2014 :: Acceptance

This year started out slow and quiet.  Our family spent a quiet night watching movies and falling asleep before midnight.  It was exactly what we needed after the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.

I jumped back into my exercise routine by taking a six mile New Year's Day hike with my fellas and our good friends.  I also had the urge to cook at home and try to reboot our healthy eating habits.

Coffee + Beet Juice Study

I've started a drawing a day journal, along with Grady, and I think this will be a fun exercise in trying new things and not getting so attached or intimidated by making art.  Grady plans on using his Brushes application on the iPad and saving same in Dropbox every day this calendar year.  Yes, he's learning a lot about that thing.

Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal Series were a big hit with the kids

We ended the last few days of winter break with friends.  G had his bestie sleep over (which is almost unheard of around here!) and the Rangel girls spent a sunny Sunday with us playing games, running around the property with water guns and critiquing the chicken liver pate that I made with Jill earlier in the week.  The verdict?  It needs a bit more salt say the juvenile pate experts.

It took us all week, but we finally finished writing our thank you notes.  I usually like to have this done on January 1st, but it just wasn't in the cards this year.

My word for the year is Acceptance.  Last year's words were Let It Go.  I feel like I did relinquish a few things in my mind, as well as in my day-to-day life of obligations in 2013.  I really let traditions go over the holidays and it did feel good to let it go and try something new.

I'll work harder on accepting myself this year, my choices, my life and how I contribute to this great big beautiful world.  I'm going to try a few new things on for size and accept my progress as success, whether I succeed in the traditional sense or not - I will have tried something new and that's going to be enough for me this year.

I'll also accept my past failures, transgressions and mistakes.  I'm not perfect and I'm worried that if I don't finally accept all of my failings, I'll keep repeating them.  I need to let the past go and move on. I have so many things and people to be grateful for.

We ended this week at our secret beach in Jenner.  The kids had so much fun running, jumping, whipping seaweed through the air and being silly with one another.  I had a million other things to get done at home, but I'm so glad I stopped and accepted the opportunity to get out into the world and enjoy these three little souls.

Happy New Year, friends.

42 :: My List of Loves Right Now

42 trips around the sun

1. That first cup of coffee in the morning.
2. Reading a good book on the chaise lounge chair on my front deck.
3. Home grown tomatoes.
4. Thrifting.
5. Watching G create art.
6. Playing Scrabble with the guys.
7. Friday Night Lights series on Netflix.
8. Memoirs.
9. Making smoothies.
10. My community of friends.
11. My funky little home.
12. The library.  Oh, how I love a good library.
13. Standing at my kitchen island and creating meals for my family.
14. Making jam.
15. Cataloging books for Grady's 1,000 book challenge for 2012.
16. Found feathers.
17. A good, dry martini.
18. Owning a good pair of jeans & a black tank top (aka - my uniform).
19. Roadside flower cutting.
20. Grocery shopping day.
21. My witty, handsome husband.
22. Girlfriends.
23. The beach at low tide in the winter time.
24. Book club.
25. G's pink art studio.
26. Beautiful card stock and pretty paper.
27. Paint sample strips.
28. Fresh eggs.
29. Big Sur.
30. My son's love of dogs.  It's infectious.
31. My sister's dry humor.
32. How much my mom loves my son.
33. Salted caramel.
34. Setting a beautiful table.
35. Gathering around the dining table for dinner each night.
36. Freshly laundered sheets on my bed.
37. Documenting our life with photos & words here.
38. The printed word.
39. My goddaughters & sweet nieces.
40. The power of having my own family.
41. The eve of almost any holiday or celebration (more than the holiday or celebration!).
42. Making lists.

Notes from Childhood :: Age 8

As I was organizing paperwork last month, I started piling up notes and drawings from the past year that had accumulated around our house.  Some of it is recent and others are random notes and lists (in no particular order).  Here's some of what I found:

My final straw is to issue sentences.  He had about a week of sentence writing and boundary pushing at the end of January.

And while this exercise didn't cure him of talking back to his mom, it sure did give me a good 20 minutes to simmer down and ready myself for the conversation that comes after the sentences are written and turned in.

