Summer's Simple Things - The Eclectic Version

Welp, it's Tuesday again.  And that means that I'm joining Kim, over at The Inadvertent Farmer, for her Summer's Simple Things series.  I so enjoy Tuesdays!!

Remember these?

Well, now we have these!!!!!

I love fresh "green" beans.  I love the mix of colors that we grow - green, purple, yellow.  I found some favorites over the years - Royal Burgundy purple bush beans (so prolific and tasty - they turn green when you cook them), Golden Rocky Bush Wax Bean (so lovely, long, and yellow), Black Seeded Blue Lake pole beans (I grow them up the corn stalks), Medinah green bush bean (a new favorite from last year - the beans stay thin and tender even if you don't get the chance to pick them right away), and a new one for me this year Provider Bush Green Bean (just as the name suggests).  I enjoy trying new varieties of all the veggies each year.  I cook them for use in salads or as a side dish, we eat them raw dipped in hummus, and I freeze lots of them for winter yumminess.

Some other summer time favorites for me...  hanging laundry outside.

I have lines everywhere - out in the yard, on the porch, and even in the house.  It's a simple pleasure that I don't do as much as I'd like anymore.

Jumping rope.

What says summer more than a little girl jumping rope?

As I go about my day doing all the things I do, I am always struck by how many bottles of bubbles we accumulate around the place.  Just this morning I found all these.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

And those are just the ones I saw as I was doing the morning routine.  Each bottle of bubbles has it's own owner, it's own story, and is in it's own stage of doneness.  Each time we empty one, I put it aside and tell myself "I'm going to just start making my own bubbles."  That way I can use ingredients I am completely comfortable with.  But I have yet to do so.  Anyone have a good bubble recipe?  Bubbles are so much fun.

Still waiting (impatiently) on these.

Hope you all have a fun and summery day! 

How does a camera work, daddy?

I came across this series of pictures taken about 4 years ago today.  It made me laugh so hard remembering the event.

Munch, who was 6 at the time, asks Daddy, "how does a camera work?"

Daddy explains "you see, the shutter....  Here, take a look."  [All the while Daddy is explaining the roles of light, shutter, film/digital image, etc to her.]

"I don't see it, Daddy."

"Look again, closer this time."

"Hmmm?"

"Daddy!!!???"

"Let me look."

"Yup.  Try again."

"One more time."

Alright.  Well.  Never mind the visual aid...

Gathered Clutches by Noodlehead

Anna, over at Noodlehead, has this cute pattern available for Gathered Clutches.  She has a free tutorial on her blog that you can use to make them.  Or if you feel so inclined, you can buy the pattern here for $6.  I bought the pattern.  It has wonderfully detailed instructions, color pictures, and more sewing options.  Her explanations are very straightforward and simple to follow.  I made 2 of them last night.

Here's the first one.  It's for my "number 1 reader" (you know who you are, come and get it, sister!!)

And the inside.

I really hope you like it!!!

Here's the second one.

I am pleased with the way they turned out.  They were fun and easy to make.

Summer's Simple Things - The Garden

We had a fabulous weekend here!  But, I don't have pictures of most of it.  Unfortunately, I was not on the ball.  You see, the person who mostly takes the pictures around here is Nick, and he wasn't on the ball either.  I have to actually think to bring the camera.  And then think to get it out and take pictures.

The 4th of July celebrations are always fun - the picnics, the family, the sparklers, the fireworks downtown.  We did them all this weekend.  And we spent a large amount of time in the garden.  Mostly working while the kids ran around and played with whatever they could find.

But, as hard as we were working, we managed to take the time to stop and relish the...

We weren't the only ones taking the time for the flowers either.  There are tons of little wasps that hover over these parsley flowers all hours of the day.

It's nice to stand back and look at all that you have accomplished.  All the hard work that goes into the "simple" life.  The beauty of the plants that will feed your family all summer and much of the winter.

At this point, it's time to sit back and let some other creature take care of the work.  The bees, that is.

Enjoying the beauty of the flowers and the plants themselves.

As promised, I took some pictures of my pea/tomato beds.  The beds would have made better pictures a couple weeks ago when the peas were at their best, but, as I said above, I have to think about taking pictures...

This is one of the two tomato and pea beds.  Our beds are permanent beds that measure approximately 4 feet by 20 feet.  In the early spring, we plant 2 rows of peas about 6 inches apart down the center of the tomato bed.  Once they sprout, we put a fence down the center.  That red post doubles as a fence post for the peas and as a post to hold the bucket of our new watering system.

When it's time, the tomatoes get planted on either side of this pea fence, and eventually they get mulched and caged.  Tuck a basil or 3 onto each end, and perhaps a cosmos here and there, and the bed is complete!  It's not difficult to harvest the peas through the tomato cages while the tomatoes are still small.  Once they become monster plants, the peas are done anyhow.  The fence down the center helps keep the tomato cages upright and stable.  And the decomposing pea plants help keep the weeds down in the center of the bed, while providing nitrogen to the soil for next year.

Now we have this loveliness!!

and this...

I can hardly wait for that first ripe tomato!!!

Don't forget to check out The Inadvertent Farmer for her fabulous Summer's Simple Things series and much much more (including a camel - and if that doesn't capture your interest, I really can't think what will!!).

Fun Table Runner

Remember this material?  And this bread-taker-outer I made out of them?  Well, yesterday during Quiet Time I made this patchwork table runner:

I've been wanting something to brighten up our dining room.  And this seemed like just the thing to do the job!!  It measures about 40 inches by 15 inches.  I cut 24 - 6 inch squares and sewed them all together using a 1/2 inch seam allowance.  Then I cut a piece for the back out of the owl material (have I ever told you how much I love owls?!?!).  I sewed them together, flipped it right side out, ironed it, and sewed all around the edge for a finished look.  Very simple.  Very bright.  Very playful and cheery.

The brightness makes me smile.

The flowers are from my herb garden in our front yard.  The green feathery things in there are the tops of fennel bulbs I bought from a local organic farm.

Have a bright and cheery day today!!

Cardinal Babies

We are lucky enough to have a nest of cardinals right off our back porch!

They are snugly nestled in a thorny bush.  Both Mama and Papa watch over the nest.

Three eggs!!!

So pretty.

Yesterday we noticed a soft little peep peep coming from that same bush.  Babies!

I'm sure I could have taken better pictures of them, but they are so very little.  And they need their Mama and Papa.  So, I tried to snap a couple pictures really fast so they wouldn't get too chilly.  It's a little chilly right now - 65 degrees this morning when I snapped these.

But, you get the gist of their newborn preciousness.