-:- making and doing

My first trimester wasn't a ton of fun. They usually aren't, from what I understand, and mine was no exception. I was suddenly a very picky eater and foods that I usually loved were making me feel sick - this made me sadder than anything - I hated having food aversions.

But soon after I started my second trimester, a lot of that went away. I've just reintroduced spinach into my diet (and only in small amounts or ways that make it nearly invisible, like adding it to smoothies) and Mexican food and I are still not friends - but other than that, I'm happy to eat most anything that I encounter.

Best of all, my hands have started making and doing things again. I broke out my butters and oils and made an experimental belly balm for my tummy. (I really love it for nighttime, but am working on a formula that will be better for morning or daytime use.)

I started cutting cloth to make bibs, hooded towels, baby washcloths, and burp cloths. Mr. and I have grand plans for making some custom (potato) printed swaddling blankets sometime this December. And I'm back to knitting whenever my feet aren't touching the ground. Thanks to my amazing husband, this happens quite a bit.

We're moving through these colder days slowly, enjoying every minute of this amazing season we're in. Making and doing - and happily experiencing all of these new moments.

xox

-:- weekending

This weekend was all about gorillas, botanical gardens, vegan Chinese food from one of my favorite places, and the best instant ramen I've ever had. Lemongrass ginger flavored ramen - with no MSG (or other bad ingredients) and way less sodium than usual. So amazing.

I also went to yoga, cleaned up the house, started a new knitting project, and took a long nap - all while Mr. worked hard on the shores of South Carolina. This past week he has been in the field for the first time as a geologist, which meant I was flying solo this weekend.

Usually when I'm on my own, my tendency is to hunker down and not go anywhere unless I have to. I can knit, read, and cook for hours on end and be perfectly happy. But I've started to realize that I'm a bit happier if I balance some of that pure, unadulterated alone time with some time being out in the world, experiencing things. Finding new ramen. Chatting with my sister in a Japanese garden. Saying hello to some pretty wonderful primates. So that's what I did.

Balance is a beautiful thing. I'm so grateful that I found it this weekend.

xox

-:- gardening, community style

Well, the growing season may have started a bit late in these parts, but our little community garden plot is working hard to make up for lost time.

We're growing edamame, peas, carrots, beets, Brussels sprouts, kale, collards, cucumbers, zucchini, three varieties of peppers, eggplant, tomatillo, and millions of tomatoes. We've started to harvest the kale and collards and we're slowly starting to find baby cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, and eggplant.

I wasn't sure whether our tomatillo would make it, but it's hanging on and starting to produce little babies of its own - so I think this means we're well on our way to homegrown, homemade salsa verde. 

We're having a mild issue with powdery mildew on our zucchini plant - we are one of many infected plots. I've been treating it daily with a milk solution and it's already getting better, but I think I'm going to remove some of the lower leaves that aren't recovering as well.

I'm completely in love with our little plot. I love smelling the tomatoes when I brush against them as I weed. I love watching flowers appear and then disappear as they turn into things we can eat. And I love being there at dusk - through the soft light, all of the different greens really distinguish themselves from one another and you start to appreciate how blue the Brussels are and how yellow the zucchini is.

It's all just so lovely and rewarding. More to come.

xox

-:- why, hello

Our spring has come and (almost) gone, leaving us looking right at summer. We just returned from a wonderful visit back East to warmer temperatures and sunny skies. Our garden is planted, our tummies are craving fresh fruits and veggies, and our heavy winter comforters have been tucked away.

And this spring, while short, has been so full of lovely things.

We discovered pink blooms on our tree in the front yard, lily of the valley covering one side of our house (my all-time favorite flower), and a lilac bush. We have been hosting and visiting, collecting wonderful memories all along the way. Drop Dead Fred is available on Netflix. And tomorrow, Mr. starts a new chapter in his career as a geologist - instead of as a teacher.

Spring sure took its time getting here, but it was worth the wait. And I can't wait to see what summer has in store for us.

xox

-:- busy weekending

This weekend was the first super busy weekend we've had in a long time - but it was busy in the most wonderful, relaxing way. Saturday involved yoga, the Shepherd's Harvest Festival, and vegan Chinese food for dinner. So good.

We cleaned up a bit when we got home from our full Saturday and then Mr. successfully brewed his first batch of beer while I finished those socks and got them blocking. By the end of the night, our house smelled like fresh beer and wet wool - what's better than that?