I can't remember what the greedy offense was, but when he finally turned this illustrated sentence sheet in to me he had sorrowful tears in his eyes and needed a big hug.  Lesson learned.  Oh, and I also love his curvy, full signature.  He's been very interested in learning cursive writing this year.

And we have another note to mother.  I see a theme here...

He dictated both lists to me and I ended up typing the one on the left (featured below in poem form), but it's the one on the right that cracks me up.  His love of reading is fierce and it kicked into overdrive this past summer. I particularly enjoy my boy's humor with the last line I can read...my dad's moods.  He gets that from his father!

Mom is back in favor for Mother's Day 2011 and he knows original poetry is the way to my heart.

I received yet another Mother's Day illustration showcasing his mad computer animation skills.  I'm the momma tiger.  Hearts filled with x's and o's.  So sweet.

Steve commented that his summer list sounded pretty lazy.  I totally agree and totally encouraged it.

By now you can probably tell I'm a girl that loves her list.  What do I love more than making lists?  Crossing things off said list (and sharpies).  This is the boy's summer wish list of things he wanted to do (above) and we set about doing and crossing off like nobody's business.

This end of the year itinerary cracked me up.  We went away for a few days after xmas to Costanoa.  I love the last entry:  #6.  Go to bed happy.  I can see my list-making ways are starting to rub off.

Just a little pre-dinner banter with the boy.  I'm sure he wasn't speaking to me at this point and, therefore, just slipped me a note during dinner prep.

This chicken killing note was written on a small piece of paper that he put in a book I was reading, as a bookmark.  When I went to bed that evening and opened my book - there it was.  Just a quiet little reminder to murder our flock.  Should I be concerned?

These postcards from camp are priceless.  He morphed from Grady into Hawk in the course of four days.  When he returned from camp he signed off on a lot of correspondence as Hawk, his nature name.

Each of us in our little family filled out one of these forms on New Year's Day.  I love reading this and I'm going to try and remember to do this every year.  The computer comic book urge has fallen out of favor, but he is definitely a voracious reader and super excited about trying to reach his oh so ambitious goal of 1,000 books this year.  He truly misses our dog, Molly.  He also has figured out that if he compliments me on my cooking, I'll probably make him more pizza.  Such a smart little man.


This was really a fun way to document a year in the life of Grady in his own words (even the ones I made him write!).  I have started a little folder on my desk for artwork and notes for 2012 and look forward to the wisdom, humor and beauty I will store in there.

A Year in Photos & Words :: 2011

I've been vacillating about leaving this space over the past week or so.  I like to reassess my life at year-end, make changes, slough off the old and set new intentions for the coming year.  I struggle with finding the words each week to express exactly what I want to say and find that writing is not easy for me.

This year I framed my blog with images and they set the stage for my writing.  But I struggled with that, too, as our internet connection is sluggish and the photo editing program I was using sucked up too much of our daily internet usage allowance.  That left me to edit photos between the hours of 11 pm and 4 am when we had unlimited access.  Not the most optimal times, right?  Agreed.

But I pushed on and then adopted the nuggets format from a fellow blogger, so that I could at least force myself to post once a week and jot down a few things that were happening in our lives.  

As I was perusing the thousands of photos from 2011 and editing and/or dumping hundreds of them, I realized how happy I am that I have this blog and that it serves as a sort of memory catcher for me and our family.  It seems that I am the narrator of our life and sometimes that feels overwhelming.  But I'm going to get over myself and keep at it because I loved looking back at our last year and being visually reminded of what a rich and beautiful life we have.  I read some of my past posts and actually liked my writing in a few of them, too.  It's hard to read your own stuff, but this was a necessary step in nudging me to keep on going.  

And so, here is my year in photos, along with a few words from 2011:

JANUARY
::  My intention for the new year was Balance.  
::  I joined the photography e-course You Are Your Own Muse & took a lot of self-portraits!
::  Grady started with his first indoor soccer team.
::  There were a few animal escapades with a near wild goat goring (of me!) and a swarm of cows escorting me and my wine drinking girlfriends down the hill behind our house.  Lordy, lordy.

