Sad news

My neighbor is moving.  Several states away.

Happy for them.  Sad for me.

No more shared dinners.

No more random kitchen wisdom.

No more craft stuff.

No more drop-ins.

No more lawn-mower-borrowing.

No more girl conversations.

No more 2-year-old wisdom.

*Sigh*

The friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you.  ~ Elbert Hubbard

Rubbing hips with the rich and green...

Today a friend and I went to Bainbridge Island to take advantage of all the island has to offer.  Bainbridge Island is the "in" place to be...full of wealthy elitests wearing birkenstocks and paying $20 for what costs $5 anywhere else.  But, the place is beautiful, clean, and full of unique things...

First stop...Bainbridge Organic Distillery...

Release day for their organic whiskey...sells out in one day, and one bottle allowed per person.  We got there an hour early to make sure we each got a bottle.  No, I'm not a whiskey person, I just wanted to get in on it....

I'm more of a vodka person.  Supposedly this stuff is so good it would be a crime to mix it with anything.  We'll see...

Lunch.  Yup...I drank part of mine.  And no, thats hard cider, not weak beer. 

We also stopped at the Bainbridge Farmers market, where I picked up some herbs to start my indoor herb garden...rosemary, thyme, varigated oregano, and chives...

mint...

And apple mint.  Hopefully my sunroom will smell delicious in a couple of days....

Atticus wisely stayed outside while I planted.

Yay!  Indoor garden!  (and outdoor crazy dog!).

2 hours til I meet another friend to watch the Sounders game (on TV, not going to the game....that is a goal though).  So I have 2 hours to figure out what to make with all the veggies in my fridge.

4 more days of work til my vacation.  I NEED IT!

The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.
~ WB Yeats

Thats right...

...I finally planted my garden.

*crosses fingers*

Sometimes it seems the harder you try to hold onto something or someone the more it wants to get away.  You feel like some kind of criminal for having felt, for having wanted.  For having wanted to be wanted.  It confuses you because you think that your feelings were wrong and it makes you feel so small because its so hard to keep it inside when you let it out and it doesn't come back.  You're left so alone that you can't explain. 
~ Henry Rollins

A pretty good start

Using this tutorial, and the motivation from my upcoming trip to Texas, I took...



This...

And changed it to this...

 

So simple.  5 minutes and 2 rows of stitches.  I didn't even change out the hot pink thread on my machine...

 

This...



To this...



This...

To this...

All were 99 cent goodwill specials - one that I had previously gussied up with some fabric paint.  Less than 30 minutes and I had 3 new tank tops!

In food news, this week I tried....

Creamy mashed cauliflower.  Pretty good.

Vegan carrot cake balls... YUM.

I have a super busy weekend planned.  Hope to get everything done before my last week of work before my mini-vacation to Texas! 

"You can pay me in vegan cakeballs." ~ my neighbor

Yesterday

Heading off to a birthday party...crossing the Hood Canal Bridge

One reason to love the PNW

Yup..birthday party for a 3 year old



This was my view all day




And this




I haven't had a fire-roasted hot dog in too long. It was way more delicious than it should have been.




My view near the end of the day...high tide.  Compare to the other pic when you look at the sticks in the water...


If a mistake is not a stepping stone, it is a mistake. ~ Eli Siegel

Hey good lookin'....

Vegan Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies.  Delicious.

Oatmeal Garlic Drops - For Atticus.  Not bad for humans either.

A skirt for a 3 year - party tomorrow.  My favorite skirt in the world to make.  I've made it for several of my nieces already.

Up close on the skirt...princesses and cupcakes.

Can't go bad with homemade wrapping paper...

Ahh yes...I bought a wheelbarrow. 

And am sporting bruises from falling off a bosu ball yesterday.  I shouldn't try anything that requires balance.  I know that.  It just adds to the layers of bruises underneath...

"Well," said Pooh, "what I like best," and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called.
~ A.A. Milne

The voice

There is a voice inside of you
That whispers all day long.
"I feel that this is right for me,
I know that this is wrong."
No teacher, preacher, parent, friend
Or wise man can decide
Whats right for you -- just listen to
The voice that speaks inside.
~ Shel Silverstein

Trying to step out of the funk

I've been in another funk.  No reason.  Just one of those life things, maybe?

Here's what I've been doing lately to try to remove the funk....

Hanging with my dog.  Sewing project in the background.  Yup, I'm just now starting on January birthday presents.  Sorry everyone.

Volunteered at Walk MS.  It was a fun and humbling experience.

Went out on a veggie limb tonight.  Modified a zucchini fritter recipe to include eggplant, mushrooms, sweet potatoes and carrots.  With some caribbean jerk seasoning and cheese.  Not too bad.  I enjoy having a food processor.

Hung out at my neighbor's tonight and shared the veggie feast.  We played "hit the fan with the nerf gun arrows" after dinner. 

Ahhhhh....at least looking at my pictures made me smile.

Fear makes us feel our humanity. ~ Benjamin Disraeli

Birds and the bees knees

So going to the gym and taking classes has done a number on my knees.  They're always bruised.  I blame gym floors and pilates moves.

Yesterday during crossfit I was in the middle of doing a complicated move involving an ab roller, a plank, and not enough strength, and I dropped the entire weight of my body on my knees.  The loud crack forced the instructor to make sure I was okay...

My knees today...

Yeah, they're okay. 

Some days I wish there was something that told me if my decision making was wise or not.  Should I follow my head or my heart?  They've been at odds lately. 

*sigh*

He dares to be a fool, and that is the first step in the direction of wisdom.
~ James Gibbons Huneker

Photo Dump

Instagram photo dump...

Friend's wedding dress fitting...

My favorite dog

The weather finally turned beauiful.  We've been outside every day.

Plant markers for when I finally plant my garden...

Some of them definately look better than others....

All together they don't look as bad. 

Three of my squashes finally came up!

Hanging out in the kitchen.

Yes, I will go.  I would rather grieve over your absence than over you.  ~ Antonio Porchia

Its....

Under every full moon, a woolgathering world idles. ~ Lorraine Skylark