bridal shower in a barn

We threw my sister-in-law a shower for her upcoming wedding. Being the huge horse lover she is, we surprised her by having it in an old barn. The theme was vintage and despite a few unexpected 'things' in the barn that needed to be cleared out, it went off without a hitch and the bride-to-be was beaming. Here are a few details of our sweet little shower.

The barn was inside this farmhouse



and this hand-written sign greeted the guests...



We hung picture garland in between the old stalls...



and made vintage garland out of crocheted doilies (thank you ebay!) and linen bias tape. (tutorial coming!)



And instead of using disposable plates, we had everyone bring a vintage plate that the bride would keep after the shower. The guests loved this idea and we loved the eco-friendliness of it. The bride now has an amazing array of unique plates to not only remember the day, but to set her table in a variety of ways. We used fun fabrics (just cut into squares with pinking shears) with a sewn crocheted ribbon as a napkin tie. The table settings were so very colorful and quite darling if I do say so myself. : )



We made wine charms from fabric flowers & jewelry hoops



and even monogrammed the bathroom towels with some hand embroidery.



Buffets were accented with more photos of the bride & groom.



It was a wonderful way to celebrate my sister-in-law and I loved the laughter we all shared throughout the weekend. And one of the best parts of the weekend you ask.... was coming home to this.

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eat your greens

Can you even believe the color of this rainbow chard?!? I have been super into eating greens this winter and spring, as I've been reading and learning more about the healing power of food and macrobiotic cooking. This tops of the list of very good-for-you foods. Here is my favorite way to cook them, and the kids love them too!

{Ingredients}

swiss chard (any kind)
olive oil (the yummier the better)
tamari (or soy sauce)
lemon (meyer if in season)
garlic (fresh if possible, and also optional)

{What to do}

Heat oil in the pan over medium heat. (We use our cast iron pan and it gives the dish a wonderfully roasted flavor) Add fresh garlic if using. Remove thick stems from chard and chop stems & leaves separately. Saute the stems first and add a splash of tamari & lemon juice. Brown just a bit and add leaves. Add a bit more tamari & lemon juice to taste. Stir occasionally and voila ~ super simple, really yummy, and total healthy green goodness! Give it a whirl!

P.S. Our csa starts tomorrow. I can't wait to see what's in our first lot!

awesome diy reclaimed wood bench

Ooooooohhh me too, me too! I would love to give this a go! It's so simple, rustic & clean, and completely useful to boot. The hairpin legs give it such a lovely modern touch. Love the fact that it's made from a recycled piece of beautiful wood. It just makes so much sense to me to find new uses for old things, and figuring out how to repurpose them is more than half the fun! Thanks Angela Ferdig for the brilliant idea and wonderful photo.

crazy hair day

The last month of school is full of fun activities at our sweet Montessori school. Mia recently had 'Crazy Hair Day' and this is what we came up with. Even her brother got in on the action and had the idea of putting a barrette in each of her five ponytails. So fun! Can I have a crazy hair day too?

chapter book success

We did it! We read Owen his first chapter book and he LOVED it. It was so much fun to look forward to each night (& a few mornings too) and this book was just perfect for our dinosaur loving boy. Because this was his first experience reading a book with very few photos, it was magical to watch his big, beautiful brown eyes imagining the story in his head and see a new world opening up right before his sweet little eyes. Way to go O! And it's only the beginning of oh so many more wonderful things to come.

sweet paul

Well I'm a huge fan of polka dots. They are just so darn cheery! I am adoring this cake featured in the very first issue of sweet paul magazine (photography by Alexandra Grablewski)... and those fun little flags on top... doesn't it make you happy? Thanks sweet Paul for the happiness, and have you ever seen such a lovely online zine?

recipes illustrated

Don't you adore this? What a cool blog and what a fabulous idea they had to have artists illustrate their favorite recipes! Here is one of my faves by artist Abz Hakim, but there are so many other fun ones to check out too. I have this little bug in my ear to give it a try myself (as I do love to draw)... I'll let you know if I do! Happy Monday!

a most thoughtful gift

During a run this morning, I was thinking about how great it feels to finally feel good again, to have the stamina to get through a run and actually feel energized afterwards, instead of wanting to take a nap! It was such a beautiful morning, and the view of the mountains from the trail just never gets old. As we sit in the middle of much uncertainty and stress, I started thinking about how I was going to get through all of this... and the answer came to me so gently, so simply ~ one step at a time, one foot in front of the other. This is how I ran today, just feeling my feet on the ground, the rhythm of my footsteps, and each of the words in the songs I was listening to ~ not thinking about all I needed to get done at home, or what errands needed to happen, but rather just being present. I'm finding that in those moments of being right here, right now, everything feels okay and everything feels like it WILL be okay. The bottom line is this ~ I have a choice ~ succumb to feeling like a victim in this mess we're in or choose to look at all the wonderful things in my life because when all is said and done, I have my healthy family and beautiful friends, which are truly all I ever wanted out of life. When I came back home from my run, there was the most splendid bouquet of flowers waiting on my doorstep. Oh the timing of this gift was strangely perfect. It was from the most thoughtful friend with a note reminding me to focus on something beautiful. It brought tears to my eyes, not only from her kindhearted gesture, but because it was just so simply true. Thank you dear Anne for completely making my week!

granola goodness

As I've mentioned, I love this cooking blog and Heidi's cookbooks too... I recently made the granola in Super Natural Cooking and it was seriously out of this world. I love, love, love it and have honestly made it three times in the last three weeks. I added my own mixture of nuts and the orange zest just makes the whole thing, not to mention the house smells so incredibly yummy while its baking and the roasted citrus smell lingers long after it's been taken out of the oven. Oh do give it a whirl!

this boy can sew!

oh my goodness... why does time go so fast? i have missed being here! life is certainly in full swing and there are times it feels more balanced than others, but here i am and so glad to get back to this happy place! i love how both my kiddos have taken an interest in sewing. not too long ago, o thought of and created this project all by his little 'ole self. i put the sewing machine on a floor table so he could see every part & reach the pedal. he's such a curious little cat that i think the most fun for him was being able to check out how every part worked. his project was oh so sweet... he called it a pouch (aka apron) for omi, the stuffed dragon he sleeps with most every night. i wanted to share, because he was so proud and these photos simply make me smile.