FEBRUARY
::  Our friend invited us over to see her baby goats & baby lambs at the Erickson Ranch.
::  We took several jaunts to the beach after school to play in the sand and catch the gorgeous afternoon sunlight.  We returned our enormous sea glass collection back to mother nature, too.
::  The Tomales PTA held the second annual clothing swap & it was a huge success.
::  We attended the annual 4-H crab feast in Santa Rosa with our good friends.
::  Attended the Discarded to Divine preview at West County Design & at the deYoung.
::  Made our first visit of the year to the Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.
::  Mustard fields & plum blossoms held my attention a good part of this month.

MARCH
::  Six new little chicks joined our flock.
::  Our Parisian friends came for a quick, fun-filled visit.
::  My mother celebrated her 60th trip around the sun & we celebrated her properly with a special dinner party during a big rain storm!
::  Grady met his Great Aunt Glenda and fell in love with her.
::  We had a big hail storm and mild flooding around our home.
::  Attended my first letterpress class at Iota Press in Sebastopol.
::  We pruned our fruit trees & watched the daffodils & magnolias bloom this month in earnest.

APRIL
::  Celebrated Easter here with the Rangel girls and perfected my Dutch Baby Pancake!
::  Our boy turned eight and we had our first-ever, before school birthday party here at home.  Surely to become an annual event between the three of us.
::  G was gifted a Swiss Army knife from his father & loved it.
::  Grady also had the opportunity to be a Scientist for a Day at the Gladstone Institute's Take Your Child to Work Day.  He made square bubbles, took the DNA from a strawberry and learned about the Big Bang!
::  The Mahleys brought five heart specimens to the TES second graders.  So cool!
::  The 38th Annual Fisherman's Festival went off without a hitch.

MAY

::  Attended the first Bodega Bay Short Film Festival at the UC Davis Marine Lab.

::  Oysterpalooza in Valley Ford.

::  Journeyed to Maker Faire and got our science fix.

::  We redeemed our auction item of a Point Reyes cattle ranch tour at the Lucchesi Ranch & toured this amazing, vast ranch land in a jeep.  Breathtaking.

::  Our sweet dog, Molly Gray, died from lymphoma and losing her hit our family hard.

JUNE
::  School was out and we were more than ready for summer.
::  Steve & Grady designed and started building the coolest tree house in all of Valley Ford.
::  Our boy was sick with heat exhaustion (first time ever) after a sweltering day at camp.
::  Road trip to Southern California to rendezvous with the Christiansen & Rangel clans.
::  Sunset Magazine's Celebration Weekend w/ Jill.
::  Pink Martini at the San Francisco Davies Symphony hall with my guys was amazing!
::  My mom and her husband packed up and moved back to Arizona.  That was hard on my little guy, but he looked forward to being pen pals and the promises of future trips.

JULY
::  This month was all about extracurricular activities.  Swim, golf & tennis lessons in Bodega Bay for the boy.  Our friend gave us their home for the week.  What a relaxing time.
::  The haying of the fields in Valley Ford had me pulling over to take pictures all month long (much to the chagrin of my son).
::  The Davis Family came to visit all the way from Virginia and we went to the beach, thrifted and had many belly laughs around my table.
::  We celebrated Bob Mahley's 70th birthday at Gourmet au Bay.

AUGUST

::  Grady went away to his first sleepover camp at the Point Reyes National Seashore Science Camp and had a blast.  He barely mumbled goodbye to us and then hardly acknowledged us when we came to pick him up!

::  Picked blackberries as fast as we could this month & froze them for future canning endeavors.

::  The Bodega Big Event!

::  10-day road trip with the Rangel women to the Pacific Northwest. The highlight of the trip was climbing part of Mt. Rainier and galvanizing our bonds of friendship.

::  Our sweet little cross-beaked hen, Dolly, passed away from starvation.  We had a proper burial for her, of course.

::  Had the chance to see the The Gertrude Stein exhibit at SF MOMA w/ friends.

SEPTEMBER

::  The naked ladies are in full bloom this month and such a lovely site to see.

::  Harvested baskets of apples, pears, tomatoes, chard, carrots and more blackberries.  

::  Grady started 3rd grade this year with his first male teacher, Mr. Demsher, who happens to also have a snake in his class - making him super cool.

