quiet moments of 2011 (on film)

Film reminds me of quiet and simple moments in life. 

Where patience supersedes the perfectionist's need to review, edit, or take away. 

I'll never argue with that kind of reminder.

finale of summer

The warmth of summer nights have come to  pass.
As much as I love the endless summer days, there is an internal clock inside of me that readies itself for autumn weather in California.
So before the fog rolls into the valley, we corralled all the best people we know had Le Diner en Blanc.

 sangria at dusk

I couldn't decribe a more perfect way to say goodbye to summer. We decide to *try* make these family dinners happen as much as possible, rotating hosts, chefs and even themes

We were serrated by Chris and co with long forgotten 90's hits of our generation 

Until next year summer, I can still feel your warmth on the cool nights.

zen kiting.

 That feeling you get when you let yourself float belly up in the ocean,
subjecting yourself to the waves and rhythm of the tide.

Peddling so hard on your bike you psychically can't make the bike go any faster.
Then standing up on the peddles, locking your knees and allowing the momentum to carry you as far as the bike will take you.

Looking out of the window of a plane, realizing you smaller than you really are, and simultaneously part of something bigger that you don't always understand.





I get those same flutters in my heart

When I fly a kite.

Or when I stand

On the edge of the world.

Hope everyone had a great weekend. 

We spent Saturday in Cayucos with some friends, beating the valley heat.

I'm happy to announce that Kim (comment #4, the number picked randomly by Jake)
is the "grad prize" winner of the Armenian Cucumber seeds :)

I'll be emailing you soon Kim, congrats!
I'm sure they will do great in that warm LA weather!

Armenian Summer Salad (and a mini giveaway. don't get used to it)

If you haven't had the chance to eat an Armenian cucumber, it quite the treat. 

Unlike an the common English cucumber it is not bitter (it's actually related to a melon), 

and is always consumed with out having to take off the peel. 

One of my favorite seasonal treats is the Armenian summer salad. Served fresh and chilled it can really hit the spot on any hot day.

cucumbers, tomatoes and onions all from my garden

2-3 Armenian cucumbers halved and cut into smallish quarters

1 red onion cut 

2 tomato cut

olive oil to taste

balsamic vinegar ( not too much, it can get tart)

fresh lemon juice (about a quarter slice)

dried mint (mmm i like LOTS of it)

sea salt

pepper

Mix and chill for 30 minutes 

If you want to try your hand at growing Armenian cucumbers (they do very well in  hot areas with little to no maintenance)  leave your email address in a comment and I will select a reader at random to send a package of seeds :) 

Give away will end 12am Saturday July 9th

what the warm months bring

fragrant lavender for delicious tea.

a flourishing garden

warm nights spent at the local farmers market (p.s. it's my dream to have veggie booth there one day, more on that later)

poppies covering our landscape

slowly but surely, adding more to our blank canvas of a house. (next i need a vintage settee & more frames to expand)

does this really need a caption??

Weekends spent in Pop's shop.

Time with family and friends celebrating anything, and everything we can think of,

welcome summer

hello summer.

 you've always been my favorite.

spring/summer projects 2011

We have accumulated quite the list of things to accomplish around our house during the "warm season".

the list goes as follows:

1. plant summer garden.

Jake and I have been reading one magic square  if you have a small space (even large to medium) to garden I highly recommend this book. It gives you great ideas on how to most effectively use your space while still getting the most out of your crops. We found out what plants do well next to each other and where to plant them, thus, the map.

We also planted corn, watermelon and more Armenian cucumbers along the side of our house, not to mention newly planted apricot, nectarine, plum and pomegranate trees.

So much to look forward to this summer, my salivary glands can hardly contain themselves :)

2. take out ugly white carpet and replace with wood.

our carpet is a mess and barely a year in existence. It has seen its fair share of stains the worst being the 4 foot long bbq sauce stain I contributed last summer.  Jake has been bringing me home wood samples to choose from and we decided on a restored wood finish.

Source: beautifulpaper.tumblr.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

My kitchen is a similar grey, but we are keeping the tile and the carpet in the bedrooms. So long ugly white carpet!

3. Finish painting the interior of the house.

We currently have 4/8 walls painted in our living room/dining room/ kitchen area (its really one great room) because I like to change my mind. Jake refused to continue painting (who would blame him we have really tall walls) until I decided what exactly I wanted to do. I've mentioned this before but I have interior indecisiveness. However, I finally decided on something and I am NOT going back.

Source: gallery.apartmenttherapy.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

This is my inspiration.
I decided that it IS possible to have 3-4 different colors in a room, opposed to one monochromatic bland color. Especially since we are dealing with such a large space, I was afraid I would get worn out of the same color scheme.

here are some more pictures that inspired my color choice.

Source: wherethesidewalkbegins.blogspot.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

Source: nicety.livejournal.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

I can't wait to reveal the end results! (and God bless poor Jake for letting me vocalize my 287 different ideas. HA)

4. Outside patio furniture.

I've always loved the idea of having big comfy patio furniture to fall asleep on on cool summer nights. I stumbled on this really simple idea, and really, there are never too many pallets on my end of town.

Source: vtwonen.nl via Kathleen on Pinterest


 Stay tuned for our progress!

Welcome Summer

It's going to be 108 degrees today and I'd like to formally welcome Summer to 2010. I told Jake that it really felt like summer this year. Our weekends have been filled with friends, family coming in from near and near (EGYPT) swimming, BBQs, frozen yogurt, and this is actually the first time I've actually sat down to take a break.

In TWO months Violet will be 1 year old. No longer a little tiny baby, but a vivacious, curious, TODDLER who is becoming her own person everyday.  Our friend Michael Chapman gave us (well mainly Violet) a huge compliment that I can't stop thinking about. He said, "Violet is one of my favorite PEOPLE." He and his wife Melissa explained that he mean to say "PEOPLE", not  baby and I really realized that she was her own person. It's so easy to say, "Violet acts just like...", or "Violet looks just like....", "When so-and-so was her age they did the exact same thing". I'm guilty of trying to solve the personality too, but REALLY.. REALLY at the end of the day, I just want Violet to be VIOLET. She doesn't have to be exactly like her mom or dad or aunts or uncle, I just want Violet to be exactly who she is intended to be.

The only choice Violet doesn't get is, she has to player soccer...Sorry kid, those cards have been dealt for you...(only kidding, kind of)

Our Family from far and wide!

Fun swimming sessions, some liked it, others didn't..