Memorial Day Weekend

Yea, it was a week ago, but I thought I would share a few photos from it. We went to Mike's mom's house for a bit on Monday. The kids swam of course, little fish. Layla isn't afraid of the water at all this year and hasn't been wearing water wings or anything. My kids usually start out the summer a little cautious of the water, and then warm up to it, but not this year. They were full speed ahead.

Layla jumping backwards into the pool.

That morning, Mike woke me up saying him and Blake would be back. So, with Layla curled up next to me, I went back to sleep. When I woke up again, they were home, and had started this:

Fixing up the flower beds! Here is a close up of one of the latest Zinnia's to bloom.

Probably the best thing about this weekend though, was Blake finally mastering the bike without the training wheels! We told him that as soon as he got good he could get a new bike. So yesterday after work, we took him to Walmart and he picked this one out.

Needless to say, it's been a week full of bike riding, and no signs of slowing down. She was pretty peeved that she didnt get a new bike, but she seems interested in trying it without the training wheels. (Notice the apron?)

He's already popping wheelies, although I haven't managed to get a good picture yet.

See ya soon!

Memorial Day

You are not forgotten.

What the heck is it? & Saturday Finds

First off, it's another what-the-heck-is-it post. What the heck are these, does anyone have any ideas? They were all over our yard yesterday morning and they are all over the neighbor's yards, too. They are pretty whatever they are.

This picture is kind of washed out, but I wanted to show how many there were in this bunch.

Another bad photo... this is the neighbor's house, right across the road.

And for yesterday's finds. I got all this for less than $1 at the catholic thrift. I never expect to find an apron, cause, well, I never do. But I looked through the linens and went to walk away. I saw a little cart with some potholder, etc in it, and spotted this:

It's got a few small spots I need to try and get out, but I thought it was cute! Here is a close up of the detail. It's across the waistband and at the end of the strings as well.

I also found this cute grease strainer. It says "Kromex" on top.

And I picked up three books. The one on the left is called "Six Good Friends a Story of Circus Horses". The copyright says 1947. The Young Helen Keller book I had as a child. Not pictured is Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born.

Here are two pages from the horse book:

Check out these illustrations!

Find anything good this weekend?

Mr. Crafty

I am not the only one who is crafty around here. Mike can be pretty crafty himself. He made this bookshelf a few years ago for Blake. We saw something similar in a catalog but it was pretty pricey. I want to say it was Company Kids, but I'm not sure. Yea, it looks cluttered, but I have learned that there is no point in trying to keep it tidy looking!

This idea also came from something we saw, this time it was a Target ad. They still sell it in the stores, I believe it's over $50 and it's a lot smaller. This one he made is as tall as I am. Once again, major clutter.

And as I mentioned before, I wanted to make a monogram out of colored pencils for Blake's kindergarten teacher. We finally got it done. Mike actually did most of it. He painted the frame for me and attached the canvas (who knew Michaels doesnt sell anything but pre-cut mat board?) But this canvas was the perfect size. He also cut the colored pencils for me. I think it turned out pretty good! I'll have to post again with the other thing I made for her out of a mason jar and crayons.

I might post again tomorrow with what I found today at the catholic thrift. If not, have a great Memorial Day weekend!

Goodbye Spongebob!

From YELLOW...

To Green...

Big improvement, huh? Guess I can no longer use the color of the house to give directions though. This soft green is nowhere near as noticable as the bright, Spongebob yellow. This picture isnt the greatest, but it was evening time and kind of overcast.

Speaking of Spongebob... Someone else like's pineapples too.

See that bathtub in the new house photo? Here is a closer look. This was out back when we moved in. It got thrown in the pond, then fished back out. And now it sits here. It doesnt have all 4 feet. I think 1 or 2 is buried in the dirt there, and there is another one that came off that I have in the cabinent. I'm trying to think of somewhere to display it or something. Haven't decided on anything yet though.

And while we are on the topic of flowers, here is the Dahlia again. The kids love to check on it every morning to see how much it has changed since the day before.




And the Zinnia's have begun to bloom. So far these are the only two open, but I think one of the Envy green ones are getting ready to open.

Have a great day everyone!

Another random mix of topics

First things first, I received my prize from Heidi (http://frauleinh.blogspot.com/)! Thank you again! Did I mention blue is my favorite color? Not pictured: the yummy candy stick that Blake swiped.

On to the growth... things are popping up like crazy around here. It's hard to believe that it's still pretty cold in some parts of the country. It's been in the 90's down here. My Zinnia's are getting ready to bloom.

My Dahlia is coming along nicely too. This was taken yesterday...

And this today...

I have seen Morning Glories blooming out back by the "barn" but someone keeps spraying them with Round-Up. But I went out there yesterday morning and found 3 small plants. The pictures came out horrible, but here is one of them.

And for the veggies... Please ignore the overgrowth of grass! I'm almost embarrassed to post! Bad gardeners, bad! I have been working on weeding, but wow it takes forever. The corn itself looks good though!

The onions are also getting big.

Here is one of the tomato plants. I don't know what kind these are, but they look very different from our other tomato plant.



These are doing nicely...



I think all of the bell pepper bushes have baby peppers on them by now.

The green beans are ripening very fast!

Nothing much from the cucumbers yet, but it shouldnt be too much longer. They are flowering already.

White beans... Going just as fast as the green beans.

And we can't forget about the fruit... This is the grapfruit tree.

Baby tangerines...

I have seen these growing out back, and I can't help but wonder if they are muscadine grapes. Guess I will just have to wait and see.

The blackberries...

Those purple flowers I posted about awhile back? I googled them, not thinking I would be able to find them, but it turns out they are Purple Passion Flowers, also called Maypops. They bear an edible fruit, also called a Maypop. I'm not sure if I am brave enough to actually eat one, but the vines out back have fruit on them.

About those green beans & white beans... Someone enjoys picking them!

From that.... to this:

And this:

Of course, once you do that, you have to do this:

And next comes the canning. I went and bought a pressure cooker tonight. We'll see how that goes. Does anyone know anything about canning? I remember my mother and grandmother doing it, but never bothered learning while they were alive.

*

My other adventure is Berry Cobbler. This is part fresh blackberries and some fresh blueberries thrown in since I didnt have quite enough blackberries. I'm not sure how this is going to turn out. Again, we shall see.

My last random topic for the night... If you want to enter some very cool blog contest, check out Sarah's blog (http://mamanjackjack.blogspot.com/). Update, drawings are closed. :)