::  Late night beach romps were necessary to spot the bioluminescense at Salmon Creek Beach.

::  My 41-derful birthday celebration was quiet one this year and celebrated with our dear friends over an amazing home cooked meal.

::  My first silk screening class went off without a hitch and I loved the process.

::  My goddaughter turned 8 and we celebrated in style at our secret beach and gifted her her very own skim board.  

::  Soccer ruled our schedule a good part of this month, too.  

OCTOBER

::  We returned to the Post Ranch Inn to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary.  

::  The Johns Street yard sale was kind of a bust this year, but it forced us to purge our household and then hang out all weekend and visit with our neighbors.  Not all bad.

::  Grady raised over $300 for his class in his school jog-a-thon thanks to our generous and kind friends and neighbors.

::  Another trip to the Academy of Sciences with Grady and his best buddy.

::  Rangel birthday bash at our pad, complete good food, wine & a little break dancing.

::  Shared in our good friend, Marty's, 70th birthday party in Bodega Bay.

::  Steve took first place at the Chute Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest, even though he was almost disqualified for using a gourd.  Oh, details, details.

::  Grady was a "friendly pirate" for Halloween this year and designed the costume himself.

::  The first and only goal of the season was made during the last game of the soccer tournament weekend.  So proud!

NOVEMBER
::  Grady's art show took center stage this month, as he named all of his pieces, we printed, framed & hung over 50 pieces of his art at the Sonoma Coast Fish Bank.
::  Steve's dad and my mom came up and helped celebrate this momentous occasion for our family.
::  Mostly Natives Nursery had an incredible plant sale (+ some freebies) and we put close to 30 new plants in the ground at our place.
::  G entered four pieces in the Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival Art Contest.
::  We were treated to a wonderful performance of A Christmas Story at the Sixth Street Playhouse with our friends.
::  We put the finishing touches on the new-to-us art studio in Grady's former playhouse.
::  Celebrated a quiet Thanksgiving, wherein Steve & Grady cooked a Turkey, Mashed Potatoes & the almost-famous cranberries!
::  Witnessed the incredible Jerry Kermode woodturning demo at West County Design.
::  New tradition of mulled wine, crafting & wreathmaking the day after Thanksgiving at my place w/ Jill.
::  Attended the Richard Serra Drawing Restrospective at SF MOMA.

DECEMBER

::  CYO Basketball season is underway and G is playing for the first time.  He made his first game basket during game 3.

::  Lots of xmas making went on this month, as well as game playing, wrestling matches and decorating for the season.

::  We celebrated Mary Lou's 60th, along with Scott V's birthday, with a big 'ole crab & sparkling wine dinner at our pad.

::  Attended our friend's performance in Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory at the Cinnabar Theatre in Petaluma.  And, yes, the kids ate candy during the entire show!

::  We had frost on most mornings this month and kick-ass sunrises, as well as some of the most gorgeous sunsets I've seen in the last 10 years.

::  Our xmas eve open house was filled with good friends and helped us round out this year of plenty with the people closest and dearest to us.

::  We made a last minute getaway to Costanoa just days before the New Year and disconnected from our daily responsibilities, as well as reconnected with one another.

This is one of the few pictures from 2011 that I have of all three of us.  Funny how I am the narrator and picture-taker of the family and I'm hardly represented on this blog!  I'm sure a lot of other mothers out there notice that byproduct of being the family historian.

I'm sure I've forgotten a lot of things, but the pictures from 2011 prompted the bullet points above.  Another sign that I need to be diligent in what I snap and ruthless when editing.

And while I'm sure I will still struggle with sharing and writing here on this blog, I think I will continue to do so and stretch myself creatively.  It feels good to look back and see all that is our life so clearly through words and images.

Happy 2012.

Monday :: Link Love List

Crayon's Heart by ljangphotography

September is humming along.  Here's what I'm loving this week:

cooking...up batches of this recipe for G's lunch (super easy & fun for him)

ordering...tickets to see Mary Oliver speak next month in Santa Rosa!

learning...how to screenprint on fabric & paper over the weekend at this local workshop

harvesting...apples, apples, pears and more apples

watching...Season 3 of The Tudors and, yes, I'm totally addicted

supporting...our 5th District Supervisor at his kickoff fundraising Fiesta in Guerneville on 09.23.11

enjoying...a martini or two at home made with Tito's Handmade Vodka

making...a lunch date with my husband for Food Truck Fridays at Iron Horse Vineyards

reading...about the Roadworks Street Fair at the San Francisco Center for the Book on 09.24.11

Happy Monday!

