Life has thrown me a curve ball and I have found myself back to work in the real world. I recently took a job as an eCommerce analyst which means I am once again a working mama. I have been home with my kids full time for the past 4 years. It has been wonderful and I have loved every minute of it but it was time for many reasons for me to go back to work outside of the home.

I have been avoiding my blog because it was a way for me to not deal with the big question hanging over my head. What will become of my craft business? I am currently still producing and plan on continuing but at a different pace. I look forward to the challenge or working outside the home and running my little business. The key to keeping it going is to finally decide what has been working and not working for me. I plan on sticking with earrings and fiber arts. I have had a great summer selling my wash cloths at the Burlington farmers market through the wonderful Missy Bly of Clean City Soap. She created a super cute display incorporating my wash cloths with her handmade soaps. My new fiber necklaces and scarves are selling well at Trinket on Church St in Burlington and the response from people has been great so I plan on keeping those going also.

I am excited to announce that I will have work from my fiber arts collection on display at the Art Hop this year as a part of the Burton employee show. Kick off the Art Hop this Friday 9/11 at the Burton reception from 5-8pm. Food, drink, music, and lots of art. Read more about the event here.

Blueberries

I picked a lot of blueberries today. I had my two kids with me but they ate more than they picked. I love freezing blueberries and having them for the winter. I did this last year and I had enough frozen berries to last me through March.

Weekend upate

I am back from a wild weekend away by myself. This was only the second time I have ever left my family since becoming a mom almost 8 years ago. It was a much needed break. Two nights of reconnecting with lost friends. Some I haven't seen in 15 years. As much as I missed my family it was wonderful to be on my own for three days. No kids to watch, no butts to wipe, no one to feed but myself. I missed them madly but it was worth it. The trip also made me miss home a lot. A place I couldn't wait to get away from when I was younger, a place I now find myself wanting to be in again. My life seems to sometimes be one of always living in the past and future. Never the present.

This weekend was all about living in the moment, enjoying, reconnecting, remembering, wondering, reliving, and just plain being.

Let there be lettuce

Let there be lettuce
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

I harvested lettuce from my garden yesterday. I love lettuce. I wait all winter for fresh grown. There is nothing like it.

Every summer I wait for the famous Claussen's All-You-Can-Carry Cart Load Sale. Basically it's $25 for all you can carry or $50 for a cartload. The carts are two levels and you are allowed to pile them as much as you can. I have been going to this sale for three years now and I have it down to a science. I was on a mission for tall grasses so I had to be ok with giving up a lot of space in order to fit the 8 pots of tall grasses I loaded on my cart. That's ok thought because I also managed to get about 10 pots of periwinkle, two large pots of impatients, and about 4 flats of various annuals I picked out. Overall I think I easily scored hundreds of dollars worth of plants for $50.

I wait all year for this sale. This year due to budget constraints I didn't spend a dime on gardening in the spring. I am lucky to have a May birthday and even luckier to usually get gift cards to Gardener Supply which allows me to get the early spring gardening needs that I have. This usually includes compost, mulch and seeds. Instead of buying all my spring flowers I grow them. I started seeds indoors this year. I planted sunflowers, zinnias, lavender, basil, oregano, chives, Italian parsley, and snap dragons. I love planting from seed because it allows me to start indoor gardening in March which really helps me get over the last of the winter weather. Planting and caring for the seeds starts in March and goes through the spring so it keeps me busy and eliminates my need to buy lots of expensive plants.

some of my seedlings early spring.

So I wait and wait for the announcement of this sale and then I pounce. After so much garden thrifting this is my day to finally let loose and have fun shopping for plants. Now I have to just figure out where I am going to put all those grasses. I am wishing now I had grabbed more of them. Will my front yard get them as a fence of sorts or will they become a wall for the children's garden? I have some thinking to do.

Since buying my house 5 years ago I have been on a super tight budget. I have a long list of house projects I would love to do but no money to do any of them yet. Working in my yard has provided me an outlet to transform my surrounds but without spending a lot of money. Sure gardening can be expensive but it certainly doesn't have to be. Most of my projects include reusing plants and materials I already have.

