Augh, Augh, Augh,

Okay, So who knows how to spell it to give it the right sound, but when you read the title of this post, just picture Tim Allen from the old show Home Improvement, and you'll get what I was going for.  I have to say, I now understand that male sound, and felt like making it myself when I did this........

Yes, that is a picture of my garbage disposal. It broke and I, yes me, fixed it. I flipped the switch the other morning and there was no sound, nothing but silence, not a good sign for a machine that supposed to sound like a monster. Hmmm, visions of horrifying plumbers cracks glaring out from under my sink and a bill that could really put a dent in the monthly budget sent me to the internet, my saving grace!!! I found this link http://www.ehow.com/video_112319_fix-jammed-garbage.html where a cute woman (easier to look at than the plumber I had envisioned) demonstrated how to fix my disposal.  Feeling empowered I went downstairs found my tools and went to work. 5 minutes later.... a fixed disposal, and great satisfaction that has me saying I did it..... argh, argh, aurgh, well you get it!!!

Summer Vacation August 2008

So I'm finally getting around to posting about our summer vacation. We took a road trip to Portland, Oregon. We braved the 13 hour car ride in one long day.  Ryan and I pulled the girls out of bed at 4:30 a.m. hoping they would stay asleep and wake at a normal hour. NO SUCH LUCK! We made stops along the way and they actually did great, thank goodness for portable DVD player! Lovebug only started to cry and melt during the last hour of the trip so it really wasn't bad at all. The trip home was even better, they knew what to expect and didn't fuss once, YAY! We had a great time, loved the weather (minus the record breaking heatwave), all the fun activities and enjoyed being with my dad. I love family vacations, can't wait for the next one. Here are some fun photo highlights from our two week trip. 

Best Part of our Trip

Sugarplum and Lovebug snuggle in with Grand-pa-pa as soon as we arrive.

The Portland Temple

See that little dot in pink, that's Sugarplum.

There she is.

Love this shot, Sugarplum was goofing off for me, and the camera.

The Pearl District

Sugarplum in random chair on the sidewalk.

Jameson Square Fountains. Evidently this is Portlanders idea of swimming. 

Since the climate doesn't really justify swimming pools, when the weather uncharacteristically warms, portlanders don their swimsuits and head to the public fountains. 

There are quite a few around town, it's a strange sight to see kids 

and adults alike "swimming" around town.

Mississippi Pizza, Great Food, Great Atmosphere!!!

Weekend in Issaquah, WA visiting my brother and family.

Cousin sleepover.

Virtual meets reality. My blogger friend, Stephanie. My sister-in-law introduced me to her cute blog, and I emailed her about some sewing projects. She was so gracious and mailed me japanese pattern books to try out and sample. I couldn't believe she would do that for a stranger. Well we finally got to meet in person two years later at the Issaquah Farmers Market.

See all the gorgeous bags, blankets and burp cloths behind us with all the yummy fabrics, she makes them and many other things as well. That was a fun meeting, thanks Steph!!!

Picking Blueberries off bushes taller than all of us, crazy!

My cute bro, his two girls on the left and their friend.

Sugarplum and Lovebug in the blueberry patch.

Portland Children's Museum in Washington Park

We could have spent all day here, it was fantastic! We've been to quite a few kids museums, (we seek them out on our vacations) and this is by far the best!! We should have gone earlier in the day, it literally could have been an all day event.

Two Cutie Pies

Lovebug and Ryan racing down the waterway.

Sugarplum pumping water.

Sculpting Clay

Tree House Reading Corner

Lovebug getting ready to fly, she loved it.

Doctor Sugarplum

International Rose Test Garden

This is the oldest garden for testing different varieties of roses. 

I'm not a big fan of roses but this garden is beautiful, and has a stellar view of the city.

Sugarplum stops to smell the roses.

Liked the quote on this plaque.

Me playing with my camera, this fountain is on the side of the restrooms, 

even the restrooms here are beautiful.

