the week in review: july1-7

Oh lookie, it's the jek show. Last week was indeed super busy and productive, I just failed to take any interesting photos or at least photos that would look all happy together. I began my 31 Days of Red, White, and Blue and already I'm thinking I am the queen of Hoserville. I just am. I'm also in a terrible, terrible mood. My allergies have me wheezing wheezing wheezing and my head is so full of sleep and fuzz. I haven't slept well in a few days and I'm trying like the dickens to figure out why the allergies. Other than two ocean side visits I have not hiked or sucked in pollen. I have however had an intense fling with fourth of July fireworks. I suspect they are the culprit. Hack hack hack sniff.

I squeaked out a few holiday projects for the 'do! and got the bed all made up. I made a flag and a pillowcase and I managed some weekend food prep for the week. I also got my hair trimmed and color redone and made a belt for my 31 days project. Right now, I am feeling meh enough I want to ditch it all and dive back under the covers with a bad book. I might but then I will feel doubly guilty as the mister has to be at work and I should be packing and cleaning.

I managed to get over my socially inept self to enjoy a lunch with my co-workers and then I hit up Spooner's Cove with this delightful friend and her wee gal where we sat for a few hours and chatted away in the ocean air. Then...yesterday, in a fit of sad raccooniness I demanded we go outside and DO something but could not fathom what the something should be and while I wanted, wanted, wanted to give in to the toddler screaming in my head I did not throw my bowl at the wall and sink into a puddle on the floor. I really wanted to and I told the mister I really wanted to and the lamest part is I had no idea why. I just wanted to. I was overwhelmed by bad brain and the wheezing wasn't helping nor was the lack of good sleep. So, instead of tantrumming it up, I laced up my hiking shoes and we headed out to pick up the mama a-go-go before making our way to Morro Bay. We opted for a shorty-short walk along the boardwalk and stopped to enjoy the otters which are SO DANG CUTE! Otters wrapping themselves up in seaweed are definitely a mood enhancer. Otters with furry babies on their bellies might cause one to swoon like a loon.

Other than the smidge of crafting (though my living room floor might argue over use of the word smidge, it's a ginormous mess) I also slathered on a coat of paint onto my soon-to-be kachina mask. So there you have it...fireworks, haircuts, beach walking, crafting, cooking, and visits with the sad raccoon. I hope this week is just as productive with more sleep and less anxiety.

the week in review: june 24-30

Last week felt like a total week of summer. It was hot and we were super busy! I taught a teen art class at a semi-local library where we made pom-poms, built terrariums, and did some sharpie tie-dying. It was a lot of fun and I was crazy surprised that such a large group of for reals teenagers showed up! Yay for small communities with awesome library programs! Now, if only I could turn that into my day job.

We had a mini heat wave up here on the central coast. Where our summers are normally in the high 70s, we were feeling temps in the 90s and low 100s. Yikes! To keep cool, the mister and I made homemade blackberry buttermilk ice cream, enjoyed homemade cranberry popsicles, and hit up the beach for a walk with the family a-go-go.

In between all the heat, there was mask making, sodering lessons, sunflower sprouting, and scone making (which I absolutely do NOT recommend on a day that is to be HOT, no matter HOW early you begin). I also got in some 4th of July crafting and while I'm coming in JUST under the wire, I do have a few more goodies up my non-existent sleeves.

Happy day-after-Canada Day, almost-Independence Day, and happy happy July! This week will be a smidge more crafting, some library book reading (I have far too many due in a few days with no chance for renewal), and along with the 4th, birthday fun for the mama a-go-go!

the week in review: june 17-23

Woooo-wheeee! The week was packity-packed-packed with all sorts o' fun and good times! The Zameander crew came to visit and so we got crafty making pom poms, cardboard masks, a messenger bag and more, more, more! We ate yummy eats (SLO Donut! cronuts!), made sandwiches, hit up a photo booth and named an ice cream flavor.

We hit two beaches, walked a pier, fed more goats than you can shake a stick at, and sampled piles of the best strawberries we have ever had!

If only they could have stayed longer! After they left, there was more mask making, a smidge of book reading and a bit more than a smidge of Ted Talks watching....such a lovely week!

the week in review: june 10-16

If I were to go by this photo collage it would appear my week was all about food. Sadly, in a way, ti was. Not really but pretty food abounded and so I snapped away. It was the last week at the preschool until Fall and so I have a lot of photos of the children eating Otter Pops and mixing paint on a painting lathe. It was also just a busy errand-full week and in between these errands I smooshed in some crafty bits and a tiny bit of reading time.

