mating birds and gnome chones

it was a fun filled week...finally felt normal after a surprise jaunt up to oregon in search of hot springs. I caught some poison oak using the forrest as a loo...met samson the amazing t-rex at OMSI, fell in love with noodles on the streets of portland, gave a weather report on tv (for real), went to the zoo and saw an amazingly colorful bird (was too spaced out to catch the name) running around crazy with spring fever, got some handmade love in the mail from batik bum, sewed a new cover for my omen quest cards, found something to make me laugh until i pee here, attended an alter ego party and met some great artists, made some new hair and dress for matilda, and probably missed out on some good ole fashioned sleep! last nights dinner: chicken curry soup with coconut lime risotto....yummy!

fix and figs

sown snails that saved a paint schmeared dress....scarlett now calls it her slug dress...felt and ribbon slime trails....then figs figs figs...wow! Last week when i saw baskets of figs at the co-op i got so excited because figs, like pomegranates...are a favorite rare treat. i only like fresh, i only like real...and they were sooooo delish! Recent photos of India and Scarlett...little sisters!

the little things

i love...heirloom tomatoes...flowers like paper...ripe juicy (are you kidding me delicious) peaches...brown sugar cubes in cute tiny bowls...tiny succulents, bathing beauties, trashy art, piles of handspun yarn...Russian nesting dolls. just to name a few

let them eat pie, too!

Grandma is visiting us from Oregon. Naturally, we took her to the blueberry farm to pick berries. We made out with 3 lbs in 20 minutes of picking! Plenty for a little pie...and then some! India made a friend, and fed him more blueberries than any one-year-old should eat, while Scarlett picked. Scarlett by far ate the most berries. Funny enough, she was stealing handfuls from my bucket while insisting that hers were "special pie berries, not for eating" ooookay. Pie today, scones tomorrow...grandma is going to gain 10 pounds this week, easy!

let them eat cake

Scarlett really wanted to bake a cake, and who can blame her? Doesn't everyone want to bake a cake...everyday? me too! So we have been driving around California, adventuring the roadmap fantastic, and have not baked cake. boo! But today after the farmers market we came home to bake cake. Simple yellow cake, with millet even, and fresh market berries. We call it confetti cake because there are tiny raspberry and blackberry polka dots all over. For a quick topping we combined creme fraiche and aunt Kathy's (who is actually my cousin, but we decided to call her auntie instead) ohmygosh fantastic (how much sugar??) delicious strawberry jam..garnished with berries. Watch out strawberry shortcake! Did you notice that the photo is blurry? That is because after snapping fifteen shots of Scarlett's hand grabbing the cake, i settled for this photo in which India is pulling on me making it impossible to focus. ha!

food blogs

i found the best food blog. This woman is a knitter and a major foodie and makes beautiful vegan food. There are great descriptions, easy recipes that sound soooo good. There are videos!!! That is the best part...I just watched half a dozen and its so inspirational...not to mention makes me feel like getting new cookware hahaha well check it out

veganyumyum.com

crack attack

see the three birds?

joan miro?

sweet gesture...or pure evil?

well who knows why, but when i stood in the pantry gathering ingredients for "muffins" i had more cocoa and chocolate chips, less carrots and raisins.... um chocolate muffins? okay okay...they ARE cupcakes...not one bit healthy...just pure sugar crack. so flippin' addictive and good, that i sent them to a friends house...as a gesture...a 'thank you' if you will...but is that really very kind? Demented, maybe? I mean, they have kids...and this is just like a bomb waiting to go off...did I really deliver to their doorstep a recipe for kids screaming, running through the house yelling "NO!! I wont go to bed...more cupcakes!!!" bouncing off the walls, pushing, wrestling, crying, smiling, laughing...more screaming... ohhh dear...i think an apology is in order...but at least I warned them...and unlike their mail carrier who just left some candy...i put the plate of sugar crack in a boring paper grocery bag...was tempted to label it...but then i thought, well, do the kids read? Undoubtedly, i bet they can read the word 'chocolate'...i know i could at an early age...and 'coca cola' (another form of legal crack) was recognizable to me years before I could read...in fact, when i was tiny, I drank disgusting chemical infused water from a "coca cola" glass that held flowers at the floral section in a safeway cooler...just because I recognized the brand. gross. the floral departments used to keep flowers in glasses of water...with some kind of "do not eat" package of chemical poured in for "freshness" i wonder how many other kids drank that gritty water? Anyway...im sorry about the delivery of sugar crack to your house friends, it'll never happen again!

