Grrr....

Today, I am grumpy for no good reason. It's just one of those days where nothing seems to be going right, so I decided to throw a roast in the crock pot and sit down for a bit. Yep. I'm calling a mulligan on today!

Yesterday's trip to Portland was a fun one! I opted to sleep in a bit and headed south around 9 am. First stop was Battle Ground for "A Vintage Gathering", a fun antique sale. It turned out to be the highlight of my trip. I scored a giant vintage quilt, AND the seller talked the price down to $35. I'm really happy with it, and its a good replacement for the ones I donated. I went to the Barn House sale. I wasn't very impressed. The event had a small fee, and music, but it wasn't as good as the sale at "A Vintage Gathering". After getting lost quite a few times, I made it to Portland, taking the back roads, which were lovely. The air was fresh and clean and there were pastures and barns. I was in heaven!

I got to Powell's Books pretty quickly. If you haven't been, it's a must go. It's a city block of books, with multiple stories. There's so many books, it can be overwhelming, so make sure you eat, and bring a list of what you want to look for!!  I went there for children's sewing books and found a great book "Growing Up Sew Liberated". It was on sale for way less than the used price on Amazon, so I just couldn't pass it up.

A few stops later, I ended up at Fabric Dept. I LOVE THIS PLACE!!  There's acres of fabric and doo-dads for sewing. I ended up with the sweetest fabric for curtains for noodle's room and I got to play. Could it be any better?   Check these prints out-so cute :)

Today will be spent grabbing lunch with a friend and picking up baby stuff from her, and then getting in some sewing.  If this doesn't turn around a silly day, I don't know what will!  Here's to a good Sunday, and a week that flies by ;)

Raina

On The Road Again...

Just can't wait to get on the road again...Yep. Now you're signing it. Sorry (ish).

I am in dire need of an escape to anywhere that isn't Seattle or Tacoma, or my house (which technically falls in that Seattle bucket). This weekend, I'll be doing just that!

Every year, I see ads for the Barn House sale (http://www.barnhousebh.com/). Tons of pretty, soft things and antiques, doo-dads, and what-not's. And every year, I wake up and say meh. Not this time, oh no! I'll be waiting up at the crack of dawn (ok, probably later than that) and hitting the road to Battle Ground, Washington, just off of the I-5 corridor, and close to Portland, where I will ooh and ahh over lovely things. I have to admit, I am pretty excited to go after all these years. From there, I'll be heading to Portland to go to Powell's books to feed my literary love and then to Fabric Depot for a sale that they are having.


Sunday, I'll be heading to the East Side (Bellevue, no E WA) to see a good friend, to gab about babies and to pick up some baby goodies from her fast-growing, beautiful little girl. 


I'll definitely try not to make this blog all about baby, but I do want to give a quick update!  I went in for the results of my genetic testing quad screen thing and to do a baby check up...Noodle's heart is strong, healthy and loud, and the doc said it sounded like he was just moving all over the place. My test results scored really well and my likelihood of having a genetic disorder is 1:5000. Yes, pretty much nil. Insert sigh of relief here. For my age, the risk of having a baby with Downs Syndrome is 1:1342 apparently. Take that odds. 


So, overall, things are good .I continue to clean and organize the house, and am trying to trim down the 35X35 list...slowly, but surely, things are coming together!  Now, to wrap up a workday and start making some boysenberry jelly! :)

Here's to good weekends, good times, and getting on the road!
Raina

"On the road again -
Just can't wait to get on the road again.
The life I love is making music with my friends

And I can't wait to get on the road again.
On the road again

Goin' places that I've never been.
Seein' things that I may never see again

And I can't wait to get on the road again.
On the road again -
Like a band of gypsies we go down the highway
We're the best of friends.
Insisting that the world keep turning our way [...]" ~Willie Nelson

Hurray for Lazy Days...

I love weekends where the only thing I have to accomplish is getting out of bed. It's been a good weekend, full of running errands, being outside, doing crafts, and making jelly and pickles. Here's a few shots. You'll have to pardon the messy lawn and plants that are in progress  of being trimmed. Normally, my pots look much nicer! The girls are getting so big!  The darkest one is Chicken Little, the one with the black collar is Fern (check out her fuzzy feet!), and the big one is Garbanzo :)

I had a lot of fun making pickles and jam, too. Here's a little before and after from yesterdays veggie and fruit shopping:

Here's to good weekends!
Raina

What not to do to yourself during early pregnancy...

Step 1 of things not to do in early pregnancy:

Go to Babies R Us.

Whole. Lee. Crap.

If you haven't ever been there, this is a giant warehouse of baby crap. It is literally floor to ceiling stuff. Its like a hoarder lived in a warehouse and collected so much baby stuff that you need heavy machinery to bring things down.

Step 2 of things not to do in early pregnancy:
Go to Babies R Us, hungry.

I went to the registry desk thinking, sweet....I'll go in, register and get out.

Oh. No.

They gave me a gun!  Now, before you think-yay!  stuffed animal target practice!!  Pull back a bit. This was a little shopping scanner thing that you walk around with and click on things that you may want.