My front yard has always been a problem. Super sandy dirt combined with a big ol' pine tree smack dab in the middle = not so good grass. I don't like chemicals or even using lime so I have just suffered with a nasty front yard so far. Last year I decided to rip up a small corner of the yard and turn it into a garden.

front yard last year after creating just a small corner garden



This year I decided away with the lawn! I ripped out all the grass (what little there was) in a section which included the pine tree and mulched it all.

front yard before - ripping it all up


This created a rather large empty garden space that I had no budget for so I decided to move as much as I could from my back yard to fill it in and put in a patch of flat stones I also moved from my back yard.


front yard after


I also used some old stumps that have been in my driveway for years by ripping off the bark to show the beautiful wood grain underneath and moved them in.

One became a bid bath by using a stump and placing a large teracotta
planter dish I had in my shed to hold water. Take that you $80 bird
baths. This one was free!

bird bath stump



The other holds another piece of a tree and a small bird house.
They look great and it was so much better than trying to haul them off
somewhere.



It is a work in progress but I love it. The only cost to this project has been about $40 in mulch. I could probably use another layer. I could see spending another $20 to cover it the way I want. Ok wait I did buy one plant for this garden this year. But I bought it with a gift card I was given to Gardeners Supply (my favorite place on earth) so I still didn't actually pay for the plant. Other than that all the plants, stones, and garden accessories have been recycled from my back yard. It will take some time to fill it in but it will be well worth the wait.

Every spring my in-laws come for a visit from Alaska. My father in-law is usually in need of a project to work on so for this visit we suggested helping us paint the lattice work that surround my back deck. We spent about an hour painting before deciding to just rip down all the lattice walls instead for a more open feel. We are always talking about how beat up our deck is and in desperate need for new boards. the kids can't even walk on them barefoot for fear of splinters. My father in-law (the true DIY master) suggested later that day that we give the deck a face lift by prying up the existing boards, flipping them over and reattaching them. Brilliant!

The boards were put in with old nasty nails in need of being removed anyway so our plan was to use deck screws this time to attach the boards. Our only cost in this project was about $30 - $40 in deck screws and the cost of a new crow bar to replace my neighbors which we broke.

painting the lattice walls before deciding to rip them down.

tearing down the lattice walls.


ripping up the old boards. yes we actually pulled up each board, flipped it over and reattached them.




figuring out what boards to put where.



The boards were not perfect on the flipped side but they were in a lot
better condition than the side we had been using. A little bit of
stain and they look brand new. It was a lot of work but so worth it.
I love that the whole family worked on this together and that we saved
a lot of money and lumber.

a full set of pictures can be found here.

miss you MJ

miss you MJ
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

Yes I was a Michael Jackson super fan. Is that so hard to imagine? You may have your opinions about his music, you may have even more opinions about his private life, but Michael Jackson was a major influence in the music industry and he will be greatly missed.

Food, Inc.

How much do we really know about the food we buy in the supermarket and serve to our families?

I am very excited about this movie. Please watch the trailer, watch the movie when it comes out, and get involved. I truly believe that food (or the lack of real food) is the biggest health crisis we have in this country. We have to open our eyes, read the labels, educate ourselves, stand up and say no more!

Curve ball

4 year ago I wrote this post when I was about to quit my full time job to stay home with my children full time. I had a budding jewelry business and high hopes of getting my childbirth education certificate so I could start teaching. Here I am 4 years later contemplating the opposite. I am actually interviewing to go back to work outside of the home. How did I get here? Well the economy went to shit, my husband had to take a pay cut this year when his company had lay offs, house taxes went up, and the list goes on and on. We were skimming by for the past 4 years but now we are beginning to sink. I never finished my childbirth certification class like I wanted, my jewelry business gives me some spending money from time to time, I have had some consulting work on and off, but nothing that provides the steady extra income we now require. It sucks. I am sad.

I can't help but think perhaps if I had just finished the things I had set out to finish I would be in a different place. I am excited about new challenges, but nervous about all I will be giving up at home. At this point so much is up in the air. I am doing lots of interviewing right now for several very exciting opportunities. I am hoping that the right one will fall into place. I will choose to think positively and keep moving forward as I always do.

Monday harvest

CSA Farmshare
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

I love Mondays now that summer is here because it means my weekly pick up of my CSA farmshare. This week I received two heads of lettuce, salad mix, garlic scapes, pint of strawberries, dill, scallions, and cilantro.

