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Happy Birthday Mia Goose!

A splash of color on a cloudy day. What fun!

I just thought I would take a minute to link to a post from last year. Some who are new to my blog since then might enjoy this project.

fall fun

With honey and cream

Happy October

Be Happy!

Summer is over...

and the last project complete. I have never been afraid to paint furniture. Keith knows me well enough that he brought this bench home on his own. It was piece left behind in a remodel and it was free for the taking. Solid wood, painted brown with chunky knobs. Not for me. We let it sit on our porch and debated between painting it black or white or a fun trendy color. Keith and I have similar taste and trendy was out right away. White was too cottage even though I like cottage. Black it is! Keith got busy with the sanding at the beginning of summer. I was motivated and got the first coat of black on right away. It took me three hours! All the corners and slats were tedious with care taken to have no drips. Summer moved forward and the project sat. I usually can't wait to have something finished but I was dreading the time consuming second coat. I skipped a primer coat to keep the cost down, I ended up paying for it with my time. I kept an eye open for new knobs but wasn't sure what I was looking for. I found the checkerboard knobs at Anthro and knew they were the ones. The pillow was a find in SF too. Having the new accessories was all the motivation I needed. Today was the perfect day. Four hours of uninterrupted painting seemed like forever. But it is DONE. I can say I don't want any more makeover furniture for a while. Proof being I passed up a beautiful dresser, perfect in size and price at an estate sale on Sat. I did not take a before picture, it was just plain dirt brown. Bench= free. Paint= $7/quart and I only used half, knobs were a splurge @$24, pillow doesn't count because I can use it anywhere. Right? Right!

What is this?

Silly cuties! Madison won't like that I posted this picture of her. I love it though. I love the relationship these two have.

I wanted to share the sweet blog/website where I got the pattern to make Madison's skirt. I consider myself a total beginner and this pattern was very doable for me. I can't wait to make more! The Long ladies were nice to post the picture and review I sent them. How fun. Be sure to check their blog, they are having a sale soon.

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Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband!

Our last stop of the day, Pier 39. The weather was perfect, the company the best, a treasured day. Leah wanted to go to Alcatraz but this is as close as we got. She also had it in her mind to take an evening swim. We did convinced her otherwise.
Silly girl!

I had the most fun with my sweet, sweet friends. Even though Leah is really 2,000 miles away we had lots of fun pretending she was with us. It is good to have fun, to be silly and to be blessed with such wonderful friends.

More SF fun

We had so much fun shopping and walking and talking in SF. Williams-Sonoma is the funnest store ever. We were treated to blackberry crumble samples that they were cooking at a demo. Very delicious. Leah must have missed her red mixer from home because she got a bit friendly with the one at the store! Next we went to Tiffany to browse and to get my bracelet cleaned. Again, Leah was all over the store. We had to tuck her away in my bag for a bit. Next stop was Coit Tower after enjoying a refreshing Starbucks. I think Leah likes to be in front of the camera. Just kidding Leah :)

A note to Leah.....

Leah, We wouldn't dream of going to SF for the day without you. Just wanted you to know that we were thinking of you all day:

Just a few suggestions for the next trip.
1. Maybe wear a slip. We could kinda see your underpants.This could be why people were checking you out all day, lots of staring :)
2. It is illegal to bounce around the car while it is motion. We know you were super excited though!


Love,
Carolyn and Katrina
p.s. More pictures of the fun day to follow........

We had a great time yesterday exploring the beauty of Lake Tahoe. The US Forest Service has many wonderful nature walks and historical museums. We walked the Rainbow Trail first. It is a 1/2 mile loop trail that took us to the Stream Profile Chamber. The chamber is an underground viewing area showing the underwater wildlife of Taylor Creek. It was very peaceful to watch the fish.
We spent a good part of the day exploring the Tallac Historic Site. This site is the home to what was, a century ago, the summer retreats of three elite San Francisco families. On the grounds are The Baldwin Estate, The Pope Estate, and Valhalla. Absolutely beautiful grounds! The property is lake front and offers so many places to picnic, bike, swim or just relax.

The meadow and lake view from the Rainbow Trail.

Mads and one of her best baby friends at the underground viewing area.

The view near the Pope Estate.

The girls standing at the fireplace in the Baldwin Estate. Built 1921. The kitchen was awesome!

Just one shot from the Farmer's Market in San Francisco. I went to the city this past Saturday with my wonderful friend Carolyn. The weather was perfect as was the food. We had so much fun. I will post more in the next few days :)

I picked all these just this morning. They look good and I don't even like fresh tomatoes. I love them as a sauce, sun-dried and even don't mind ketchup. I think it is a texture thing. We had the best corn on the cob of the season with dinner tonight. I made these yummy potatoes as a side to the tri-tip from the grill. We have a fresh pineapple, red delicious apples, cantaloupe and watermelon waiting to make a salad for tomorrow. I love the bounty of summer that our Lord provides!