Monday :: Link Love List

Map garland of hearts by bookity

I've missed a few Mondays here on the blog and wanted to share my Monday Link Love List.  I may change this format over the next month or so, but here's where I've been clicking this week, as well as what I've been up to here at home:

making...homemade applesauce and modified this recipe from Smitten Kitchen

loving...this clever graphic design for a fresh version of the everyday shopping tote bag

reading...Bossypants by Tina Fey and laughing out loud

spotting...my son (twice!) in this email newsletter from our local rockstar bakery, Della Fattoria

readying...our household for our street-wide yard sale the first week of October

thinking...maybe I need this awesome bag?  Maybe not?  What do you think?

liberating...close to a hundred paint swatches from my local paint store - with the intention  that I am going to paint my master bedroom and new art studio in the coming weeks, as well as make a few of these

registering...for this silkscreening class

watching...Harold & Maude - how did this movie escape me before now?  Incredible.

booking...our 10 year anniversary getaway here (we stayed here on our honeymoon!)

finding...inspiration and truth in this article by Anne Lamott

Happy Monday out there!

Monday :: Link Love List

Heart latte courtesy of barista @ Toby's Feed Barn

Well, hello Monday.  How the heck are you?  Today I'd like to share a few of the blogs I read on a daily/weekly basis that are written by a group of really amazing women with lovely voices that you can most definitely hear through their words.  They so honestly share a bit about their lives out there in the blogging world and I'd like to share them with you. So, here goes:

Amanda @ Soule Mama

Victoria @ sfgirlbybay

Nici @ digthischick

Paige @ between a handshake and two kisses

Amy @ Angry Chicken

Clare @ Tastes Orangey

Eren @ This Vintage Chica

Molly @ Orangette

Dottie @ Dottie Angel

Jordan @ Oh Happy Day!

Another Molly @ A Foothill Home Companion

Kelle @ Enjoying the Small Things

And, yet, another Molly @ Mommy Coddle

Vivienne @ Vivienne McMaster

This is just a small list, but I read them faithfully and get a lot of inspiration from their words, photographs, philosophies, boundless creativity and heartfelt openness.  It's not easy to write down your innermost thoughts and then send them out to the world (trust me on that one).  I admire how brave they are in their blogging endeavors and hope you might click on one of their links and be inspired, as well.

Happy Monday out there.

Monday :: Link Love List

Thrift store score for 50 cents

researching...and learning a bunch about The Stein Collection currently on exhibit at SFMOMA

trying...to finish The House of Spirits by Isabelle Allende for this week's book club gathering

picking...two pounds of blueberries at this sweet farm on Ferguson Road in Sebastopol

attending...an awesome birthday party with good friends at The Decarli House in Petaluma (you can rent it for your next party, too!)

watching...my son straddle the roof of St. Theresa of Avila Church (a replica, of course) at the annual Bodega Big Event parade, as it was hauled down the main drag!

signing...up for this calendar workshop

packing...for Grady's week of science camp at the Point Reyes National Seashore

planning...an end of summer road trip to Washington State!

Happy Monday.

Monday :: Link Love List

Today marks the three year anniversary of selling our former business, Gourmet au Bay, to Bob & Sissy Blanchard.  Check out their website, personalized wine club or pop by to learn what wine surfing is.

The shop has morphed into a wonderful gathering spot for locals throughout the years and we feel really fortunate to have found two people who were meant to run this business and fit right in.  We wish you many years of success on the beautiful Sonoma Coast.

Cheers!

Here's a few links that I've been loving this past week:

swooning...over this graphic design fundraising idea for next year

liking...the idea of these patterned wall tiles, instead of traditional wallpaper

thinking...I might need just one more clipboard to add to my collection

enjoying...this new blog I stumbled upon over the weekend

adding...a few of these books to my summer reading list

acting...like I was on vacation last week while staying at a friend's beach house in Bodega Bay (a short seven mile drive from my house)

realizing...that blackberry picking season is finally here and that means jam, crisps and more jam!

