Monday, July 25, 2011

Garden Club Monday

I've come to the conclusion that we just can't grow a normal looking carrot. They do taste good, though!

We are harvesting like crazy and it just keeps on coming! We have a lot of zucchini. I'm going to attempt zucchini chips and will puree some to freeze. I used the puree in Princess' bread.

This is our crazy big cabbage. Can you tell how huge it is?

That's all for this week's Garden Club Monday. Head on over to our host, Aliceson at Feet Off the Table, to check out gardens around the country.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Lego Harry Potter -- Step 1

Harry Potter is the latest craze in our house. We are currently working our way through the movies and plan to head to the theater to see 7. 2 within the next couple of weeks. The other day, I told you about Princess selling her Jeep.

This is what she bought with the money she made . . .





This is the first set in a long list of Lego Harry Potter sets. Princess has put together quite the wish list. It's a good thing her birthday is coming up in the not so distant future!

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Project 2011 -- Week 29

Project 2011 is still going strong! Thanks to our Project 2011 host, Cate, over at Moments of Whimsey. Click the button on the left for the details.

Princess said that her last riding lesson was her best ever. She did a lot of trotting, which is a big accomplishment for her. Go Princess! The Lizard King's goal of building the Harley is still a work in progress, waiting for those magical pistons to show up. No worries folks, he is keeping himself busy.

I am still working on my photography and get to practice a lot since I like to post tons of photos here. My weekly super slow workout is going great!

I started working on the napkins I told you about a couple weeks ago. Sewing is a process for me and I don't move along too quickly, but I certainly enjoy it.




I've still got to finish cutting the mitered corners and sewing. Maybe I'll be done by next week?

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Moving On

Many of you know that giving up old toys, whether she uses them or not, is a very hard thing for Princess.  This Barbie Jeep has been up on a high shelf in the garage, waiting for Princess to be ready to move on. The Lizard King has had a buyer arranged for almost a year. We didn't want to rush her. She needs to do things in her own time. Last week, she announced that she was ready to sell it . . . but she needed pictures to remember it.

The Jeep is a tad small for Princess. That's right, her knees should not be touching the dashboard. ;-)


Stay tuned to see what Princess bought with the money she made.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Monday Garden Club

It's time for another Monday Garden Club update! Thanks to our host, Aliceson, at Feet Off the Table.

We harvested our first . . . carrot? Well, it's supposed to be a carrot. It tasted like a carrot and it was very good, even if it was very small . . . and weird.

We also harvested the first of our summer squash. Three BIG zucchini.


I can't wait to see what we harvest next! Now head on over to Feet Off the Table to see what's happening in gardens everywhere.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Shiny Things

Our local theater company, Beaverton Civic Theatre, recently started a children's program. A couple of days ago was the first performance, a play called Shiny Things. Princess was cast as the ladybug.


And at the last minute, I stepped in as mama squirrel.


Princess was a little nervous, but she had a lot of fun performing. She is looking forward to another performance in December. She is a little girl who likes to be in the spotlight.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Project 2011 -- Week 28

It's time for the weekly Project 2011 update. Can you believe that we are more than halfway through the year and I'm still keeping up with my goals? No? Well, I can't believe it either! ;-) Of course, there's still time to join in. Head over to Cate's at Moments of Whimsey for details. Just click on the Project 2011 button to the left!


Check out the Royal Goals by clicking the tab up above.

Princess is back in her riding groove! I am happy to announce that she is trotting and the fear has passed. Sewing seems to have gone by the wayside, at least for now.

The Lizard King has been busy, as usual, and is still searching for pistons.

I continue reading about photography (it's constant) and taking photos (yeah, that's constant, too). I still love my weekly workout and actually look forward to it. I think the fact that it's only once a week that really keeps me going! I am definitely building muscle and I'm getting stronger. So cool . . .

In the sewing world, I completed Princess' dress!!! She insisted on wearing it the moment it was done. I'm pretty pleased with it and I'm ecstatic that she loves it so much.





Now head on over to Moments of Whimsey to check out the other bloggers around the world and how they're rocking their goals.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Wardrobe Wednesday

The Lizard King built an awesome shed, not long after he came home from Afghanistan. Autumn and Winter set in, which is our rainy season, so painting the shed had been put off for a while. With the warm summer weather, it was finally time. Princess loves to paint, be it artistic or buildings. She also thought it was super cool to wear her daddy's t-shirt.





Now head on over to our Wardrobe Wednesday sponsor, Aliceson at Feet Off the Table, to see what all the cool kids are wearing.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

On Her Own

Princess loves being an only child. Well, technically she's not an only child, but her siblings are all grown. Lately, she has embraced her own special private time. The Lizard King and I usually head up to bed between 8:30 and 9:30. Princess, who still sleeps in our bed, always came up with us. We read, watch TV, talk and snuggle until we fall asleep, one by one.

For the past several weeks, Princess has chosen to stay downstairs after LK and I have gone to bed. She watches TV, plays the Wii, plays on her computer, plays with her toys or does whatever inspires her at the moment.


I often come down to find toys staged throughout our living space. Having a need for order, each morning, I pick up the toys and put them away so that Princess can again create her imaginary world. Yes, I pick up her toys and I do it joyfully, imagining what fantasies she may have played out the night before.

Princess will come up to bed around midnight. She and I decided on that (approximate) time together. There are things that Princess wants to do and in order to do them, she needs to wake up mid to late morning. So, around midnight, Princess comes up, changes into her nightgown and climbs into bed.

Freckles and I had a conversation about this ritual and she pointed out something that I had not thought about. Many parents wouldn't let their kids stay up on their own, unsupervised. It never occurred to me not to do this. I trust Princess completely and know that she will make good decisions. I know that if she needed me, she would come get me. Later, LK and I talked about it as well. His words of wisdom were that you need to set boundaries, but the boundaries need to be very far and wide.

What are our boundaries? In a word, safety. Princess knows (without us instructing her) that she should stay inside the house at night and keep the doors closed and locked. I make sure that any food she needs or wants is available and accessible.

I trust Princess to make good decisions and she does. Always.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Monday Garden Club

I thought we should take a closer look at what we have growing in the garden.

We had six tomato plants fighting for space in one bed, so we moved these two (and by we, I mean the Lizard King). One is doing well, the other . . . well, not so much.

Carrots . . .

Sorrel . . . I had never heard of sorrel until just this Spring. Oh my gosh, it is so good!

Romaine lettuce . . .

 Broccoli . . .

Celery . . .

Red potatoes . . .

Way too crowded yellow squash and zucchini (lesson learned . . . )

Kale . . . this was only two little kale plants to start. I thought that we wouldn't have enough with just two little plants, but now . . . they are huge!

Cabbage! Although, we've got some nasty visitors . . . cabbage worms. I keep picking them off . . .

. . . and putting them in a jar with a cabbage leaf to give to my friend for her chickens. But then, they started forming chrysalises! Princess is so excited and cannot wait until they emerge!

Here's a tomato . . .

Hot peppers . . .

A friendly ladybug. I love ladybugs!

And the strawberries are sending out crazy amounts of runners up the rock wall!

The fairy garden is in full bloom!

And we recently planted sunflower seeds. These are shorter ones that will grow to be about 24".

Now head on over to our Monday Garden Club host, Aliceson at Feet Off the Table to check out garden progress everywhere!