oh, to be...

Poolside.

Some days I long for a dip in a pool.

Any of these would do.

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oh, to be...

Midweek often brings daydreams.

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Dreams of a life that could be.  Dreams of a location, an event, a single moment.

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Daydreams keep creativity alive when life seems to gobble you up.

They calm the mind and soothe the soul.

They allow you to escape for just long enough.

"oh, to be..." will be my weekly escape.

A weekly series, if you will.

Hope you enjoy.

mysterious holes

Every tank top I own develops these holes.
Even some of my t-shirts.

I.don't.get.it.

For the life of me, I can't figure out where they come from, or what causes them.

Baffled.

And a little annoyed.

Have you ever had this happen?

Any ideas what could be causing them?

I've ruled out a belt buckle - I rarely wear a belt, and it's higher than where a buckle would rub...

Maybe it happens in the laundry?

Or maybe I have an evil, little gnome living in my closet that likes to gnaw holes in my shirts.

I should set a trap.

I just wish I knew what caused them.  Grrr.

a mud puddle and surprise onions

Sunday evening, we headed out into the backyard to do some much needed weeding, raking, and hula-hoeing.

Callan found a mud puddle.

Because that's what little boys do.

My boys, hard at work.

While pulling out some weeds along the fence, Travis discovered garlic and onions!  How random and incredible is that?!  There is a bowlful, sitting on the kitchen counter.  The house smells like garlic.

While we continued to rake, hoe, and pull, Callan kept the puddle company.

Head to toe.

When the green waste can was full to the brim, we decided to call it a night.

Bath time.

But first, a little nude mowing.

from the weekend

On Saturday, we had some "business" to take care of down in the city at a favorite pawn shop of Travis'.  It's always gun related, so I could really care less; I'm just along for the ride.  But because I tolerate this lovely place (Callan and I actually sit in the car), on, at least, a monthly basis, I always talk him into taking me somewhere I want to go.  After all, it's only fair.  On this particular weekend, it was ReStore. 

We don't have one in our neck of the woods, so it's a nice treat, every few months, to browse through their stash of building scrap and supplies. I had a list of items that I was hoping to find, but I didn't find a single thing on my list.  Figures.  I did pick up a few rolls of brown packing paper, however, for $0.99 a piece, some packing tape, and a pack of AAA batteries we needed for our label maker (which I put to use for the first time this weekend - woo!).

While shopping around, a few items caught our eyes.  We seriously considered this wooden desk, but it needed a lot of love and there's really no where to put it in our house.  But with the $19 price tag, we really almost tried to shove it in the back of the van.  A chair crush reared it's head when I spotted these metal + wood folding chairs.  But again, not quite sure what I'd do with them.  They're not exactly what I'm looking for to replace my current dining room chairs, so they got left behind with the desks.

After ReStore, we checked out a burger joint that Travis' co-workers suggested.  That's Travis' monster burger.  It was nearly the size of Callan's head, no joke!  I, on the other hand, had a grilled chicken sandwich, while Callan enjoyed his first corn dog.

Happy to be at our favorite store.  Target, duh.

Target had some great stuff going on in the rug isle.  I loved all the textures!  And that clearance lampshade almost made it's way into the cart.

I'm pretty sure you've probably eyed these sweet little berry baskets from Anthropologie before.  If you're like me, you probably have considered one or two of these little baskets for your kitchen.  How cute would your berries look all piled up in one when you open your fridge?  But the $20 price tag dissuades me every time.

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But check out what Target has!  Way cute plastic ware...including berry baskets!  A pack of 2 (a large and a small) for $4.99.  I snagged a set.  If I had the one from Anthro, I'd be fearful of dropping it and watching it shatter before my eyes (and I'd likely sob a pathetic, little sob), but I won't have to worry about that with these!  Now, mind you, I may be way behind here and you've already seen these, but I only get to Target once a month, if I'm lucky (the closest one is 1.5 hrs away), so this was a pretty exciting discovery.  Currently, grape tomatoes are in one, mini bell peppers are in the other.

We made a quick stop at a Walmart on our way home, and Callan got to ride on one of these fun carts for the first time (I've never seen these carts at "our" Walmart).  Such a big boy!  He wore the biggest grin and waved at people as if he were cruising around on a float in the Thanksgiving day parade.  But why do they make those suckers so hard to steer?!

Of course we found some new cars for him at the store.
And of course he fell asleep with them, in hand, on the way home.

Aside from some yardwork yesterday, this was the excitement of our weekend.

Hope yours was enjoyable!

rainy days

Nearly all of my fondest rainy day memories are from under the towering pine trees of the Adirondack mountains and from the shores of Lake Pleasant.  

Rainy days remind me of splashing through puddles, running through the raindrops, and chasing bright orange salamanders at sleep away camp in upstate NY, spending rainy days in the tee-pee, bookstore, and gym at Camp-of-the-Woods, listening to the rain pound on the corrugated roof of the Smith house, and just hanging out together as a family in our rental house(s), nestled amongst the pines, in Speculator, playing games, reading, crafting, doing puzzles, and watching the rain.  

I cherish these memories.  I am so thankful to my parents and grandparents for helping to create such wonderful moments for me and my sister to look back on, and for being such a big part of them.

Lake Pleasant, from the shore of Camp-of-the-Woods (source)

We had a beautifully dreary day today - gray skies, off-and-on rain, puddles.  I found myself longing for the scent of damp earth and pine trees.  I opened the kitchen window, took a moment, and then inhaled as if the familiar smell would suddenly fill my nose and I would savor the fragrance, then, exhale with pure satisfaction.  

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The smell of rain is all that hit me.  Don't get me wrong, the smell of rain, itself, is something wonderful, but paired with wet pine needles, it's something *amazing*.  And for me, it's linked to so many wonderful childhood memories, so that adds to it's enchantment.

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My goal in life is to create amazing memories for Callan (and any future children) as my parents did, and continue to do, for me.  I want to run through the rain with him, build sandcastles by the lake, let him drive (on a lap) down a gravel driveway long before he has a driver's license, I want to hike and camp as a family, I want to laugh, dance, and embrace all that our adventures entail.  I want him to catch a whiff of something, 30 years down the road, and be momentarily taken back to a fond childhood memory, making his face and heart smile.

18 month pictures