Happy Monday.

Monday :: Link Love List

You're Simply Radishing by lizgrandmaison on etsy

We're staying at our friends' beach house this week in Bodega Bay and Grady is attending a golf and tennis camp that starts at the ungodly hour of 7:30 am.  Now, that may not seem early to some - but rousing an eight year old boy on a July summer morning is not the easiest of tasks.  I can assure you.  So, our dear friends said we could use their home and along with the amazing views and oh, so comfortable bed, we have fast internet connection!  It's the little things in this digital age, right?  Our connection is so slooooow at home and I can't peruse image-rich websites or be on Facebook for too long, but this week is my staycation in Bodega Bay and I will be perusing design websites, gathering inspiration and bookmarking sites to my heart's content while Grady is at camp.

Here are a few links I'd like to share from the past week:

planning...on using this template to make homemade stationary from my stash of pretty papers

stumbling...upon this amazing vintage Vera Neumann shop on etsy

loving...this fresh roasted corn with manchego & lime (eat warm & don't forget to finish with lime zest - like I did!)

finishing...up the novel The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint by Brady Udall.  What. A. Journey.

planning...on buying some of this film for the vintage Polaroid Land Camera I picked up a few months ago while thrifting

sharing...my husband's handy-dandy local resource list for homeowners and renters on the Sonoma Coast

plotting...to kill one of my hens if she doesn't stay out of my rehabilitated fern fronds and baby carrot seedlings.  She has found a new hiding spot behind the BBQ and I feel like she's kind of asking for it...

thinking...this would make a perfect wedding gift

enjoying...the weekend under my own roof laughing, cooking, and catching up with my childhood best friend and her girls (and her mom, too!)

watching...my son perfect his belly-flop on the final day of swimming lessons at the Bodega Harbour pool

realizing...that yes, I can grow chard! and then realizing that hey, maybe not so much chard next year?

overhearing...Grady tell anyone who will listen that he is a birder and then explaining what that is - just in case they didn't already know

wanting...longer days, warmer nights and a better memory!


Happy Monday.

Monday :: Link Love List

Where did this last week go?  This post will be quick, as my internet connection is lame and is slowly slugging along and I'm just about to huck my computer out the window.  Whew.  There, now I feel better.

making...this for dinner twice in one week!  I love summer.

planning...our tenth anniversary celebration here and thinking we should stay in the same treehouse we did on our honeymoon (I now work for the company that manages this incredible property)

loving...this post by Amanda Soule about her sweet boy and his typewriter

realizing...my obsession with spheres, circles and dandelions - and deciding this print is just what I need to add to my madness

(still) researching...light fixtures for the entryway and loving this post about Schoolhouse Electric

beachcombing...for smooth river rocks to make little treasures like these for our home, garden and to share with friends

wanting...these pretty little hoses to spruce up my garden

wishing...Americans had the style the French have when celebrating our country

thinking...a lot about community, friendships and about what's really important in life

Hug your loved ones.  Be kind (even to slow computers).  Have a good week.

Monday :: Link Love List

Gate just outside of Bodega Pastures Preschool

Well, this is the time I sit down with my Moomin coffee cup and look through my favorite bookmarks from the last week, a small pile of notes sitting on the corner of my desk and glance at my One Line a Day journal.  It's a start to the week that I enjoy and it gives me a small satisfaction to pause and share what has been going on with us or what I'm looking at this week.  I hope you enjoy it, too.

I've received several words of encouragement about my photos and blogging lately and it's a little bit embarrassing (to tell the truth), but I am pushing on and trying not to focus on all of that.  I think it's kind that people take a moment to check in on my/our lives and feel grateful to have a forum in which to share our days with them.  Thank you friends.