So here ya go..as a reminder to myself and for the curious...my week in review...

I finally held off on grocery store shopping so I could pick up organic goodies from the farmer's market. We eat a lot of cauliflower in the tiny casa.

scrumdilly-do! got a few Father's Day projects listed and there were two birthdays this week...the mister's was on Monday and the zoe-cat's (my niece actually) was on Thursday. I actually got her goodies wrapped up and mailed in time. Go me!

At the market we picked up some amazing strawberries! Then I made some amazing egg puffs. When one has strawberries, one makes egg puffs. It's just how it is.

Over the weekend we headed over to a friend's for our first official ingredient club meeting. We are trying to come up with a better name but the deal is that two ingredients are randomly picked and you bring at least one dish utilizing one or both ingredients along with recipes. Our first gathering as a hullaballoo of artichokes and cranberries. If you think that is weird, just wait for meeting number two...butter and marshmallow...we gotta git creative so we're not all a sugared out. I've been pinning ideas like crazy. It's enough to keep a girl up all night. Pictured in the collage is our hostess who is among other things a puppet maker.

Along with Father/s Day crafting I put together a July 4th door wreath dealio. I'll get the diy up soon,..more yummy farmer's market groceries, another Father's Day project, painting fun and one of my contributions to the food party....cranberry, cherry, garlic glaze for a wild rice and sauteed artichoke dish. That glaze is tasty!

Along with eating artichoke based foodstuffs we played with puppets and captured bubbles. This little guy is another handmade creation. So cool! Mister had the partner on his hand and is a much better puppet player than I am even if his puppet voice sounds like a mix between Christopher Walken and Ren.

So there ya go, my week in review. A wrangling kiddos, painting paper, mailing packages, reading, movie watching (I watched Endless Love for the first time...for reals!), closet organizing, grocery shopping kind of week.

This week will be a bit more adventurous as I will not be at the school and some of my favorite peoples will be here. Hooray!

the week in review: june 3-9

 

Much of the week was spent battling a sore throat that has now morphed into something more. It's not a cold, it's not a flu. I'm not sure if it is viral or bacterial. No fever but lots goo. Sigh. I've managed to keep from getting sick since Valentine's Day, not too shabby. 

So, back the the week in review...a whole lotta laziness do to sickiness and then a Sunday packed with stuff. Clockwise from the top left...Ice cream sandwich goodness for the mister's birthday shindig and pretty linens for the june bed. I did manage a wee bit of crafting aka pom pom making. I'm trying for a head start for the 4th! I picked up a bunch of new bowls. We were having family over for ice cream and well...since it is just the two of us, we are low on dishes. These condiment bowls from Target are the perfect size for ice cream. not being glass, they are also perfect for parties (I'm not posting for the big box store, I just really liked these bowls and they are in MY colors. I can;t find any evidence of them online, huh.)!

I got project from my list completed for Father's Day and had the mister model it. Seriously folks, friendship bracelets for dad made from shoelaces. So cool! I also got a couple of way way way WAY late birthday goodies mailed out to Zaza and Ander. Phew! Oh and lookie that homemade buttermilk ice cream! I used my new used ice cream maker for part of it. Yay for summer! And more june bed prettiness.

For the birthday shindig, along with homemade ice cream I made blackberry sauce from fresh blackberries. I used Vernors ginger ale for my liquid and partial sweetness and added a teaspoon of black pepper for heat. Delicious!

This ick has made me a smidge anal and working with preschoolers only adds to the mix so I spend a lot of time washing odd things like these pom poms I brought into the school for the kiddos to play with. Popped them onto a cookie sheet to dry and placed the cookie sheet on the front porch. Who knows what all my college aged neighbors think?

I made mister stop to take a photo for his birthday. He is not too happy to be all of 44.  I think he looks like a baby still. Next up, I worked on a project for scrumdilly-do! and had to photograph all of its pretty. Don't you think it is pretty? 

And finally...I feel a bit hungover form the week and thought this wee lampshade on the noggin was that perfect added touch. It's been a whirlwind and I've been coughing up a storm whilst typing up this post. Time for something hot to drink. Thank goodness it is my day off. Happy Birthday, mr. a-go-go!

the week in review: may 27-june 2

 

Last week was Teacher Appreciation week at the preschool and boy-howdy were we teachers spoiled to pieces (the flowers were just a precursor of the love). I really did not accomplish much, other than basking in the glow of being appreciated. Sure, there were chores and errands and such but not too much else...