The gal gave me good advice-"here's a list, and don't just get new born items. You'll have more crap than you'll need". Best advice I heard that day.

I roamed around Babies R Hell, scanning myself into a frenzy, seeing how many dance moves and James Bond style scans I could get in. A girls gotta make this fun, right?  And it kept other people away from me, as I am sure they thought that I was nuts. Meh.

I now have close to 100 things on a registry, most of which are functional and most of which were cute. The best part? Some nice guy saw that I was clearly not having fun, and gave his voucher for a $10 gift card. Score. I got to dance, wave my scanner around like James Bond AND I came out ahead. Not a bad way to spent a Saturday.

Speaking of scores...of sorts...My Grandma got me maternity clothes. Please note: My grandma is, well, a Grandma. She knows I love vintage things, and she knows I am not quite sure what I need. She got me some things that aren't quite my style, but the thought behind it was pretty awesome. She did get me a pant suit made with glitter fabric, that she initially bought for herself.  I'm curious to try this one on, as my Grandma is itty bitty these days.  Here, for your gawking pleasure: the one thing I will be donating (and letting her know that I donated)...While it may look like a skirt/sweater combo with a bacon print, don't be fooled. The pattern actually looks like microtubules:

So how does this story wrap up? I eventually go home, after stopping at 5 more places, which results in patterns for baby clothes and diaper covers, decaf ginger peach tea, stamps for baby shower and announcements, and a car full of bell and hot pepper plants; a flat of raspberries, a 15 lb box of green beans and a case of strawberries.

Lesson learned?  When you go to Babies R Us, you have to locate more awesome things as fast as possible to get passed the craziness that is that place. Mission accomplished.

Here's to finding your bit of crazy and a way through it!

Raina

35 by 35

     I've been sitting on a list of things I'd like to accomplish, and since I am whipping out things left and right this week, I thought, lets wrap this list up and get it posted!  I'm 34, and I have PLENTY of years left in me, but man...why wait to do anything?  I could probably lump some of these together, so I may come back and do some editing of this list, but nothing will come off-just get noted and combined and something else will get added on. This has been an amazing few years so far, why not add a little direction to make it THAT much better-here's to you, all! 

May your next year be fun, productive and adventurous!

   

35 by 35

      1.    Finish all my currently existing sewing projects 

      2.    Make cheese

      3.    Brine my own olives

      4.    Finish my patch quilt

      5.    Learn to knit

      6.    Have a baby-I’ll admit to kinda cheating, since I’m half way there.

      7.    Go deep sea fishing in Washington

      8.    Brew a stout beer

      9.    Make Blackberry Sage Jam

      10.  Have an Etsy shop with my necklaces

      11.  Host a meatloaf throw down-ala Bobby Flay style

      12.  Go to Bacon Happy Hour at Locol 360

      13.  Help strangers more often

      14.  Go to Barkley Bay

      15.  Hike with aforementioned baby

      16.  Remodel the kitchen (again)

      17.  Learn to cook Indian food properly

      18.  Learn to make Pho from scratch (better than before)

      19.  Learn to properly make bread from scratch,  so the loaf is not                    

             actually weapon-like

      20.  Build a craft studio

      21.  Learn to filet a fish without destroying the meat

      22.  Have more picnics

      23.  Go to the Sequim Lavender Festival

      24.  Go clam digging

      25.  Sing. In Public. Sober. (this should be pretty easy, since I don’t   

             drink these days)

      26.  Ride a mechanical bull-sober. I’d like to confirm that I’m as    

             awesome as I think I was

      27.  Stop being so scared to share my writing

      28.  Trim 1/3 of the stuff out of my house

      29.  Complete another painting

      30.  Make pillow case shirts

      31.  Make chipotle cherry jam  Hey look-crossed one off!!

      32.  Go on at least two of the rockhounding trips my Dad planned, but 

             never made

      33.  Learn to make horchata and tortillas from scratch.

      34.  Successfully grow carrots and peas

      35.  Take more craft classes

Who was super productive this weekend? THIS GIRL!

Holy. Cow.
I knocked so much off of my to do list this weekend, and It. Felt. Good!

I was able to get in some canning, and made spaghetti sauce and my chipotle cherry jam. I also got in some photography for Lucha Libre, a Mexican Wrestling event here in South Park. I cleaned and emptied boxes, trimmed back the jungle that is my garden, AND I finally uploaded my pics from Yellowstone (sheesh, almost two months later). It felt really good having 2 days in a row that I could spend doing whatever I wanted, and it was nice to be in public again to see friends and show off my non-existent baby bump (it's there, really!). So...without further delay, may I bombard you with pictures!

OH I love Jam. To the left-smokey, delicious chipotle cherry jam; to the right-veggie spaghetti sauce. 

This guy was so fuzzy and cute. I had to stay across the road from him, but  he was still close enough to see his cute fuzzy feet!  Look at those things! Aside from the whole "he could rip your face off" claws, those are too cute.

I hadn't ever seen one of these things.  It's a Prong Horn. Looks like he found something delicious to eat!