Ever wonder what to do with garlic scapes? There are many possibilities but my favorites are to add them to stir fries, make garlic scape mashed potatoes, or garlic scape pesto.

Here is a recipe for garlic scape pesto.

Garlic Scape Pesto

Ingredients:
1 cup garlic scapes (about 8 or 9 scapes), top flowery part removed, cut into ¼-inch slices
1/3 cup walnuts
¾ cup olive oil
¼-1/2 cup grated parmigiano
½ teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste

Directions:
Place scapes and walnuts in the bowl of a food processor until well combined and somewhat smooth. Slowly drizzle in oil and process until mixed. Scoop pesto out of bowl and into a mixing bowl. Add parmigiano to taste; add salt and pepper. Makes about 6 ounces of pesto. Keeps for up to one week in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Mustard greens

Mustard greens
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

It was time to harvest my mustard greens today. My first summer harvest. I love putting mustard greens in my salad. Gives it a nice spicy kick. In other garden news my starwberries are growing and turning red. I can't wait to pick fresh berries from my plants this year. I also can't wait for my garlic to be ready. I am really sick of buying garlic from Argentina.

Eat good food: Baked ziti with roasted peppers

The original recipe comes from the Moosewood Restaurant New Classics I have altered it slightly and put my version here.

Ingredients:
Tomoato sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
2 garlic cloves minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 28 oz can of crushed tomoatoes
1 tablespoon of dried Italian seasoning

2 Red peppers, seeded, and cut into long strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound penne
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 cups grated provolone cheese
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon dried oregano

Directions:

In a saucepan, warm the oil and saute the onions, garlic, salt, Italian seasoning, and black pepper on medium heat until the onions are very soft, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile preheat the broiler. Lightly oil a baking pan. Breing a large pot of salted water to boil.

In a bowl toss the peppers with oil. Spread them evenly on the baking pan and broil for about 10 minutes, until soft and slightly brown. Set aside and lower the oven temp to 350 degrees.

When the water boils, add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. While the pasta cooks, stir together the two cheeses, the garlic, basil, and oregano. When the pasts is al dente, drain it and stir it into the cheese mixture.

To assemble, spread 2 cups of the tomato sauce in the baking pan. Layer on the pasta and cheese, the roasted peppers, and finally cover with the rest of the tomato sauce. Bake for 20-30 minutes until piping hot.

What a weekend!

Friday was my birthday. JB took the day off from work so I was able to enjoy a lot of gardening time. Later on we all went out for dinner at American Flatbread and enjoyed some delicious pizza and lovely desserts. I had originally wanted to have some friends over in the evening but because of the holiday weekend most people were away. Despite the lack of a big celebration I felt like it was a very satisfying birthday. I had a wonderful time with my family and received some lovely gifts.

lovely milk glass ring my husband bought me off of Etsy from this wonderful seller

Another gift: the new Neko Case CD. Love it!

JB enjoying a locally brewed beer at American Flatbread

Saturday was a busy day. My littlest turned 4 last week but we had to postpone his birthday party because the whole family got very sick. We recovered in time for this weekend so we had his party on Saturday instead. Just a few of his little friends, pizza and cake. He had a blast. It was low key and nice.

After his party we headed to a goodbye VT party. Some of our closest friends are moving to Boston so they threw an afternoon/early evening celebration that consisted of a keg of Switchback (local VT brew), good food, and great conversation. The weather was gorgeous so we rode our bikes to their house. they live right on the bike path so it is a quick trip for us. It was a lot of fun but very bittersweet. We will miss them deeply.

Sunday was a lounge day for us. We were all exhausted from the festivities the day before so we stayed low key for most of the day. We have become friendly with another family from my son's school and they had invited us over for a BBQ at their house so off we went again. I made a potato salad to bring and surprised myself by eating fish (blue fish) at the party. It was good! I am slowly trying to include fish in my diet (I have been a veggie for 16 years.

new bistro set

Today I splurged and spent some of my birthday money on a three piece bistro set for my deck. I recently lost my glass top table when a wind storm swept my umbrella up and then landed on top of my table shattering it to pieces. I couldn't afford to get a new one this year but thought this little bistro set would do the trick. I just love it! I also recently sold my chiminea pot and used the money to buy a metal fire pit today. I love shopping without really spending any money.

fire bowl

Fairy House

My oldest son just finished the Spiderwick Chronicles and is obsessed with fairies and all the likings. It tickles me pick that he is so into the world of the unseen. I am reading the books now too so I can have a better feel for what is going on in his head right now. I welcome this new phase of imagination and play and I want to encourage it as much as I can. I figured since most of the family is home sick today it might be a good time to build our own fairy house in the back yard. My kids were very excited about this idea. We found some good info on fairy houses here.