The week was kooky hot for these parts which meant I was up early enough to admire the sunrise on the sock monkeys and had enough gumption to bring a large vintage sheet to the school for some fort building. I also painted up a bunch of sticks for the preschoolers and got to observe some fun bubble action with them as well. It is also possible the heat made me a smidge cranky. I tend to not weather it well. Sniff.

On Tuesday we celebrated a sister a-go-go birthday with a delicious dinner from the boss-man and a quite tasty cake (if I do say so myself)  baked by yours truly. 

Saturday was our school's potluck and so I whipped up a double batch of cucumber sauce, a single batch of green olive tapenade, and a now empty bowl of spicy cucumber salad. After the shenanigans at the park, we were overheated and snoozed away for the first nap of the summer(ish) season.We also may have gorged on cupcake appreciation as well. It would be rude to turn down cupcakes of appreciation, don't you think?

We ended the week with a  Sunday morning wander around our tiny downtown. Not many people are out and about before 8am on a Sunday, it was chilly and overcast and the wander was pleasant and I took oodles of photos. So many photos! Photos which are now on the new laptop...whoo-hoo! This is my very first laptop of my very own from the beginning and it is nice and shiny and my how my photos look so pretty on this (wee bit smaller) screen!

This week methinks the June gloom will soon be upon us so there may be some baking and perhaps a bit less crankiness. The June bed is already made and ready to be shared and I'm hoping to have a coffee date with a dear friend later in the week. Mister's birthday is next Monday but we will be doing a mini celebration on Sunday. I need to get busy, happy June!

the week in review: may 20-26

Most of last week was spent wrangling the kiddos at the preschool, and wrangling with the chaos that is allergies. It's been a windy week and all the pollens are back and they are quite attracted to me. What can I say, I am a pollen magnet.

Other than worky work, there was a visit to my local community college to see if I could take some classes to get my teaching permit, a lot of fruit consumption, a smidge of crafting, and some waiting around for a handyman to come fix our leaky faucets (they were ultra leaky).

Saturday was an epic errand day with some fruitful thrift scores (lookie the girlscout patches!), and a large pile of library reads. I squeezed in an ultra-mini downtown photo wander whilst the mister hit the trails for a hike with the nephew a-go-go and his a-go-go Dad. I even managed a quick round of baking (which involves a little story coming soon) and the breaking in of a sort-of new pair o' slippers.

I'm fighting a sore throat that may be a cold, may be a virus, or may be allergies...I'm hoping it's allergies, so this week will be more worky-work, and a lot of resty-rest, with a bit of all that other everyday stuff that needs to get did. Happy almost June!

**likey my fabulous necklace? Thank you to Joy for the lovely bit of handmade mail goodness, I adore it!

the week in review: may 13-19

A little crafting here, a little tea drinking there, with a couple of fun mail packages and a wee road trip up to the bay area for the Maker Faire. Fun stuff! This week is a heavy work week, if I'm lucky I may get some laundry done...among other things.

the week in review: may 6-12

Phew! What a week! In between butterfly fun with the preschoolers and prepping for our mini maker faire  (more about that later)and Mother's Day, this week was BUSY! I had grand plans (of course) for a week's worth of Mother's Day projects but ultimately there just wasn't any time. I'll get them done eventually and I still have to post all the Cinco de Mayo fun I put together...better late than never, right?

The week was packed with preschool work, doctor's appointments and one happy long overdue visit with a friend. And then came the weekend which was full, full, full! Mister was selling his ukuleles at the faire  (if yer on intasgram you can search for SLOMMF# and see his stuff) and we had friends visiting from L.A. so there was a lot of busy, a lot of fun, a lot of chatty-chatty, food, and laughter! We did dinner at Jocko's which was hysterically surprising and then breakfast at Kreuzberg which lasted for hours...

Mother's Day was spent hanging out with the family a-go-go and enjoying fresh baked brownies a la mode. The sister-ago-go's garden is in crazy bloom and I had a grand time wandering around and photographing the roses (including armies of spotted green cucumber beetles).

