hump day nuggets :: rhythm

hump day nuggets: little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week, as inspired by Nici of dig this chick

Recently, Nici invited her readers to use her format of hump day nuggets and share little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week.  I am officially taking her up on that invitation.  Thank you, Nici.  Our good friend in Paris has been using a similar format for years over at Paris Weekly and I really enjoy reading what he's been up to and feel connected to him - even when he is so very far away.  

When we sold our business in Bodega Bay in August of 2008, I felt like it would be fun to catalog what we were doing around the house, the new adventures we were having, before and after photos of the garden, experiments in the kitchen and the like.  I also needed a creative outlet and a way to spend some of my time now that I was newly unemployed.  I was in need of a new rhythm.  Slowly, over time, I realized my love of photography, cooking, interior design and capturing our day-to-day lives through this blog.  With my memory fading faster and faster as I approached 40, I felt it would be a lovely opportunity to freeze these little moments in time and perhaps turn all of this into a printed and bound book to give Grady as a keepsake one day.  At the very least, I wanted a way to let our families and close friends know what was going on in our world.  This would be a great vehicle for doing just that and they could read along if they wanted or they could hit the delete button if it bored them.  Mostly, it was for me - but I was willing to share.

I've been posting once a day for most of the Summer and I have to admit - I'm rather sick of myself.  Yep, it was fun at the beginning and I'm glad I logged in all of our adventures but who wants to read what I'm doing every single day?  I know I don't, so I'm betting you don't either.   Yes, new rhythm needed.

When I read Nici's hump day nuggets post offering to share the weekly format and cute title, I figured it was worth a try.  It would give me the chance to practice my writing skills with a firm Wednesday deadline looming overhead and it would also give me the opportunity to download my camera, reflect on the week and write random paragraphs that could be strung together with images of the goings-on of my life.  And with that said, here we go...

nuggets.

::  Bioluminescence hunt.  I hit the beach on the eve of my birthday in order to try and witness the rumored glowing dinoflagellates in the ocean that had been spotted up and down our Sonoma Coast for the last week.  I had read about this phenomenon here and had just enough adrenaline flowing following my post-Mount Rainier climb that I sent out a message on Facebook and met five of my good friends at Salmon Creek Beach for a late-night beach romp.  My camera wasn't able to capture the never-ending sets of glowing waves or the fluorescent sparks that leaped from the earth when we kicked up the damp sand with our boots, but it is burned on my brain.  We squealed with delight each and every time we saw a wave set coming our way.  So much fun.  Totally worth it.

::  Third Grader.  Notice the sweet stylings he has going on.  Generic purple baseball hat and a large, green carabiner pendant hanging from his neck.  His very own design.  Hmm.  Never seen that one before.  The hair.  Oh, how I love the hair right now.

:: My 41st birthday started out with coffee in bed and a homemade crown designed and painted by my husband.  Totally surprised by the crown.  Totally.


I would have a lot more photos to share about my special day, but in my effort to edit, catalog, transfer to an external drive and remove over 6,000 images from my hard drive (you can guess where this is going, right?),  I lost every single picture from my birthday weekend.  I am so bummed.  I ate, drank, celebrated and thoroughly enjoyed it with the people I care about most in my life.  I love birthdays.  

::  The hens are having a hard time.  Ever since Dolly died all hell has broken loose in that corner of our property.  The senior ladies have switched it up and appointed a new boss in the hen house and she is a full on biatch.  For real.  She has been pecking the holy hell out of black and white hen (above) and there is a hole in her head!  I felt like such a bad mother to those little feathered hens and quickly did some research and set out to fix the sitch.  I read that you can hang food from a string in the hen house to confuse them.  Okay, did that and they didn't notice a thing.  I also rubbed vinegar on the injured hens feathers and wound, as I read this would taste disgusting to the offending head-picker.  So far, so good.  I also spread straw in their pen and that changed up their environment and hopefully helped Miss Meany Pants forget that she hates her chicken sister.  On the brighter side, Dolly's twin Kiki has laid our first blue egg.  I love those crazy gals.

::  Naked Ladies are back.  No, not those naked ladies.  The pink flowers that seem to shoot up overnight while we're sleeping and serve as a reminder that Summer is almost over and Fall is just around the corner.  I love pulling up to my house and having them greet me as the sun is setting on the llama pasture.  This month will mark the 5th anniversary of living in our funky little farmhouse(s).  I also love anniversaries. 

::  G's pretty little pink playhouse is hardly ever used.  Mostly, it stores sticks, rocks, stuffed animals and a bevy of small, plastic farm animals.  When Steve decided to build G a treehouse earlier this Summer, I started measuring this space and perusing my vast collection of paint samples.  I have grand plans (okay, maybe not grand - but definitely plans) to turn it into a small art studio for Grady and myself.  

::  My garden looks really sad right now and you can tell we're at the end of the season.   The tomatoes are coming along slowly and need a bit more heat and sunshine to do their thing.  I just picked my last 10 pounds of blackberries at the Erickson Ranch and promptly froze them to use at a later date.  We have several apple trees and a prolific Asian pear tree bearing fruit.  I came home to find a bag of quince fruit from a good friend for my birthday and will try to turn that into a sauce or paste to serve with cheese.  I plucked apples and Bosc pears from the orchard at my office today and set about making applesauce tonight.  Yes, Summer is most definitely coming to an end and I so enjoy this time in the kitchen.


With the season ending and a new one beginning, I feel ready for a new rhythm in our home.  Homework and earlier dinners, showers at night and decent bedtimes.  Stacks of books on my nightstand just waiting to be read and drawers & cabinets just waiting to be purged.  I love the changing of the seasons, don't you?


Happy hump day.