Esme's Room

I finally finished a couple of things to complete Esme's room.  It's my favorite room so far, with my ideal color on the wall, light gray.  It was bright peach before and my only must paint room before moving in.  I hate decorating, it feels so contrived and I'm indecisive.  I also hate making new holes in walls, especially these plaster ones that are prone to crumbling. I'd rather have bare walls than regrets. But kids rooms are easier, they have so many toys and colors add whimsy.  Rainbow wouldn't work so well in a bathroom or living room, right?

I was waiting for Christmas for a couple of things, to finally make my own child puppets that I've already made for 4 other kids and a fun kid chair.  First the puppets. They were so much work I wasn't going to throw them in some toy bin.  My second Christmas Eve staying up late a slave to the sewing machine. But so worth it, she loves them.

She's constantly singing Old McDonald.  I stressed for weeks on a way to display them, then my sister sent a package with lots of fencing for some wooden animals, so I stuck half of them vertically to the table with some 3M Command hooks, the best invention ever I've decided.  I stupidly tried to hang the book shelf with them, my first new hole in our walls had to happen.

Esme's obsessed with reading.  I'm a little psycho about maintaining order with her books, so I put most of them out of reach and a few favorites on her shelf (actually a spice rack from Ikea).  And I've wanted comfy chairs like my sister's kids have for a long time.  Also a big hit, they carry them all over the place, up and down the stairs, put two together to make a crib or a cave.

I bought the prints over the summer at the Provo Farmer's Market from some artistic girl selling her stash before moving to San Francisco. Four for a dollar or something ridiculous like that. 

I replaced those bi fold closet doors with a girlie curtain.  We've been able to cram quite a lot in our tiny closets. I love how a small house makes you be very organized and choosy about what you buy.

When Esme turned two I realized that she might not be a baby anymore, so her mobile was replaced with some bunting I made for a Relief Society activity and this felted butterfly from Switzerland.

And here's the last corner. Luckily my kids are pretty tidy and it pretty much always looks like this. Oh, and we recently got half the house new windows (only half because it's so expensive) but I wanted hers done for sure to keep out noise and heat from the sun during naps.  The rest were to get rid of the leaded-paint infested, single pane windows in the basement. There is only one more project I have in mind, to make a drum shade with this tutorial.

Our First Real Garden

Well, we tried with window boxes the first Spring we were married and living in a dark basement apartment.  I think we got two peas.

Hopefully this fall garden goes a little better, cuz we're jumping in all the way. We even built a little green house yesterday on a second patch closer to the house and I finally finished putting the compost tumbler together yesterday.  So now our first batch of future compost is cooking away.  I'm expecting bugs to get half of everything since it will be organic and my first time. And of course, the one vegetable I'm not as excited about is doing best: cabbage.

 
At least it's purple. And I don't hate cabbage, it just takes a week or two to get through one head of it. So cabbage recipes are welcome.  Hopefully we'll also get some leeks, broccoli, and

Colorful Carrots

Swiss Chard

Nero Kale

Next to the house I made a little green house since the teacher at a "Beginning Organic Gardening" class last week said it was simple. Pound 2 foot metal rods into the ground, bend pvc onto them and cover with thick, plastic painter's tarp.  I wimped out twice at home depot since everyone was telling me a different thing to do, but this weekend I finally braved up.  And hopefully the lettuce, onions, celery, kale, and chard have a happy warm place and their growing season will be extended.

Planted October 8th, we'll see what happens

I've learned a few things. Organic is more about nurturing the soil than the plant.  And adding instead of taking away.  So marigolds planted on the end of each row help attract pollinators and have a smell that pesky bugs don't like.  Smashed up egg shells to keep slugs away. Plant basil under tomatoes since it likes the shade. Plant legumes, peas, clover in the fall where heavy producers like tomatoes will be the next summer to naturally add nitrogen to soil.  And the only trick I've used so far, plant onions and garlic between the kale and lettuces, since their roots are high and are also stinky to bugs.  But that's only been going for a day, so we'll see how it works.

Cute little heirloom lettuces,
with purple onions between.

The Back Yard

There were quite a few houses in the neighborhood I picked out within our price range, all of them larger, many of them upgraded throughout, but this back yard sealed the deal.  Brian was hesitant, but realized that this yard would affect our lives more than, say, a formal dining room.  We already spend most of our time out there.  Tonight we had dinner outside, Brian mowed the lawn, the kids played on the swingset and picked berries. The sizable trees are on the west side, bringing afternoon/evening shade making it totally pleasant rather than unbearably hot. And the yard is not just a big area of grass and a few trees like I see when I peek to the neighbors' yards.  There are several different areas that make it feel more homey and useful.

Perfect slope for sledding, we're quite wimpy

Clothesline and fire pit 

Dining area, herbs, swing set, sand box, balance beam,
tree swing and hammock.

There are places to eat, play, relax, hang laundry, keep chickens, roast marshmallows and plant a vegetable garden.  We moved in too late for that last one, but the fruit is making up for it. Peaches started just as we got here and are coming to an end, but apples and pears are just about ready, raspberries and black berries are full.  It's really insane how many much fruit there is, but luckily the trees are mostly small and quite manageable. Elder berries, currants, goose berries, rhubarb, apricot, several plumb trees.  Everything needs to be pruned, so I better learn about that fast since I think it's best to do in the Fall. And natural pest control, the berries are the only things we haven't had to share with the bugs, and if I don't figure it out, Brian will go at it with toxic chemicals.  I'm especially excited about the Elder berries, besides making tea and syrup from the flowers, the berries apparently have a medicinal quality, helping prevent and quicken the end of colds and the flu.  I've already made some syrup.