This week will be full of laundry and cleaning and hopefully getting those darn Cinco de Mayo posts up! Happy May!

the week in review: april 29-may 5

 It was an epic week of child's play, visiting, crafting, bed making, and camping. I'm pooped all over again just thinking about it!

the week in review: april 22-28

Last week was a doozy of craftiness, good eats and visits. There were robot wars, library reads, and many rounds of colorku. I whipped up a batch of my famous sweet potato samosas for family dinner night while the mister gave us all a uke lesson on rhythm and strumming. There was a smidge of replanting and gardening, a smidge of earth day craftiness, and a smidge of thrifting. To cap it all off, the ladies a-go-go headed out for a benefit tea where we got utterly stuffed on tiny sandwiches and brownies. This week will involve a camping trip (as long as this sore throat goes away) and/or lazy days...either way I'm looking forward to it! Happy almost May!

the week in review: april 15-21

Most of the week was spent at work or in a brain cloud. Truly, I can't really think much on the week. I had a photoshoot on Tuesday that was fun and I did more laundry than usual and lots of folding and moving crafty piles from one corner of the tiny casa to the other. As far as craftiness goes I stitched up a cloud garland that had been floating around the noggin for a few years now as well as pulled out the micro tins for some Earth Day projects. I also prepped some cuttings from my succulents to plant into said micro tins...I'm trying to work through my crafty idea lists from 2010 and on. There are simply too many things I want to make and I need to use up my stash before it eats me and the mister.

If we go clockwise from the top left there you will see the cloud garland and then a super yummy accidental lunch of samosa filling turned quesa-less quesadilla. Over the weekend it felt like summer and so I pulled out the popsicle maker and whipped up a batch of french soda pops. Mmmmmm. The leftover pom-poms got a super trim and the mister, mama a-go-go, and I enjoyed a lunch date in Los Osos. Tiny grafted cacti were obtained and I set up some sunflower seeds to sprout.

With the heat came a much needed affair with a chocolate malt, and more happy plants to pot up for the porch. There was a lot of yarn wrapping, and two houseplants were adopted so that I can begin my natural air purifier project. Now all I need are more plants and oodles of pots.

I managed three outfit photos this week and two of them included my favorite pair of too-big-for-me patched up jeans. The other focused on a skirt as I felt a need to take my new pair of pettipants out for a spin. I'm practicing to be an old fogey. I think I will be really good at it. Oh yeah, I also managed to wear flowers in my hair and NOT feel like a super dork. True, only the mister and the local porch lizard witnessed them and of course now you...

This week will be more of the same but hopefully more productive. I have so many piles of crafty bits to weed through. I'm tried of looking at them and knocking them over. Happy almost May!

the week in review: april 7-14

 Another week spent with the usual suspects...allergies, work, allergies, and a little crafting. The coughing has been driving me bonkers and my allergies have left me feeling dazed and confused. It ain't all bad though...just annoying. Though if you had asked me Friday night I would have a different answer. Friday night was awful in the realm of allergies. Simply awful and it left me so very tired on Saturday I had to cancel my other plans. On the plus side, I got to couch potato-it on the sofa and read an entire cheesy romance that I re-found utterly delightful.

The weather has warmed up for the most part so we have been enjoying a lot of smoothies and fruit. The water table at school was filled with a lot of water and the flowers in the sister a-go-go's garden have been popping up all over. I did the thrilling exercise of dying rice and photographed a bunch of the mister's musical instruments. Etsy packages were both sent and received and a teeny bit of stash crafting happened in a fit of desperate crafting. In between it all there were more moments of normalcy and not so normalcy. We watched flicks on the computer, this one, this one, and this one and we enjoyed a guffaw or two from this guy and oh yeah, I beat the mister at feats of strength (you probably don't want to know!)

This is how my weeks usually go. Nothing fancy, just puttering about the casa, puttering about the preschool and maybe an errand or two or a hike thrown in for good measure but it seems my hiking days may be over for each time I venture out I end up on the floor in a coughing fit from allergies. Drats!

This week is full of the same though hopefully I won't have a repeat of last Friday night. Acck! Happy April!

the week in review: april 1-7

 While the week began slowly (it kinda involved mostly work, a little sick and then THE DENTIST) it ended with a bang full of flowers and fog. I switched my work schedule around to accommodate the dental appointment for which I would be on a happy pill so Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday involved hanging out with kiddos, getting paint and glue all over me, and a mysterious bout of nausea that had me oh-so-slowly driving myself home from work early. Still haven't figured out what was up with that unless it was the counter top oatmeal that sat for a smidge too long or maybe the super high dose of Vitamin C I swallowed moments before leaving for work (I think the C was the culprit and also, oh my mawd! It took me forever to spell vitamin, sheesh!).

