Green Thumb

My vegetable garden is going in...yay!

I’m pretty lazy when it comes to gardening so I always tend to do transplants instead of seeds. It’s slightly more expensive than seeds but it also provides wonderful instant gratification! Like sod versus lawn seed. Dig a few holes, plop in a few plants, and BAM! Instant garden.

 (Don't Mind the grass in the corner, I'll get to it...like I said...lazy.)

This instant gratification method has worked marvelously for me in years past, so when Jon cautioned me as I dumped organic pre-emergent (corn gluten) on my garden, “Are you SURE you won’t be planting any seeds?” I quickly waved him off, “Pffft! Seeds are for fools!” Okay, I didn’t really say that, but I did quickly dismiss the idea. I’ve never used seeds before, why would I now?

Fast forward to this week and I’m searching the stores for my plants, and strangely, I can’t find some of the new plants I wanted to try this year…carrots, beets, radishes…are you seeing a pattern here?

Root Vegetables.  

Apparently, transplanting root vegetables is a big no, no.

Rookie mistake.

So, I decided to roll the dice and buy the seeds anyway. I’ll wait a week or so, throw ‘em in the ground, and see what sticks. Guess we’ll see how good organic pre-emergent really is (I’m guessing from all the weeds I still have to pull, not very). Live and learn.

Here’s is what has made it into my garden so far...

First up…perennials. Oh how I love thee, a lazy girls dream:

(Rhubarb)

(Chives)

(Winter Onions)

(Thyme)

Transplants:

(Basil)

(Rosemary)

(Parsley)

(Bib Lettuce)

(Spinach)

(Arugula)

(Broccoli)

While I was busy planting all of this, Sydney was busy throwing mulch in her eye, almost eating a rock, and getting her leg stuck in a bench. Nice. 

Weekend Renewal

This weekend was awesome. The weather was so warm (85 degrees!) it felt like we hop-skipped over spring and jumped straight into summer!

It was hot and windy so I cranked open our windows and let the fresh air blow through the house. If it were up to me, I would rarely use our air conditioner, even in the heat of summer. There is just something about open windows, curtains blowing in the breeze, and sounds from the neighborhood, that I LOVE….and I don’t mind putting up with a little sticky heat in exchange for it.

Funny how that changes…I remember growing up without air-conditioning for most of my childhood and loathing it. Maybe that’s part of the charm for me now though…maybe something about the sticky heat and blowing curtains brings me back to my childhood.

I was finally able to relax and enjoy the weekend because my baby girl is doing SO much better! After six long days of flu and very high fevers, Sydney has finally kicked it for good! (Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers.) She’s still on antibiotics for her ear infection and possible pink eye, but she’s been off Tylenol and Ibuprofen since Saturday and has had no fever whatsoever!

We spent a lot of time outside this weekend. We went for a couple of walks around our neighborhood and it was apparent that we weren’t the only ones stoked about the weather. Virtually every garage door was open and people everywhere where scurrying about….mowing lawns, riding bikes, planting flowers, playing basketball…soaking it up. I didn’t have my camera with me, but I put Sydney’s little pink sunglasses on and she actually left them on for the entire walk. Too cute, I think she finally realized that might do some good! 

Back at home, Sydney played on the patio, I had a cold beer, and sawyer mostly chewed on a stick.

Sometimes...he tried to kill the stick.

Sydney is still loving this sand and water table and Sawyer is loving his new, ergonomically correct, drinking bowl.

Sydney watched me fill a bucket with some water and decided she MUST give this a try. How she can stay crouched like that for so long, I have no idea, but she filled and dumped, filled and dumped. 

Also….check out my loot! My sister and I went to a consignment sale this weekend. The checkout line was crazy long, but Sydney and Cameron did really well and it was totally worth it! I got all of this (6 capris, 8 shorts, 1 dress, 4 skirts, and 19 tops) for $90!! That works out to about $2.37 per item…Score!

I'm so glad things have gotten back to normal around here. We are healthy and happy, and this weekend brought a much needed sense of renewal.

Happy Monday everyone!

{M.I.A.}

Sorry, it's been a while since I posted. I've been meaning to post, but I haven't been able to put my heart into it...I've been preoccupied all week with a very sick little girl. Sydney's been fighting some kind of illness for a week now. It started out with an upset stomach and fever. She got to the point on Tuesday where she couldn't keep anything down, not even water. Her stomach seems to have gotten better, though she still doesn't have a great appetite back, but it's this nasty fever that she just can't seem to kick. Once or twice a day, usually in the late afternoon, her fever will spike to around 105 degrees. Luckily it's been easily controlled by medicine and doesn't peak for very long, but it's still scary. On top of everything else she has an ear infection and possibly pink eye now! Poor little thing! She's really been in good spirits throughout this whole ordeal, I think it's been harder on me than her. The doctors keep assuring me that it's most likely viral and we just have to keep an eye on her and wait it out, but it's so hard to sit back helplessly and wait. We have another appointment scheduled for Monday, but I'm hoping and praying that we won't need it, that this fever will finally break over the weekend for good. If you pray, it would mean the world to me if you could pray for Sydney to get better.

And just in case you were wondering...my baby's still a rockstar...even when she's sick...

Babies and Bachelorettes

Houston we have socks! After 8 long days, Sawyer finally threw up…not one but TWO socks! The infamous white sock that I saw him eat AND a purple sock that was a total surprise.  I’ve never been so happy to see dog puke on my carpet! I almost took a picture...but decided that it's probably best not to repulse my loyal readers with pictures of dog vomit. So you have been spared that treat. You're welcome.

.............................................

