around here: garden edition

Around here our roses are spectacular. We do nothing to care for these poor bushes and yet they continue to impress.

 Around here we have four varieties of lettuce as well as spinach for literal fresh garden salads.

Around here our gardens are growing...potatoes sprung up between the two square beds. Obviously they were planted there, but it is clear that Rory is looking for every bit of possible garden space to plant more produce.

 Around here the snow peas are flowering, and they are beautiful.

 Around here we are growing carrots like Peter Rabbit. This will be quite the harvest.

 Our radishes are looking healthy. er...I guess I mean beats...

 And so are the potatoes.

And finally, around here our raspberries are beginning to ripen! I ate this one the second after I took its picture. Can't wait for raspberries on my cereal again.

34 weeks

Oh baby, do I love ice. I crave ice. I get excited when I remember that I can have a cup of ice at any given time. I chomp through at least a tray a day. I know that the best ice is at Ikea, Sonic, and the gas station by Perkins on France and 494. I would take a cup of slushy ice over dairy queen. I can't get enough. And recently I found this awesome dot-candy sized icecube tray...so now I can make tiny ice at home!

Ivar has trouble fitting on my lap to read books. It's a balancing act. He has to sit sideways and I have to help him stay on the ends of my legs. His oversized books are proving to be a challenge to hold, turn pages while keeping him on my knees.

I wake up each morning at 4 ready for the day. Wide awake. And so I blog, or make lists, or toss from side to side. I usually go back down at 6, but then I am not ready for the day when Ivar wakes up. Quite sleepy, in fact. I do believe by body is beginning its prep for baby #2 and the multiple wakeup calls that are coming my way.

I have a nerve in my right leg that is pinched daily. Usually when I am just taking a normal step, something will go awry and my back and leg seize up on me. It leaves me with the most quality preggers hobble you've ever seen. It usually lasts just an hour or two before everything settles back down again. But look for me...I'm that large pregnant woman who walks like she's large and pregnant.

I've started calling this baby Tigger. It dances and summersaults and cartwheels and kicks and swan dives all day long. My belly is not my own...it morphs shapes before my eyes and always keeps me guessing where the head is, where the feet are, where the elbows are. There is a lot of baby in there.

Toonces is looking for a new home

Well, our house is getting smaller and smaller as I get bigger and bigger with this pregnancy. And our beloved cat Toonces is looking for a new home. There are a couple factors at play... mostly that we are outgrowing this house, as well as the fact that Rory's brothers cannot come over because they are so allergic. We want to be able to have family here.

Of course this makes us terribly sad. Toonces is one of the greatest cats ever. I have described him as "part-dog" as this cat is quite social, tolerates a whole lot of Ivar, purrs so loudly we have to turn up the TV to hear over his rumble, and wants to be with the action. He is not a cat who hides from human activity.

Most of the day he sleeps and looks out the windows. He is declawed in the front, is amazing with kids, likes to drink his water out of the bathtub faucet and requires a daily brushing. Not that he gets that from us...hence, why he needs a new home. We just don't give him the love and attention he deserves.

Well, Ivar gives him plenty of attention. But with another baby on the way, something has got to give.

If you or anyone you know might be interested in this sweet cat, please leave a comment.  And if you'd help us spread the word and link to this post via your facebook, twitter or town crier, we'd be so grateful.

Toonces is a 6 year old male, long hair tabby
He can't actually drive a car
He is great with kids, super social, needs affection
He can be vocal early in the morning, so a second room to put him in is a good idea
He is declawed, fully vaccinated and just had a check up last month and is healthy
He is looking for a loving home with someone who can give him the attention he deserves
He comes with everything he needs and is free for someone who can provide a good home for him

1st grade track and field

I got to spend part of my morning watching some very talented 6 and 7 year olds race with bean bags, run with hula-hoops and relay with a ball on a spoon. It was very fun and Mara was fantastic.

I don't mean to toot my own horn or anything, but I think you should know that you are reading the blog of a girl who won first place in the frisbee throw in her own 1st grade track and field day, back in 1987. And I still have the construction paper ribbon to prove it. As it turns out, that was the only blue ribbon I ever was given for any sort of athletic achievement. Hence why I still have it 25 years later...

my painting teachers

I played hard last night. Oh how I played. It was awesome. I've had this in me for a long, long time and last night I began to mix paints and choose which size of brush to use and the process was pure joy. I purchased two huge canvases, but in the end, I started with three little ones. The smaller ones felt like a better place to start.

As I worked I kept telling Rory how good it felt to play. I thought about the three painting "teachers" I have learned from, all though their blogs and books, and how grateful I was for the freedom they have presented in not judging the art as its being created, not worrying about the final product, but rather enjoying the process, embracing the imperfections and waiting with anticipation to see what unfolds.

I thought I would take some time tonight to share with you these three free spirit teachers whose art I enjoy so much.

***

First, Donna Downey:

Lots of years ago I started following Donna Downey's blog. She is a mixed media artist who paints on canvas...just the fabric part. She makes awesome aprons and made a flower art project that knocked my socks off, so that I had to make one of my own. And then I got to attend one of her workshops when we lived in Nebraska, and that was about the greatest thing ever.

She's not afraid to get messy, and when I watch her Inspiration Wednesday videos, I always feel a freedom to create. Like there is no one right way to make art. She works with whatever happens as she creates and to watch the process is sort of mesmerizing.

I stopped following her a while back because I had to simplify my life and streamline my online time. But I still would consider her my first painting teacher. And I definitely still spend some good chunks of time browsing her site and her latest projects.

***

Next, Kelly Rae Roberts:

I was introduced to Kelly Rae Roberts by my friend Shannon. Kelly Rae was pregnant with her son the same time I was pregnant with Ivar, and at first I just liked tracking the size of her belly compared to mine. I think we were three weeks apart. But now I read her blog not only for her candid take on motherhood, but also for her creative joy as she lives her life, makes her art, and runs her very successful business.

When I was in California with Rory this spring, I brought along her book, Taking Flight: Inspiration and Techniques to give your Creative Spirit Wings. I can't say enough good things about this book. It brought something to life in me that wanted to come to life and I'm still listening closely to that little voice inside of me that surfaced as I read through the pages of this book.

***

And finally, Flora Bowley:

Kelly Rae introduced a friend of hers on her blog a few weeks ago. Her friend's name is Flora Bowley and she recently came out with a book that I purchased based on Kelly Rae's recommendation called, "Brave Intuitive Painting." It's a very free spirit book that does everything to empower you, encourage you to try and rid you of the fear that you might not actually be a gifted artist. Last night I kept thinking about her words, telling my critical self to calm down, telling my creative self to keep on playing. I read the book in one afternoon and still thumb through it for eye candy and inspiration.

***

I'm going to paint again tonight. It's really fun. And a really great way to nurture my own self after a day of care taking. Here's to all things bright and beautiful!