Today was dedicated to our poor backyard. We pruned and sawed and pulled huge roots from the ground. We raked and swept and planted clover seeds in one of the few places where sunlight is a certainty (it's a special mix for the bees). There's still so much left to do, but luckily, it's just the kind of work we love in these parts.

Very little of what we had planned for our yard today actually happened, but we made significant progress nonetheless. And we did manage to come home with several plants from an amazing local plant sale, which will have to wait to be planted in the ground just a bit longer...

xox

P.S. Happy Mother's Day!

-:- muffins and tulips

We have a busy weekend coming up, full of woolly things and big plans for our backyard. It'll be nice to get outside and finally start getting our hands dirty - we've been waiting a long time for this part of the season. We'll be planting a bit of grass, replacing a bit of fence, and hopefully setting up a little raised garden bed along that freshly-replaced fence.

In the meantime, I thought I'd show you this past week's highlights: vegan muffins and tulips.

The muffins are mango lime with coconut on top, from here. I used half all purpose flour and half this stuff. They were so good. And oh, those tulips. They are so good too. Spring has officially sprung.

Wishing you all a wonderful, peaceful weekend.

xox

-:- what we've been doing lately

 // yoga

Last weekend, I started my official yoga practice at a studio near our house and loved every minute of it - I went to a beginner's workshop on Saturday and my first hatha class on Sunday. I loved my little at-home practice, but I love taking classes even more.

// finding sprouted bulbs...or the lack thereof

Last October, I planted several bulbs in our front yard and have looked forward to their blooms during these long winter months. As the snow started to melt (and fall, and melt again, and fall again...) I kept a watchful eye on our front yard, looking for those first true signs of spring. What I found instead were several deep holes and the papery remnants of those beautiful bulbs. Only three tulips survived.

I was mad at the squirrels responsible for the destruction until I watched a pair of them on a tree, acting especially twitterpated, and realized that I love fat squirrels that make healthy babies as much as I loved my bulbs.

// eating subs

Mr. has become an expert at building vegetarian subs. This one has arugula, tomatoes, cucumbers, hummus, avocado, and a bit of goat cheese. We rounded everything out with carrot sticks, salt and vinegar chips, sparkling water, and a melon for dessert.

While we ate, we smelled burning charcoal from every grill in the neighborhood and listened to kids laughing outside until their parents called them in.

// basking in front of open windows

This weekend was the first time in a long time that we've opened our windows and we all loved it - especially those boy cats. Wilbur has also started shooting outside every time the door opens - he never goes very far, but he loves darting into hard-to-reach places, like under the patio stairs.

On an unrelated note, a series of photographs I took inspired me to learn how to make animated gifs - this is my first one, featuring our Claude watching a bird. It was really fun to put together - but I will have to be more mindful of my camera position from now on so the next one isn't so dizzying.

xox

-:- hyacinths

One of my favorite things about this time of year is enjoying the blooms from my forced bulbs - they always get me through the last few weeks of winter when I feel like I'll go nuts unless I immediately get to dig in some dirt. And although these lovelies are already gone, I have an embarrassing number of photographs to remember them by.

This was my first time forcing hyacinths in soil and it was just as easy as forcing them in water. I was a little unsure about how much water to give them, how many to plant in a pot, and whether their roots would be okay, but everything worked out beautifully.

I loved having so many of them bloom at the same time - and they seemed to grow so quickly once they got going. It made me wonder how I couldn't see them actively growing - it was like they stopped as soon as they felt my eyes on them and then started again as soon as I looked away. Cheeky hyacinths.

xox

-:- lexicon project // brood

This week's word was brood - can't wait until mine blooms!

To see other interpretations of this week's word, visit Rachel.

If you're interested in playing along, visit Corrie for next week's word.

xox

-:- winter plants

1. Paperwhites - these bulbs were something like 59 cents each at our local nursery and I love forcing bulbs in winter. I just put them together in a bowl with some of those semi-flattened glass marbles (they were left over from some other project) and some water. Paperwhites don't require chilling, so they are pretty easy to force and these had already started to sprout when they were in the store. Pretty soon they'll be in full bloom and I will be in love.

2. Cyclamen - despite my love of bulbs, other plants that go through a dormant period make me kind of nervous. But I love cyclamen enough to give it a shot - the flowers are so pretty and they smell really sweet. Hopefully I can keep it alive through its dormancy - if I can manage that, I think this plant will be around for many years.

3. And, of course, mistletoe. Not that I need an excuse to plant one on Mr. (pun totally intended). When we pull it out each year at the start of the season, we'll remember our first Christmas in our new home.

xox