Much like the bear, I wanted to give these guys a big ole hug. While it wouldn't have ended  well,  they still  made me squeal like a little kid when I saw them!

Most of the animals just wanted to show me their bums. I was ok with that. On Facebook, I tagged either myself, or Nick, as a bum. 

  

These two were awesome. The calf had been stuck across the river and was crying out for it's momma. Eventually she braved the river and jumped in, to be greeted, and then left, by her momma. Apparently, she had things to do!

Lastly, Nick and I. This was after a long hike, and I am assuming way too many pictures. I bet he was just  ready to be done. I do have to say, I may be the queen of the self-taken picture! :)

So there you are, a photo recap, months past due, and a few things ticked off the to do list. Yay!

All my best

Raina

Lucky #13, or "The Ultimate Craft Project"

Today is a big day for me.  Today, I:
*Turned 34!
*Hit the 13 week mark in my pregnancy.


Oh, wait. You didn't know that did you!?  I have been keeping this a secret-with everything that has been going on in my life lately, and the amount of stress that has been hitting, one worries. Well, I don't know if that ever changes, but I didn't want to make a huge announcement and then lose the baby.  I got to see the baby a few days after finding out about my Dad. It made the hurt lessen, and I had a unbelievably huge sigh of relief when we saw the little one moving around a little and the flicker of a heartbeat. I just felt like it was all going to be OK. 


It's truly been "The Ultimate Craft Project", except that it's way cooler than knitting.  I started trying this past January, and then after a couple of months, it stuck. It has been a crazy whirlwind, and now that life has settled down a bit, I am looking forward to really experiencing this pregnancy for everything it has to offer.


I've been pretty lucky. I haven't really been sick. No real morning sickness (just a few days at night). Nothing.  It's been quite nice. The occasional shortness of breath and increased need to tinkle can suck it, but in the scheme of things, that's not so bad. I still don't look pregnant, just that I saddled up to an all you can eat diner table and ate a bit much. Again, not so bad.

Because calling your growing critter "it" feels weird, we're going with Noodle until we find out what we're having. Whether calling your baby "Noodle" or referring to the little being as a "critter" is any better than using "it", I dunno. The name Noodle makes me laugh, and if the baby was anything like I was, Noodle will be long and lean.

There's so much that I can say about this, and so much to feel, but for now I'll just say this: 34 is going to be an amazing year, and I feel so darn lucky to have amazing people in my life, amazing adventures, and now an amazing little person that I am going to be able to bring into this world.

And without further adieu, Noodle, of course, this is now over 5 weeks old. So imagine a slightly smaller head and more...well...baby-ness going on in there.  That may be the cutest baby, ever.

All my best, to all of you!
Raina

Every child begins the world again.... ~Henry David Thoreau

And....Done!

The past 5 weeks have been a whirlwind.  1500 lbs worth of a dump run, close to 30 donation trips; one giant storage locker and two homes full of boxes and new furniture later, I am done moving my Dad's things.  I have some pretty random new collections and more tools and fossils than I know what to do with, but it feels good to be done with the move. I now have the task of organizing everything, and finding a way to get a 7'4" stereo cabinet that I built with my dad into my house. It looks like it is going to come in through my front window!

Today is the 4th of July, and I am sitting here in a little patch of sunlight, drinking coffee after having mac n cheese for breakfast. What? YOU don't eat delicious mac n cheese for breakfast?? Normally, I don't either, but it's a rare day off with absolutely nothing that I HAVE to do, so I figured: Lets have a treat.  Mmmmm.....I highly recommend it; and I don't have to feel like a piggy, since I have the day to use up some of the calories.

With moving and cleaning 4-5 days a week in a city an hour away, I haven't been up to much in the way of crafts or gardening. This week and weekend will really be about getting that going again. A lot of things in the garden have gone to seed, so I will spending some of today trimming things back, pulling the potatoes, and harvesting lettuce.  I'll also go through a few boxes and try to trim down some of the stuff that I have. My goal by the end of the summer is to get rid of 1/3 of the things I own (old and new). A daunting task, but one that needs to happen. Next up is editing the pics from Yellowstone, which sadly are still on film and in my digital camera.

I also want to get in the fields and  pick some fruit for fresh jam. My cherry and strawberry jams have all been hits and I cant wait to try my hand at some raspberry jelly!  Maybe this weekend, when I have a kitchen again :)

The ultimate craft project is actually coming along well, and I'll have more on it in a week or so. I'm pretty excited about this project. If you can hold through the mystery, I think you'll be pleased with what I have been working on!

Lastly, is the coop!  The three new girls are in dire need of a big girl home. Nick and his Dad have been working on the massive structure between trips to Tacoma.  Its 5 times the size of my old coop, and will make for a great new home for all of my girls. I think today I will bring the new girls outside to check out their new world, and to see how they do.  Plus, the other girls have been cooped up (some pun intended) for way too long. It'll be nice to get them out and have them stretch their chicken-y legs.

Well, that's it for now! I have a pile of boxes staring me down and my Dad's paintings that are begging to be hung up.  Hope your 4th is lovely, relaxing and full of happiness!

Cheers,
Raina