Happy Friday! With daylight savings beginning this weekend, it feels like summer will be rapidly approaching and this, of course, turns my thoughts to vacation planning. We don't actually take very many vacations. Mostly it's because M's work schedule is unpredictable and this makes it tricky to plan trips. One of loveliest family vacations we took was to Roche Harbor on San Juan Island with M's parents a few years ago. We rented a cottage that K called the "trip house", and the atmosphere as a ... Read more
DIY Shelf + Tolerations Update
A couple of summers ago, I found myself with a lot of time and an ever-shrinking budget. I was on a huge home improvement kick, and one of my goals was to corral the explosion of books everywhere in the house. I've always been a bookworm, and as much as I love the library, I love buying books even more. These days I've been really good about not purchasing any, but I still have way too many and I used to have enough to completely fill a room (oh, I dream of having a room I can call a "library", ... Read more
Yay, Black Bean Burgers
Now that I've gotten the whole criticism thing out of my system, let's talk faux burgers. "Yay, I love black bean burgers!" That's what K actually says when I make these black bean patties. She doesn't realize that under the ooey gooey cheese, there's a chockfull of healthiness. As you can see, I'm continuing my theme of unattractive foodstuffs from last week, and I've gained a whole new level of respect for food bloggers and photographers wrestling with these homely dishes. I've made ... Read more
Criticism and How I Got a Book Deal
I started and stopped several light and easy posts for today, but I've been stuck on this idea of criticisms so I decided to just go with it even though it's neither light nor easy. It's also not a short read, so I've inserted random illustrations I've been painting these days to break up the text. When I was in my early twenties, I quietly mentioned to someone I respected -- a much older woman -- that I might want to be a writer or a "creative" of some sort. She leveled her world-weary eyes ... Read more
Monday Outfit: Geometric Knit Cardi + Improved Khaki Pants
Good morning! Skateboarding was awesome. K rocked the skater girl look with a black tee, black shorts, black tights and even after two solid, sweaty hours, she couldn't wait to go back for more. It was all very civilized, really. The youngsters get outfitted with pads galore for knees and elbows, helmets are provided (though K insisted on wearing her neon yellow bike helmet) and the first hour is devoted to a very hands-on lesson by hipster instructors. After a light snack, the second hour is ... Read more