book secret

We just found out that our library has a small room with books for sale.  We have been hunting for children's books at every second hand store and garage sale around with little success.  So we were so excited to find a good selection of books in excellent condition. And the prices--unbeatable.  Children's books were 50 cents for hardcover or paperback.  We nabbed Where the Wild Things Are in Spanish and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  Apparently most libraries have something similar.  Some even give away books for free.  Happy hunting!

afternoon doodles

Isn't there something magical about crayons? Paisley is starting to enjoy drawing with them as much as she enjoys tasting them and taking them in and out of the box.  So we did a little collaborative work. 

p.s. Rose Art tastes better than Crayola.  At least they're good for something.

baby sleeping = art time

Paisley has been sleeping a lot lately-- the night before last she slept from 7 pm until almost noon when I got worried and woke her up.  Everyone says it's just a growth spurt, so I'm a expecting to find a giant in her crib any day now.

Anyway, I've had a lot of time to create.  I'd been itching to redo the picture frame arrangement in our living room, but we're moving in November. And last time I put up the frames, Brandon commemorated the moment with an illustration of me playing wall ball with rocks and all the crooked frames.  But I finally decided that four months is a long time to be itching.  And I tried a new technique that made it so easy! You put a big piece of paper on the floor, arrange the frames on top of it, trace around them, and mark where the nails should go.  Then you tape the paper to the wall and nail right through the paper.  Rip it down, and up go your frames-- no extra holes in the wall. yay! It was so simple, in fact, that I decided to do it twice.  (I guess it's not foolproof.  You might not be happy with your arrangement.  But at least the frames will be straight).  More detailed hanging instructions here.

So with a new frame arrangement, I needed some new art.  It was so fun to paint just to paint.  It's been way too long.  I'd like to say that some beautiful wallpaper inspired my artwork, but  let's be honest, I just copied it.  Thank you anthropoligie.  I put some old sheet music in the other frames.  So lovely.  It feels so good to have  a fresh look.

my birthday adventure

Brandon surprised me by taking me white water canoeing on my birthday! Well, technically I wasn't surprised. Ever since we saw this wash that comes out of Lake Las Vegas and flows into Lake Mead, he has wanted to explore it. A while ago we hiked on the cliffs above it and it looked like pretty smooth sailing . . .


Well, once you make it past the waterfalls . . . Yeah, I wasn't expecting a heart attack for my birthday. And then we came up to a bigger waterfall with huge boulders beneath it. Our little canoe would have been toast, so we carried it around.



It was so gorgeous and peaceful. We saw blue herons, a deer (in Las Vegas?!!) and lots of colorful little birds. What I loved most is the fresh outdoor smell and the GREEN!


What we really weren't expecting was this narrow pass where the water cuts through some red rock and really picks up speed.


This definitely wasn't the wisest solution for getting around it. The canoe started filling up with water and the water pressure could have pinned it down between the rocks. Bye bye canoe. We loved you.


But after a a few extra miles of paddling than we anticipated (the marina that we thought we'd end up at was a couple miles above the river because the water level has gone down so much in recent years), and carrying the the canoe 1/2 mile uphill (with the help of some friendly fisherman), we finally did make it to dry land with only $100 (we're hoping) of repairs and replaced parts that we need to make on our friends' canoe. Next time we won't be borrowing.

felt flower tutorial

I've been having a lot of fun lately trying to make fabric flowers. I especially love felt because you don't have to worry about fraying and it has so much natural volume. Rosie found a lovely flower, said I could probably figure out how to make it, and that she wanted to see pictures if I did. So here are some pictures for anyone else who wants to try.


First I cut out lots of felt circles. This flower takes about 30. For the bud in the center, I folded two circles in half vertically and then wrapped some unfolded circles around that. I used embroidery floss to stitch it together.


I added about 8 more circles to the center, some folded in half vertically and some unfolded. When the center was big enough, I put lots of stitches in the base to draw it together.


Next I made five separate buds with three or four felt circles each, and then sewed those around the center bud. Once it was assembled how I wanted it, I put lots and lots of stitches through the base of the whole flower to keep it together. Add a clip or a pin and it's done!

just like dad

This sight was a cute little addition to our Father's Day celebration. I'm pretty sure Paisley wants to be just like her daddy when she grows up.

the best two years

There's nothing like reminiscing, huh?

summer harvest

Hooray! The tomatoes are ripe!