and forth on the finish for the shelf brackets. we finally settled on white (from here), and i'm so glad we did. they aren't too noticeable, match the finish on the bed frame and d pulled in the white on the grommet for the drawer pull (love!) he also helped reduce the brackets visual presence by using deeper boards for the shelves, and hiding the bracket tips in a hole on the underside. he secured each bracket/shelf so there is no wiggle (something inherent in this style of shelving and an important consideration in earthquake country - especially bedside).

i'm very happy with how these turned out. especially the table. its d's design and i think so lovely with our bed.




oh, and in case you're wondering about the kangaroo. it was one of the first gifts i ever gave d. probably 17 years ago? it is a vintage ceramic wallet caddy. we'd watched pulp fiction together, and then i spotted it at the pasadena rose bowl flea market. i couldn't find a clip showing it online - but it is mentioned here. and the artwork: an early piece by lisa congdon, purchased at a show here in L.A. many moons ago! It is a wonderful ink drawing on a page of text - winnie the pooh, in french (winnie l'ourson).

weekend to do

celebrate ::51:: (june is a good month for birthdays!)
assemble centerpieces for a bridal shower
prep for horse camp!

around the house
all that camping laundry
patch tent
deep dusting
weed sideyard

campout 2014 edition

i can't help myself. this is the 6th year we have done this. it has changed - as have we all - but the heart of it remains the same.


































so blessed to have these people in our life.


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happy father's day

thinking about my dad this morning: the man who taught me the value of community; that smiling and saying hello to strangers holds it's own rewards; that hard work pays off; that you can't please all of the people all of the time; that a sense of adventure opens new doors; that riddles and puzzles keep you sharp; that unconditional love can carry us through.

while I miss him every day his twinkle and kind heart are alive in his grandchildren.


at my grandmother's farm, spring 1971

wishing all the amazing dads out there - and especially my girls' dad, who makes me smile every single day - a very happy father's day.

weekend to do

*


celebrate a neighborhood birthday
and celebrate a #1 daddy-o!

around the house
continue the great bedroom clean out (K is making admirable progress with over 100 LPS out the door!)
stain the bedside drawer
strategize new umbrella stand for the new umbrella!





* i love this photo so much. it sums up my girl, and her "bright spark" xo

field trip :: echo park lake

we went for our annual summer hair cuts this a.m. always feels so good.

every time we come down this way, we pass by echo park lake, and it piques our curiosity.

for a few years it was shrouded in a construction fence while it underwent massive rehabilitation.

a couple of years back it reopened - and we still didn't visit.

today i told the girls, that if there was a good parking spot available, we would just stop, and rent a little pedal boat and then lunch at the new cafe.

well, there was a spot right out front.











it was the perfect day. there was one boat left with two front seats and a bench in the back for me. the lotuses were in bloom.

and lunch was delicious.







it really was a wonderful, spontaneous adventure.

a great welcome to our summer, and i hope a precursor for more adventures to come!



lucas echo park (i've been going to alice for 14 years now, and wouldn't trust anyone else. glad the girlies love her as much as i do!)

echo park lake pedal boats ($10/adult $5/child for up to an hour)

square one at the boathouse (order the potato taquitos and a lemonade! you won't be disappointed!)

celebrate ::10::

we celebrated k's bday last night with a pool party sleepover with 6 of her besties.



and a s'more cake.



they swam (and swam) and devoured a taco bar and watched a horsey movie in their pjs before (finally!) falling asleep.



the next morning waffles and fruit and back in the pool.



one more day of ::9::. holding on!






btw i took in the opening night of the fault in our stars with e and her best friend m. have you seen it? have you read the book? (e insisted i did before seeing the movie. i thought it was great.) curious what you think.

weekend to do

welcome summer vacation & celebrate 10!

another year gone by...

this one seemed to pass at the speed of light. looking back, it was a very good year. we are so very lucky.

and so we celebrated the end of 4th & 7th grades with ice cream and with our neighbors. (as is our tradition!)












DeSoto Pharmacy & Ice Cream Fountain - another well kept SFV secret!


i love watching these kids grow up. and now, three more off to middle school. but they know that they will always be invited for ice cream!

and for us, I can't believe we are heading to our final year of elementary and middle school. for now, oh so looking forward to the long days of summer!

sharing the load

somehow we've gotten off track this spring and the bulk of household responsibilities have slid back from the girls to d and i. i could blame a heavy 7th grade workload or more commitment to extra-curricular activities, but that's not really it. i think it is more to do with my own time-management and just wanting things to be done. unfortunately - the more sliding we do, the harder it is to get back on track. but then...