And now on to the Monday :: Link Love List...

reading...the last chapter of Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone to Grady just this morning. I'm so glad we waited to read this together once school was out.  Fantastic!

picking...up our first CSA of the season from Canvas Ranch.

scoring...a vintage (1995!) Ling Chang 11x14 calendar from the Hospice Thirft Store for $1.  The dates will work for next year's 2012 calendar year, too.  Gorgeous floral drawings.

watching...Steve and Grady work on the second phase of the treehouse project.  Photos and a blog post soon to follow.

loving...this simple hand-printed gift wrap!  I just finished reading Print Workshop by Christine Schmidt and gathered further inspiration for making our own stamps and labels.

attending...an artist reception at Quicksilver Mine Co. in Forestville to support Grady's wonderfully talented art teacher, Kai Samuels-Davis.  It was a collective of artists, all featuring works that were no larger than 12" x 12" x 12" and called "Boxed In: A Small Works Show".  This show is running through August 14th.

wanting...to compose a list like this one for summer, but I think she's covered it all!

tending...my neighbor's garden this past week and harvesting all of her hard work.  Thank you Beula (did you know Tom Waits mentions my neighbor Beula's porch in this song?  Yes, Mr. Waits lives just over the hill behind us in Valley Ford and Beula's grandchildren think this is oh, so cool).

driving...to and from swim practice every. single. day.


Happy Monday.  What are you loving?  Feel free to comment at the bottom of this post.

Monday :: Link Love List

Image courtesy of ablaze on etsy

Happy 4th of July!  This Monday finds me reflecting back on the past week and wondering how we found time to do all that we did.  What a fun string of days, afternoons and evenings with friends.  Here's what I've been loving this week...

gathering...inspiration from this sweet little summer cottage in Wisconsin

making...batches of yogurt, oven-roasted tomatoes, cakes, strawberry freezer jam and homemade tea

stocking...up on my summer pink wine supply and seeing many rosé Wednesdays on the horizon

imagining...our outdoor summer dining space and working on making it a reality soon

reading...To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee and absolutely loving it

adding...these nutella cheesecake layer bars to my baking to-do list

celebrating...with dear friends throughout the weekend over birthdays (with this cake!), fundraising gigs and our nation's independence

watching...the best small town fireworks show with my fellas

planning...a trip to see the Gertrude Stein exhibit this summer

wanting...a sign like this in my town

Happy Monday.  Enjoy the coming week!

Monday :: Link Love List

reflecting...on my family ties and missing my sister and her kids a bunch

adoring...this handmade hedgehog clock by decoylab

thinking...this might be a good compost bin project for the hubby

loving...this designer and her wearable blooms - gonna get me one!

digging...this pledge about reading the printed word

enjoying...this post about kids and screen time, as we negotiate our summer movie-watching schedule here at home

gathering...building inspiration, as Steve and Grady design, purchase materials and begin installation later this week for G's first-ever treehouse

admiring...this cool family portrait by etsy artist, Demofia

trying...to find a way to utilize the very full bottle of Leblon in my freezer and stumbled upon this beautiful Raspberry Caipirinha recipe

making...a list of crafts to do with Grady and loving these sweet walnut boats

ticking...things off my to-do list, so that I can head to Southern California this weekend for a much anticipated visit with my BFF and her family

appreciating...my husband for being such a good father and role model for our son

Happy Monday!

Monday :: Link Love List

ending...the school year with a great report card

thinking...I need to make this decadent version of s'mores right away

entering...this great giveaway for more of Clare Elsaesser's prints


coveting...this and this by Inklore

digging...the soulful mothering series on Soulemama last week, especially this one

making...my own yogurt was easier than I ever thought, thanks to this book

discovering...this Cartoon Museum in San Francisco and adding it to our ever-growing summer list

reading...Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling to Grady

learning...our local highway will be wide open nights and weekends during road construction

busting...out the kiddie pool for summer

sleeping...in

Happy Monday!