Elder Berries

One of the last peaches

Bartlett Pears

The smart bugs seem to like fuji apples best too, not as much
as the honeycrisp next door.

And two bunches of grapes

Tonight's loot, being looted

I'm sort of glad we missed the apricots, it's the largest tree and I'm hoping to ease my way into canning and such, rather than being thrown into the kitchen for endless, messy hours right away.  Although, I love the apricot tree.  

I think it's beautiful with its twisted trunk and appreciate that it gives our hammock and tree swing a home.  A squirrel lives there too.  He likes to eat the inside of the pits.  We've found other creatures too. Like this praying mantis in the peppermint that I gather almost daily for some tea. 

I have to say, late summer would be a good time for visitors.  We gather all this fruit and since we don't know anyone around here we just keep it. Well, I guess I could knock on a neighbor's door. 

We enjoy outside time, but the house isn't bad either; I like it a lot.  It is small, but has everything we need. I'm glad Brian gave in.  It's the perfect place for us. 

Getting Settled

No house tour yet, sorry people.  Although, I have to say this place looks much better with our furniture than the last people's.  I'm probably biased.  I do have things workable, a couple boxes in the corner of each room and all the things I need out.  Unpacking is so tedious.  Today I threw a bunch of stuff away since that was easier than trying to find a spot for it.  And working on it with two needy kids and a missing husband,  right now shopping and having sushi in San Francisco, is going to take longer than expected. (I don't ever remember being jealous of Brian, but this week I am).  Thinking back, we unpacked in the condo after one day, we were so excited, not that we aren't now.  The kids do well out in the yard on their own for an hour or so, but they are much more content when I'm out there with them. Right now I'm using otter pops to buy time. And this:

We have been enjoying our close proximity to EVERYTHING. When the kids and I need a break we find out about the neighborhood, shops, playgrounds. Today we walked to his future elementary school, a rigorous 3 blocks.

She doesn't need a toy stroller.

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He also visited his pre-school and met his teacher. He's finally excited.  He used to be so scared. All it took was going to a pre-school open house in Sandy a few months ago. The sand table had him hooked. Luckily Miss Sabrina's class room, with an under water theme, had a sand table too.

It's a really good school that our realtor recommended as the best in town and they magically got a space for him a couple of weeks ago. It will be a class of 10 boys, good luck teacher.  Eli will help, he's going to be a hall monitor someday, I know it. In primary he tells kids to stop this or that if he knows its against the rules.  Miss Sabrina even said he could bring Mousie to school.  But the spot she gave Mousie to sit wasn't secure enough, so he'll keep him in his backpack in his cubbie.

During Esme's nap Eli and I were together instead of me sticking a movie in so I could get boxes emptied. We hung laundry and laid in the hammock literally watching it dry. A nice quiet moment. I kept thinking, this must be heaven.

A Few Firsts

It has been an eventful couple of weeks.  Getting a house, visiting a new place, and a few other things. Definitely the most firsts for Esme. To start out with, her first time on kid rides. We had to do something fun the last day before Shannon, Curt's mom, went back to work after a carefree summer, so we took the kids to Jungle Jim's, like an indoor carnival.  Esme was so adventurous! She begged to go on rides and even went by herself which I was still trying to coax Eli into. She even preferred to sit with Curt over her brother.  For some reason they didn't fight over the steering wheel the way siblings do and she liked his crazy driving and crashes.  When Eli rode with him he would chew Curt out when he got jolted and Esme just laughed.

Looks like a date to me

Must've been her favorite, judging by the expression.
For some reason my kids have blank stares on rides and get off smiling and saying how fun it was. 

It might've been Mousie's first carnival ride
too, Eli would want this recorded.  His obsession
with that mangy thing just keeps getting worse.

And Eli gave his first talk in Primary his last day there before we move. He did so well, not as shy as I thought and did better than our practice runs. I had to keep reminding him that even though I was whispering, he had to talk louder. 

Oh, and on the same day Esme looked so cute (not a first for her), I couldn't resist a photo shoot.

And, this past weekend we joined Brian for one of his martial arts trips. A summer camp in Aspen.  I realized he leaves us 4 times between April and October just for martial arts, not to mention regular work conferences.  He goes places like, San Diego, Aspen, Sun Valley, Idaho, Whitefish Montana, Arizona, and we've never gone since driving that far is a nightmare, we just sit around bored waiting for him to finish, and hotels are pricey.  But now that he's "regional examiner" his expenses are paid and Aspen's not too far.

During our long wait for it to be over I ventured into Aspen by myself and it was my first time there, or even in Colorado. Luckily it was a small town and the road practically led us downtown, where there was a playground and farmer's market going on, besides the snooty people shops.  Hopefully Brian was proud, all I bought were these irresistible pastries and some awesome red shoes for Esme at a second hand kids shop.

I think she knew how many calories were involved,
couldn't get her to take more than a couple of bites.


So I found a diner and we had ice cream for dinner.  She wouldn't eat any until I called the pink ice cream "strawberries" and she opened up.  Maybe I should start calling fattening food things like "cabbage" "green beans" or "salad" hmmm....

It's a hard life trying to gain weight. 

Anyway, it was a nice trip. Definitely easier to stay home, but good to see where Brian's going all the time.

As for the last "first". We came home from that trip and the next day went to get the keys  for our first house. So exciting. It is now 11:30 at night and Brian just finished painting two rooms. I'm not too picky, but the peach/cantaloupe color in Esme's room had to go.  Well, the first thing I did was tear out the carpet to reveal some decent hard wood. 

As soon as we got in yesterday they ran straight for the sand box in the back yard, already full of toys to play with. First time playing in their own back yard.

Pretty significant, I'd say.