12 in 2012 update

Here's an update on my 12 in 2012. This was such a great idea. In my break I took from blogging, I had pretty much forgotten about this list, so I'm especially excited to see how much we have accomplished.

1. Eat local food. 
We have received 5 of our CSA boxes, and so far we are LOVING it! I have never eaten so fresh in my life, and after the second week of having huge, lovely salads for dinner and new (to me) vegetables--garlic scapes, turnips, broccolini, and arugula, just to name a few--I found myself actually craving more fresh food instead of sugary carbs all the time.

2. Buy used. 
We actually quite recently made a spur of the moment trip to our local thrift store and scored big on some needed and some not-so-needed items. It was a nice surprise and a trip that definitely encouraged me to keep thrifting.

3. Read Little House series.
So far we have gotten almost to the end of Little House on the Prairie, but with all our summertime activity our bedtime routine has gotten pretty lax with the kiddos passing out after days full of jumping on the trampoline and hiking.

4. Hike! 
We really haven't gone on any formal hikes, but we have definitely been outdoors for much of the summer. We have done a local hiking trail (our favorite) a few times, started geocaching, and "hiked" out to see the world's largest spruce tree in Quinault.

5. Run a half marathon.
Although I did finally run a 5k in May (my first one ever!!), I'm definitely no where near running a half marathon, and at this point have lost motivation to do so.

6. Become a licensed daycare provider.
There have been some changes in my family that have made this one impossible, and I'm ok with that.

7. Sew more. 
Definitely still high on the priority list. Hoping it will happen soon!

8. Spend more time unplugged.
This one has become our habit now. We definitely spend more time outdoors or doing something constructive that we do in front of the TV. Hopefully it will last after school starts again!

9. Finish our backyard. 

10. Visit family more often.

11. Dye fabric. 

12. Reduce. 


Feels good to see it all written out. How about you? Were there changes or goals that you have worked toward this year? 

this moment.

::inspired by SouleMama::

this moment.

{Inspired by SouleMama.}

summer blouse

Yay for sewing! Now that I have decided I would work sewing and knitting into my schedule more regularly, I was finally able to finish this top I had started a few weeks ago. It's the Summer Blouse from Heather Ross', Weekend Sewing. I have had this book for a few years now and mostly have just perused the photos over coffee. I haven't been brave enough to try sewing something for me from a pattern for quite some time. I ended up using the pattern for the L because A) I'm a nursin' mama and still luggin' around some extra baby weight so I'm not as small as I was, and B) I stole  was given this lovely (old) fabric from my mom and wasn't sure if it had been washed/shrunk. Turns out it did shrink a little after I sewed it, but it was also super huge, so I added some darts (?) in the back and love the slight shaping it gave it. I really like the pattern and will probably sew it again, but like most people said on the flickr group, I'll add a few inches to the bottom and probably still sew the darts.

summer adventures

::in front of Merriman Falls::

::geocaching::

 ::at the base of the world's largest spruce tree::

::at the beach on July 4th::

I suppose we have developed a family tradition of continually seeing if its possible to take a whole family self-portrait when doing something cool. Yes, it makes it impossible to see what the cool thing is we're doing/seeing, but its more funny to me to see our reactions to it. Ahhh, the memories. I probably won't forever remember just how big the world's largest spruce tree is, but I do hope to remember how my little boy thought he was Spiderman while climbing up the giant roots that were sticking out of the ground, and how we felt so good after getting sprayed by the mist of the waterfall on a crazy hot day that we couldn't help but all make ridiculous faces... good times, these summer adventures. 

:)

15 minutes a day

Life has been wonderfully full lately. I think that's the best way to put it. I haven't been knitting or sewing much because we are just busy doing other things. But it hit me a few days ago that I haven't been able to have that creative time that really seems to fuel me, and I have found myself longing for the opportunity to sit at my machine or knit, and finally finish something. I discussed this with my husband's aunt recently and she said something about just trying to carve 15 minutes out of each day to do something you love. So I thought, sure, there's no reason why I can't find 15 minutes somewhere in my day to create. It has definitely felt amazing. No where near my plethora of finished objects I showed you all while I was pregnant with Milo, but man just sneaking in a few stitches here and there or sewing up a couple seams after the kiddos are in bed sure does feel good. It's an outlet I guess I need to stay centered, and feel like I'm doing something real and tangible. On that note, I decided to completely spoil myself and take my mom out on a knitting date. We enjoyed lavender and rhubarb soda in the park and got nearly a whole hour of knitting time in. Amazing. The sweater I recently started probably won't be finished anytime soon, but it sure feels good to know that its at least in progress and in 15 minutes a day, row by row, I'm knitting again.

Beach trip!

We went out to the beach early on the 4th this year and hung out in the freezing breeze for a few hours before calling it a day. The kiddos had a blast, hopefully you enjoy the photo bomb. :)