Yesterday I went to a baby shower for a friend who is pregnant with twin girls! The shower had a “two little chicks” theme. It was so cute! They did an amazing job with all of the details. And the food...we had brunch...SO good! Sydney had a blast showing off in front of all of the women. I can’t wait to meet these little girls!

Later that night, it was on to another gathering...this time a bachelorette party for my girlfriend. Twelve of us headed downtown for pizza and drinks. I had so much fun! I love these girls and I don't get to go out with them often enough these days!  (And yes, someone did buy the bride-to-be a forty of High Life...cuz that's how we roll.)

(Sorry, I didn't get many good pictures, so a lot of the ladies are missing. I'll have to get one of the group shots from someone else!)

Sydney stayed at grandma’s house, so I was able to indulge in the rare and fabulously feminine ritual of  leisurely preparing for a night out. The works…curling irons, mascara, heels...it’s fun every now and then to crank some tunes and get all gussied up for a night out with the girls! But, at this point you're probably thinking, "Well that's great Sarah, I'm glad you put so much effort into your vanity, but your a mom now, so there's really no point....I'm sure you won't be turning any heads." Well Doubty-Mc-Doubster...let me just tell YOU that this mamma still knows how to turn a few heads! Take for example the time last night where I walked around the bar with a piece of toilet paper stuck to my heel...and then proceeded to cross my legs and kick and flip my foot around, unaware that I was flailing TP like I was waving the white flag of surrender...and the guy who bought us a round of drinks tried to save me from my infinant stupidity by discreetly kicking the TP off my foot but was unsuccessful…oh yeah, I still got it. Hot! 

Doubters.

MCP Project 52 - Catch Up

I have some catching up to do! Here are my photos for MCP Project 52 from the past few weeks...

Week 11 - Darks and Lights

Week 12 - From the Jewelry Box

Week 13 - Just For Fun: A new headband and kisses for daddy

Lost and Found

Did I mention that Jon lost his wedding ring? Well, he did. It had been fitting loosely ever since he lost weight and well, it finally slipped off unnoticed and has been missing for weeks.  Jon was pretty upset about losing it and I’d been hoping and praying that it would turn up, but honestly, I seriously doubted we’d ever see it again. Jon had looked everywhere he could think of with no luck. Well guess what? The big man upstairs heard my prayers...and the ring showed up! Jon’s dad found it in his garage between some bags of fertilizer. (Thank You Tom!!!)

So, one wedding band has been found, but now we have another missing persons(or things) case to solve. This time it involves a toddler sock... lost somewhere in the depths of this creature.

Here, let me set the scene:

Creature: (Jumps onto couch with mouth shut tight and a guilty expression on face. Eyes dart quickly from me, side-to-side, back to me, down, back to me again. Mouth is still shut tight as a bear trap.)

Me: (Takes two steps toward creature.) “Sawyer, drop it!”

Creature: Chomp, chomp, (flash of white toddler sock), guuuulllpp.

Me: “SAWYER!!!”

Creature:  (Innocently flashes open mouth.) “What? I ain’t got nuthin’. Seeeee!”

Uggh! Why-o-why-o-why? Obviously this isn’t the ideal situation, but I guess I wasn’t overly concerned when it first happened. I mean the sock is relatively small and this dog eats everything!  In fact, recently he ate TWO of Sydney’s socks and the only way we knew about it was because he threw it up. (Right next to Jon’s face actually. Nice.) That’s usually how we find out he’s eaten something…he pukes it up or poops it out. So naturally I expected the same thing to happen here… except it’s been four days now and there’s been no sign of the sock. I’m sure my neighbors think I’m crazy because for the past four days, I’ve been scouring my house for puke and inspecting my dogs bowel movements like Sherlock Holmes.  No luck.

He’s been acting totally fine, but something’s gotta give soon. He’s either got to puke it up, poop it out, or I’m going to be up a creek, forking out big bucks to surgically extract it. Great.

Here’s a tip in case you find yourself with a creature who also confuses him or herself for a trash compactor. Hydrogen Peroxide. The dosage varies based on the size of your dog, so check with your vet before testing this out, but in my case a few tablespoons of Hydrogen Peroxide, administered within an hour of the sock eating extravaganza, would have resulted in forced vomiting, therefore saving myself all this worry and potentially a huge expense.

Oh where, o where has my little sock gone?

Oh where, oh where can it beeeeee?

Praying my dog poops out a sock soon,

Sarah

Soaking It Up

It's officially spring, the temps have been in the 70's, and we are soaking it up! Here are a few things I'm loving right now...

Spring Blooms.
Crocuses are in full bloom at my parents house. None of the flowers are blooming yet at our place, but they are so close!

Squishy Baby Faces.
My adorable, sleepy nephew. What is it about squishy baby cheeks and lips that make you want to smooch them?

Swings.
Sydney is obsessed with swings right now. She will sit in them for hours if you let her and she throws a huge fit when you try to get her out! We decided to set up a swing on our patio, not the greatest setup, but she loves it (Kameron tried it out too)!

Sand Tables.
Endless entertainment. We love our new sand/water table!

Grills and Kabobs.
We've been grilling outside almost every day, it's a warm weather must!

Weekends with Family.
My sister and brother-in-law came down and stayed with our parents for the weekend, so it was a full house...the best kind of house!

A Cold Beer On My Back Patio.
One of my favorite warm weather pastimes. 

New Picnic Baskets.
My nephew called it cheesy. I call it old-school romantic.

Clean Slates.
It's ready! We got the vegetable garden cleaned up and ready to plant.

Full Moons and Distant Lightning.

Have you seen the moon lately? Gorgeous. We had a bonus lightning show Sunday night. (Sorry, I didn't get great pics, but take my word for it, it was beautiful!)

Hope you're getting a chance to soak up this beautiful spring weather!