Monday, June 30, 2014

Science Experiment



Did you know that you cannot just cut dahlias and plop them in a vase? Oh, no, you cannot. They will look nice for about 12 hours, and then they wilt and shrivel--much to our surprise, I might add.

Turns out that, due to their hollow stems, you need to cut them underwater and then submerge them in hot water for a while. And they'll last 5 days or so, just as perky as can be. Science!

Friday, June 27, 2014

Tallulah-Palooza Friday

"I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille..." said Tallulah Mae Desmond. (Sweet girl! Kiss kiss kiss!)

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Flower Birds






Every day I love to hear the birds in the backyard. Mostly it's little house finches and sparrows chittering away, but the other day I heard a LOT of birds making a different sound (and not the oh-so-sweet little whistles and chirps I associate with tiny little goldfinches). It turned out to be a bunch of these little sweeties, which I believe to be lesser goldfinches.

They LOVE this echinacea (which died down to a nub in the winter and was in danger of being pulled out!); there were two of them (boy and girl, I think) on this plant for about half an hour. It's remarkable to me that they are so lightweight that the stalks don't even bend one bit under them.

Bird geekery!

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Sun, Setting



 Gorgeous, yes? (You can see the ferris wheel at the San Diego County Fair in the second photo...)

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

A Muffler Man and a Tattle Tale


More sights on our mini-road trip...

Up top: a Muffler Man! Love. Them. If you don't know what they are, here's a history of them. And here are a bunch of Google images of them. I especially love the fact that a little bird is sitting on his head!

And I think I just might like to go drinking at the Tattle-Tale Room...according to the sign, it's "exciting." It is described various places as a classic dive bar, which, delightfully, has its own website (karaoke EVERY night!).  Check out the ultra-fab exterior (the light changed and I couldn't get a shot of it.) Love!

Monday, June 23, 2014

Kool Kars



We drove up to L.A. on Friday for a very good reason (Hi, Miss D.!)...along the way, there were cars. A LOT of cars. Including these three cool ones: the top car had vintage skis and a very cool piece of retro plaid luggage strapped to the back.

The second car--a VW Beetle, one of my loves--was one of three similarly lowered VWs traveling in a caravan.

And the last one: sure, why NOT paint your Karmann Ghia lavender?

Friday, June 20, 2014

Tallulah-Palooza Friday



One of Tallulah Mae's hobbies is tearing up paper. It has to be stiff (packing paper is best), and it's only possible to do it if the humans are in the room watching you--an audience makes it extra special. Silly girl!

(I was egging her on! And she never does this when we're not home--it's definitely a thing done for the effect.)

Thursday, June 19, 2014

When Life (and Mother Nature)...




...give you overripe plums--actually, they are from our CSA--make a pie! Yum yum. And easy as...well, you know!

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Further Proof...

...that I have the sweetest husband ever. Look what he brought me from Toronto: tons of MAC goodness. Yay! (He's the sweetest even when not bearing gifts, BTW!).

Hey look, it's a self-portrait of my wrinkly hands!

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

It's a Good Thing

A yummy salad chock full of summer veggies...that, to quote Martha, is a VERY good thing!

Monday, June 16, 2014

Heart o'Green



Not sure what kind of tree this is, but its leaves are "LOVE"ly (get it?).

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Save the Date: Mercantile Mix: Pop-Up Market


A fun pop-up market is planned for August 16, and we're looking for participants! Check out the details below. Hope to see you there!

Click the image to enlarge the flyer...

Mercantile Mix flyer

Friday, June 13, 2014

Tallulah-Palooza Friday


Up close and personal with Tallulah Mae...the better to KISS KISS that pinky nose, my dear!

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Smart(ies) Pants

 Hey, what's happened to the "M" on these candies?!
 Are they defective?
Why no, they're Smarties, the British counterpart to the classic M&M. As it turns out, Smarties predate M&Ms by some 50 years.

They actually do taste different. The Smarties coating has a bit of a flavor to it, while the M&M coating is basically just sugar. Here is one person's comparison of the two.

I confess to preferring M&Ms, while B.--who grew up in Europe and has an English mum--prefers Smarties. I guess that childhood nostalgia thing is hard to overcome! Now, let's talk Reese's peanut butter cups vs. Trader Joe's...THAT'S a tough contest!

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Baba-Looooo


Check out Mr. Ricky Lizardo here ("Baba-loooo!")...he was under the garbage can and was acting all nonchalant, as if I couldn't see him if he stayed perfectly still.

These dudes/dudettes are soooo cool--love them! (He's pretty big, actually--that tail is about 5 inches long.)

Peonies, Pink

The peonies keep coming! Yay! (This particular bunch has the largest blooms I've ever seen--they're as big as my hand.)

Two posts today, because, well...there was none yesterday! Mistakes were made...this was in draft but never got published. Oops! 

Monday, June 9, 2014

Rummaged




It's church rummage sale season--yay!--and I went to three this weekend. This is but a sampling...

The bottom two photos are from a vintage 1972 needlecraft magazine--I am addicted to them and love everything in them! I may have to knit that sweater with the heart (but I'll skip the short shorts and knee socks...they might cause a riot if worn by me).

Friday, June 6, 2014

Tallulah-Palooza Friday

It almost looks as if she's smiling here...kiss kiss, pinky girl.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Stuffed Dog Stuff


OK, I've made these before, but they are soooo fun to sew! The top one is 3D, with gussets; the second is stuffed, but is flat. Fun! The pattern comes from the Allsorts blog...

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Berry Good

These blueberry muffins have a streusel topping..apparently I put too much of it on--but is there ever too much streusel topping? I think not.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Rose Glow

This rose was cut too late--the petals began to fall off immediately--but the afternoon light really lit it up!

Monday, June 2, 2014

Chee Chee

The Chee Chee Club...how great! Apparently it is a hipster dive bar.

As much as anything, I like the photo: fun with shadows!