about 2 months ago i started taking the girls to the ranch where they ride to help with Saturday chores. Saturday is the busiest day at the ranch - with beginner lessons running all day and numerous chores before the ranch shuts down for their weekend (Sunday & Monday). the (almost) 10 year old has endless enthusiasm for such things. the (almost) 13 year old, not so much. but they have both shown an understanding of the commitment (every Saturday) and have enjoyed learning more about what it takes to care for horse (i'm sure with the idea that maybe one day...) i am very proud of them both.

since we started this, i've also noticed they've been better at picking up around the house. one reminder to make the bed seems to be enough. and it even gets made (on occasion) without the reminder. they've been great at helping prep for dinner and know its their responsibility (without complaint) to clean up afterwards. again - proud mom.

we don't give the girls allowance for their chores per se. they understand that they have obligations to keep the house running smoothly - and they are compensated generally for that, but not specifically.

perhaps responsibility begets responsibility? i'm not sure. we will see if it continues once school let's out later this week.

any tips on keeping your house running smooth?

weekend to do

this time of year always whips my ass. that said, on deck this weekend:

shoe sale!
violin & bicycle shopping (girls keep growing much to my dismay)
50 birthday to celebrate
a derby to attend
year-end teacher gifts to organize
hockey team to cheer for

around the house
mortice and tenon joins for the bedside table
wash down kitchen cabinet tops & faces
fix leaky faucet

Maya Angelou April 4, 1928 - May 28, 2014

“I am convinced that most people do not grow up. We find parking spaces and honor our credit cards. We marry and dare to have children and call that growing up. I think what we do is mostly grow old. We carry accumulation of years in our bodies and on our faces, but generally our real selves, the children inside, are still innocent and shy as magnolias."
― Maya Angelou, Letter to My Daughter

NYT

weekend to do

around the house
finalize rails for bedroom shelving
modify trellis for peas
remove that last little bit of pool fence

eldest daughter returns from camp (hooray!)
finish youngest daughter's last project of 4th grade (hooray!)
early morning endurance hike with mr. j
memorial day bbq

happy long weekend :)

a big fan

the temps have dipped, offering some relief - and an opportunity to (once again) research fan options. working from home, i've burned through a couple of less expensive options over the last 8 years. i'm looking now for something that will last. is easy to clean. and it should look good. size isn't too much of an issue. i want it to cool my workspace - which isn't very large.



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so - we ended up going with the otto fan. no.3 - which i found on amazon prime, so free delivery. (don't let the bad reviews dissuade you. i am very happy with it!) it is quiet, yet powerful enough to make a difference while i'm at my desk. it is easy to disassemble to clean. and it works so well with our decor.

weekend to do

bicycle inner-tube repairs
make sure e is ready for 7th grade camp! (wish I could go!)
make a decision on shade by the pool! (thinking that this is worth the investment?)
movie under the stars at the ranch
trip to the farmers market (now alternating this with our CSA delivery)

around the house
until the temps drop... just chill ;)

cool eats.

another good alternative to cooking outside on a hot day, i've discovered, is using our crockpot. it gets used more frequently in the winter, i admit, when it is so nice to come home post-car-pool-violin-lessons-and-all to a house smelling like dinner. (that scene in Ramona and Her Mother remains forver tied to my "Crock-Pot" love.)

our favorite summer crockpot dish - lentil tacos. i use this recipe. simple enough for my pickier eater. and adaptable enough (with a favorite hot sauce) for those who like it spicy. (we swap out the chicken-broth for a veggie one to keep it a vegetarian meal - which we strive for monday :: wednesday :: friday.)

any tried and true summer recipes from your house, veg or not?

hot hot hot

we have already entered the long days of triple digit temps here in the san fernando valley. (according to a recent UCLA climate change study, portions of the sfv could see the days over 95 degrees quadruple by 2050! yikes!)

thankfully we have a pool. where we spend most of our time when it's this hot and we can't get away to the beach. thankfully we also have central air (which we keep at 79) and all new windows, which help to keep that cool air in and warm air out. and thankfully, we live in an inland valley zone that (usually) tempers these hot days with cool nights - so after the sun goes down the windows open back up.

i work from home - and so i need to be comfortable. keeping the thermostat at 79 means i can't run any appliances during the day that might heat things up. laundry is relegated to non-peak hours. and cooking (and eating) dinner happens as much as possible in the back yard.

i'm not a fan of the heat. i love winter. i grew up with the ice & snow. (and some amazingly beautiful prairie summers that could be hot and humid. but i was young. and didn't have to get things done!) that said - there are days here that seem perfection - that remind me of those prairie summers - and remind me why we live here. (those triple digits days though, aren't those!)

here we go. stay cool.







more cool tips for hot days

happy mother's day!

i showed this photograph to the girls this morning. e looked at me with that look only a 13 year old can give and said "Mom! You are wearing too much make-up!" then she realized that i am the baby in this picture.

a very happy mother's day to all the mums in my life. and especially to mine xo