The boys found a hollow log we were using for decoration in our garden and they thought it would be perfect. You can also start with sticks and bark or whatever else you can find. The more natural the better. Using glue and rope might be a sign to the fairies that the house is man made and turn them off from entering. We then used some bark, grass, pine cones, broken shells, and dandelions to decorate our house. The last step is to put a small gift to the fairies inside the house.

We had a lot of fun making the fairy house and plan on making more throughout the yard. I can't deny that I still believe in fairies. These houses are as much for me as they are for the kids.

Make one today. They are fun and easy and require no money. Back yard fun is free fun!

Yellow flower fabric earrings

Yellow flower fabric earrings
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

New for summer! light weight fabric earrings. get them here. Lots of other colors available too.

Amazing!

fruits of my labor

fruits of my labor
Originally uploaded by subsixstudios

Here is a peek at my seedlings that I started indoors this year. I have been bringing them outside every day to harden them off. I planted Basil, oregano, chives, sunflowers, sweet pea, Italian flat parsley, zinnia, cosmo, and lavender.

I look forward to planting them in the garden in a few weeks.

Welcome Odie!

Two weeks ago tomorrow we picked Odie up in NH. He made the long trek from TN on a truck with lots of other dogs waiting to meet their new owners. It was a crazy drive down because we did it in one day. We thought we would have more time to hang out but it was raining when we got to the pick up site so we just got him off the truck, bonded as much as we could in the rain for a few minutes, then loaded him up in the car and headed back to VT. I can't believe it has only been two weeks because I feel like he has been living with us for months. He is a super sweet and settled into our home immediately. He is very easy going. After our experience with Zimo I am now convinced this was all meant to be.


I have more tales to tell about this past week. I will fill you in this weekend. Right now I must go enjoy my deck because it is so warm out and the kids are in bed.

xoxo

Sorry for the slight disappearance. Things have been a bit hectic over here. My husband went away for work and of course I got hit with the worst migraine I have had in a long time. I think the last when was during another work trip of his. Pattern here anyone? Yes I know that stress is one of the many triggers of my headaches. They have been in control (somewhat) over the past few years. I still get them daily but I hadn't had one that knocked me on the couch for some time. Mostly I can just walk around with them and look semi normal. Since the death of our dog, John's travels, money problems (the list goes on) I have noticed an increase in my headaches. Luckily I have an appointment in May to see a new Dr at a great headache clinic. I am not holding out hope but I am excited to see if they have anything new tell me.

Odie

In some exciting news we have decided to adopt another dog. His name is Odie and he is between 12-15 months old. He was a stray and spent a lot of time in a shelter in TN before finding a wonderful foster home where he has been for the past 4 months. We went through the same organization where we got Zimo. Golden Huggs Rescue. I know I have said it before but the two woman who run this and their team of volunteers are amazing! If you live in Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Maine or Vermont and are considering rescuing a dog please try this organization.

We were supposed to pick up Odie last Saturday but tornadoes hit TN pretty hard and he missed getting on the transport truck. We were sad to not be able to get him but we are glad he and his foster mom are ok. So he will make the trek from TN to NH this week instead and we will travel to NH to get him on Saturday. We are all very excited to meet our new best friend.

Besides getting the house and yard ready for Odie I have been planting more seeds (lavender, basil, and zinnias) and working on my garden beds. The garlic I planted last fall is now peeking out in my raised bed. I love growing garlic. Last year was my first attempt. I hope I get a better yield this time.

I have also had my head deep in planning a spring craft show. I run an organization called Queen City Craft and I will be putting on the spring edition of the Queen City Craft Bazaar on May 9th. 46 amazing indie crafters will be there selling their wares.

I am going to put S down for his nap and cuddle on the couch with a cup of tea. It is cold and damp here today. Bring back the warmth!

xoxo