Cannon Beach, Oregon

We spent one day at Cannon Beach to escape the freak Portland heat wave.

Smith Berry Barn 

Sugarplum and Mom picking Organic Raspberries. SO GOOD!

Cute little Building on the Farm

Lovebug finding Boysenberries to eat, she emptied her bucket faster than we could fill it, and if it was empty she picked them herself and straight to her mouth they went. I love organic farms!

Backgrounds, Bella and Balance

So I decided to experiment with changing the background on the blog. There are some DANG CUTE backgrounds out there. I have spent way to much time perusing them this evening and so now I need to quit, which is why it doesn't look complete. I hate leaving it undone, but I know I should.  I got on with the intention of posting pics and fun thoughts from our recent trip to the Pacific Northwest. I should have done it before now, but there is a certain girl named Bella whose story I just can't seem to put down.  Yes, like so many of you, I too have found a new addiction, who knew vampires could be so captivating? Certainly not my usual reading genre but I'm hooked.  So blog undone, I'm getting off to try and keep some balance in my life.  I have a great little kitchen timer to help remind me of my quest to keep balanced, thanks Alyssa I love it! Now I'm going to go eat some ice cream with my hubby and watch the olympics. And hopefully next time I'll get around to posting pics from our fun trip to the Pacific Northwest.

Pioneer Day Bonnet-Aprons

So for our stake Pioneer Day celebration I made Bonnet-Aprons for my girls to wear. They were inspired by and patterned after one my mom had purchased for me when I was little. I made 3 for a total of 4 with the original, so my two nieces who were visiting could each have one to wear too. The pattern is fairly simple, but really clever. Fold the top down and tie in the back around your waist and it's an apron. For a bonnet, button the sides down, pull the drawstring in the back and voila it's a bonnet!!! SO MUCH FUN!!!

Bonnet-Apron laid out flat and the cinched and buttoned bonnet.

Impromptu apron models and apron detail.

Starting Montessori at Home

I have been wanting to start some Montessori activities at home with the girls for quite a while, to supplement the couple of days Sugarplum goes to school and while she is out for the summer. I think it will be a good starting point for Lovebug too.  So the quest to turn the office into a Montessori work space began today and the girls immediately wanted to jump into the few activities I have been able to put together. Below are few pics of what they worked on.

Lovebug sliding clothespins onto a box. Hand-eye coordination.

Sugarplum doing a bean counting exercise.

Lovebug pouring beans from one jar to another. She really loved this once she figured out how to do it without spilling. This is going to be fun!!!

July 4th Fun!

This was probably the highlight of the Fourth of July for our girls. Our dear friends and neighbors, The Thomas', showed up in their decked out patriotic golf cart to take the girls for a spin. Excited would be an understatement, they flew out the door, climbed on and away they went. They returned 15 min later to ask about putting their feet in the pool, the swim lessons pool, and off they went.  When they returned about a half hour later, they bounded into the house, ring pops on their fingers, chattering all at once about their adventures. Sugarplum couldn't contain her excitement when she told us she got to go INTO the duck hut and pick a treat.  When she was taking swim lessons, we would get something from the duck hut after she was done, but her experience was outside talking to the employee inside, so to get a behind the scenes peek inside the duck hut when no one was there but the Thomas' just took the cake.  We love our friends!!!!

Strange Creatures

So far my blogging has been slow, and I have posted all things gardening, but hey it's what we are doing these days, so here comes another garden post. "If you build it, they will come." is not just true for baseball fields. As soon as you plant a garden, strange creatures you have never seen before suddenly appear, welcome or not. This morning I found one of these in my garden. It's called a planarian or shovel head worm.

It's creepy and evidently it's carnivorous, it's prey of choice being earthworms. They have been known to eradicate entire populations of earthworms. Not good!  It won't be staying in my garden, I just hope there aren't more. They aren't native here but often travel in potted plants. I think He/She (it's both) came from my nearby newly added potted plant. Let's hope it's a lone traveler!