Monday :: Link Love List

I missed a week of posting my Monday list, but I've been feeling a bit pensive lately about writing on this blog.  I may take it offline for the summer and continue writing for my own enjoyment privately.  I feel really exposed sharing here and not sure why I continue to do so.  Just a bit of soul searching that needs to be done, but until I get that squared away - here is my Monday Link Love List!

loving...the prints I purchased from Clare Elsaesser this past weekend

bottling...a few jars of this homemade caramel sauce to give as birthday presents later this week

discovering...the loveliest spice shop in Santa Rosa.  Can you say Italian Black Truffle Sea Salt?


planning...on planting plenty of nasturtiums this month, so that I can make this syrup for summer cocktails

cooking...this simple and flavorful radish side dish that paired perfectly with a 2009 Layer Cake Virgin Chardonnay from the Central Coast

hosting...my Babylon Book Club here last week where we discussed the disturbing cult classic The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart.  I hope the food made up for the terrible book selection!

enjoying...all of the festivals, paloozas, potlucks and pancake breakfasts my town(s) have to offer

coveting...this fireplace (since it's still raining here - and it's June!)

ordering...this sweet journal for my little man to record his summer reads in

admiring...the freshly mowed grass on our one acre of property

picking...June blooms in my yard and just off of the roadside on my way into town

hearing...that my boy learned to roller skate over the weekend AND pick buckets of fresh strawberries with his Soul Sisters, Isabella & Sophia

watching...the farms get mowed and soil turned all over the hillsides in Valley Ford

researching...and reading how to make bread from this amazing book

overhearing...my son bury some insects that he "captured" and tell them "you've had a good life"

listening...to him mildly berate a "stupid beetle", too...hmmmm?

traveling...to Menlo Park for the Sunset Magazine Celebration Weekend with my good friend, Jill (this was my third year and it was awesome!)

reading...The Wisdom of the Radish by Lynda Hopkins

planting...radishes, lettuces, carrots and herbs (see a radish theme here?)

preparing...our summer wish list of things we want to do and places we want to go

counting...down the days until school is out and sleeping in is the new morning routine

Happy Monday out there.

Monday :: Link Love List

recovering...from an amazing day at the Maker Faire in San Mateo (thank you Joe & Sherry for the tickets!)

researching...credit unions and learning how to keep our money in our local economy

thinking...this is such a clever idea for a wedding cake!

marking...my calendar for late-December when Herge's The Adventures of Tintin hits the big screen.  G has been listening to this series on cassette tapes for months and is the process of  saving to buy the entire series of beautifully bound books.

appreciating...the new artist postcard series my husband helped select for his upcoming real estate mailing here on the coast

wanting...to buy or make one of these dolls for a special little girl in my life

coveting...yet another awesome light fixture for my entryway.  When will I pull the trigger?

learning...about our local cattle ranch in Pt. Reyes, as we toured just a tiny part of its 3,000 acres this weekend via the ranch Jeep.  For three hours we only saw bulls, elk, cows, sea lions, red tail hawks, barn owls & their babies and many, many deer.  Thank you Lucchesi family.  

accepting...that our sweet dog is gone and receiving a home visit from our wonderful vet who gifted us the most precious memory stone to put on her grave (um, it's sitting at the end of Grady's bed where Molly used to sleep for now).

planning...on making these ink blob shirts this summer

plotting...to put the abundance of fresh strawberries to good use with this decadent recipe

finishing...up my two year stint as PTA president at G's school

reading...my first published article (and photos) in this week's West Marin Citizen (co-written with Annalisa McMorrow) about Dr. Bob & Linda Mahley's recent visit to Tomales Elementary School's 2nd grade class and the five heart specimens they brought with them to share.

interesting...post about gender stereotypes in the media and the cool graphics created with all of that info

looking...forward to the first Bodega Bay International Short Film Festival taking place this weekend in our small village

wishing...you all a wonderful start to your week

Monday :: Link Love List

appreciating...all the love and time our friend spent making this owl cake for my little boy

receiving...not one, but two original poems from Grady this Mother's Day weekend

planning...on making these for end of the year teacher gifts

watching...the 1969 version of True Grit with my guys

smiling...as G donned his cowboy hat, bolo tie, cowboy boots, red silk bandana & monkey gun as he walked up and down our lane this weekend (post-True Grit watching)

reading...Zeitoun by Dave Eggers

celebrating...with a Roof Party at Tomales Elementary School sponsored by the TES PTA because our entire student body read 9,742 books in approximately eight weeks!

planting...tomatoes, lemon thyme, cilantro, chives and spinach from Mostly Natives

loving...my newly installed dishwasher!

counting...the days until school is out for summer