Thursday I took a leetle blue pill and headed off to the dentist to get my fillings replaced. I have very little memory of the whole thing save for the seemingly hours-long injection of novocaine, my sad attempts at drinking some water to get rid of the bad taste of the putty stuff they use to make molds of your teeth,  and the dentist telling me to bite, bite, bite but me not responding until he demonstrated with teeth clicking sounds. I'm telling you it was hilarious and that in and of itself is a reason why I never did drugs. The sister-a-go-go dropped me off and picked me up and I crashed on the sofa at the homestead and slept for five hours. I woke up to a sore face and McDonald's cheeseburgers which happen to be my food of choice after a dental procedure. Please don't hold it against me. 

Friday I was still all floopy from the leetle blue pill and so slept and read and read and slept and enjoyed more cheeseburgers. By Saturday I was more clear headed and ready to play with bubbles. mr. a-go-go and I headed out for a brunch and bubbles date. The small group of us were far too enchanted for bubbles, really, it was a blast! We mixed up our own concoction and tied yarn to bamboo and got to figuring it all out along to the dulcet tunes of peacocks during mating season. For reals! Worn out from the sun and bubble making we came home and nappity-napped.

The week came to a close with an up before sunrise drive out to look for wildflowers. The season was short this year and it appears the cows chewed their way through what remained but we still enjoyed a five hour excursion that involved fog, flowers, insects, moss, cows, and breakfast burritos (shhh, don't tell the cows). In between all that I made pom-poms, the bed, tea, lunches, and dinner. How was your week?

week in reviewing it

Happy Monday! I've decided that I need to hop back on the week in review horse. When I did the week in review it acted as a tiny tool for keeping a diary of sorts as without a plan I tend to let things blow away so in an attempt to return to my blogging roots I'm tossing the week in review back into the mix. 

Last week involved a lot of crafting. There were eggs and eggy things, and a couple of garlands, and yarny bits in the mix. I'm still dating the bad boyfriend otherwise known as allergies so there also was a lot of tea drinking, and hot water drinking, and more cough-cough-coughing than I like. I am really not a fan of coughing. Sheesh!

I had the week off from work and so thoroughly enjoyed a pajama day or two and pom-pom making and baking and reading. I am now laptop-less which changes how I putter around the tiny casa. I did not watch much of the Netflix or listen to itunes even...I just snipped and stitched and painted and photographed amongst much mumbling to myself. 

On Easter we not only enjoyed an egg hunt and dinner but we also celebrated two birthdays (the OG sister-ago-go and the sister a-go-go both share this day) and while my sister-sister is far far away I hope she felt the spirit of our celebration as she was thought of many times over. I wish you could have been here, the sky was so blue, the robins were out, and the dart guns were kept busy as foam ammo flew every-which-way. Happy day-after-your birthday sis, I adore you! 

This week I am back at work and have much to clean up in the tiny casa. I also have a none-too-thrilling dental appointment approaching and woe me and my tiny jaw. Here's to hoping the "sedation" they give me works just long enough to get me through the procedure but doesn't stay too long as the weekend is full of plans. Wish me luck, send good vibes, and I'll catch ya later!

a few pics from the weekend...

the week in review: feb 7-13

the week in review: jan 31- feb 6

Click here to read more about it. We spent more time outside than in. It was a fantastic week of sun and more sun.

the week in review: jan 24-30

it was a weeky week. some good, some not-so-good with a lovely weekend finish! click here for more on the pics.

the week in review: jan 17-23

I'm not really sure what to write in regards to last week. There was much of the same old, same old going on. I worked on articles, the mister built instruments...we went on a hike, watched movies and generally had a good time but there was a funk in the air. A funkified funk that weighed heavily on our shoulders. while we appreciate the freedom and time we have currently, we cannot help but feel overwhelmed at the lack of job prospects. Even good old fashioned retail doesn't seem to want me and so I stewed in a funky funk and then let the internet make me feel all less than less than and you know how that goes. Sigh. I'm still feeling sheepish and peevish and all sorts of other ishes but I'll keep on keeping on...

click hereto get more details about the week. It wasn't a bad week by any means, it was just a bad week for feeling good about ourselves. I hope this week is better for you, for me, for anyone who needs it. Phew!