I had fun making the cupcakes...designed with chips for polka dots...and i drizzled batter on some parchment and baked for a few minutes, let it cool and made cool designs...that part was super fun...scarlett helped me make the birds...and she made a few faces, but before i could get a picture, tiny fingers had already smeared and dipped their way through the icing, o well.

orange you glad i love chocolate?

winter citrus...oh thank you! When its cold, and rainy, and you've got no place to go, or friends to call on...a beautiful ball of sunshine is at its peak of perfection and the market is overflowing with every variety of citrus right now...a sphere of bliss awaits us in these cold dark months. The satsuma, or seedless mandarin, is my favorite. Easy to peel fleshy, oily, beautiful smelling skin, with large aroma popping pores...mmmmm so perfect! I was inspired to eat the skin, loaded with bioflavonoids...to ward off that common cold, right? and truth be told, it was really tasty! So, to celebrate this bit of heaven in winter, i sliced up the peel and dipped it in melted dark chocolate, and ate it up...yum.

crazy batt channel

love this batt...its merino, sparkle and this crazy kinky super gold wool that we got in the fall at the fiber festival in redway...some new sheep or something...but the kink is off the hook...and it looks like dolly hair, lovely!

we still love pizza...and the greatest thing is...scarlett eats more veggies now...i have been putting spinach, chard, squash, onions, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, even beans (yeah i know sounds weird, but twas good) and im still crazy about the pizza...the crust, really, its a charmer!
4 cups flour (unbleached white and wheat mixed is my fav)

1 1/2 cups warm water
yeast packet

pinch salt

2 TBS olive oil

throw the salt in with the flour, add yeast to water, when yeast bubbles add olive oil then add to flour and salt mixture....wooden spoon in bowl or food process...knead a bit on floured board...split in two...make pretty balls...place each ball into a Ziploc for 45 min or an hour...then roll as thin as possible...viola! (thank you ellie for recipe and tips)

AND....i have been washing, dying, drying, teasing, blending and carding a fleece of lovely merino and a polypay blend....oh boy it smells like sheep in here...but its been so fun, and scarlett has been helping me "tease, not break" (her words....my little spinner in training) the locks and crank the drum carder....such a great introduction to color theory! we have created every color of the rainbow and then some...about 20 batts down, 20 to go...then we'll dye some roving and get to spinning...cant wait! Scarlett also gets to help with the dying because i let her dye with kool-aid and vinegar...super fun.......and she agrees that kool-aid is pretty weird because it dyes fiber. she finally quit asking me for a taste.

India started eating food this week...avocados...yum! (thank you jessie for the yummiest avocados ever!)

we have also tripped to the beach with our friends...and have enjoyed all things sand and surf.

with mercury still in retrograde we are focusing on appreciation and fortune, of which both we seem to have in abundance....a photo montage for you:

digging a tunnel to china

the babies, dylan and india

india so happy to get that stick by herself

yummy avocado...exciting first food!

playing in scarletts kitchen...sushi and peaches!

eating plastic sushi

blending the perfect peachy pink...with sparkle!!!

helping to card wool...of course she is without any clothes!until its time to go outside she refuses to dress....and as soon as we come home, the clothes come off. "i love naked, mama"

grocery outlet...20 for a buck...really pretty!

dye pot...kool-aid colors

i love pizza

now that scarlett is 3...she is changing...here come the wild and wonderful years. it seems like shes so much older now and a totally free thinking person..we have full blown conversations. i am loving it. im witnessing her spirit define itself and grow increasingly more detailed as her vocabulary and personality explode.
India is growing so fast. she sits up on her own and rolls over, scoots and gets all around! She laughs and squeals at her sister...and they love entertaining eachother...they are a sweet match.

ohhhkay. so, the sun is still a shinin' and were out in it everyday (its been in the 70's)...riding bikes, playgrounds, grass splashing (something new to me...its warm like june, but the grass is soggy...no puddles but lots of grass to get the job done) which keeps me busy. winter = the pile. the huge pile of stuff by the front door. I have baskets, bins, bags, hooks...tried it all...cant keep that pile from creeping up...whats in it you ask? muddy boots, the shoes we need when the boots get muddy. and still more shoes. longsleeves, hoodies...more hoodies we need when first hoodies get wet and muddy. extra socks. more socks when cant find pair. extra pants, yup you guessed it, MUD. bike helmet, knee pads, hats hats and more hats, jackets, scarves, bags...water bottles, popcorn (hmmm still tastes good after a week hmm)

nevermind...onto more interesting things. Ive been staying up late dying wool...start massive carding of wool after weekend. sweet accomplishments.

pizza by scarlett

i love pizza. one thing i love about being me is my predictability for phases. im now in pizza phase. last night good friends made pizza from scratch...cant recall when i even ate pizza last, but im hooked. got recipe for crust, made some...well actually let scarlett roll it out and top it...it was delish. am making more on sunday. will most likley make about 5 more pizzas until im so sick of pizza i wont eat it for a year. phases im currently enrolled in: mate no coffee, stevia no sugar, baskets not bags, library books not movies, and in staying up late with yarn phase, awhile ago was in quiche phase, that was fun.


today after scarlett was ordering around all the wild pony pirates at the park with her big stick we stopped off for frozen yogurt. such a treat. i dug up the 1.50 from my center console and she got a huge cone. i love redwood yogurt...i love that its a buck an 4 bits. i love that they have couches and a piano. scarlett played piano and rattled through her repertoire...the traditional nursery rhymes...about 10 of them. people clapped...i tried to make like i wasnt laughing myself into a stomach cramp. mental note: bring video camera next time.

i still dont have a calendar for january...and lately ive been feeling stuck...apprehensive and slooooow...i know the moon is waning...but feel disconnected with out knowing all the phases and sure enough mercury is retrograde...could have guessed that. mental note: get calendar by new moon!!!