Shoot the Moon!

Amy and I were talking the other day -- you know, business meeting -- about how the last Space mission was barely mentioned on the news. It's so blasé, Space. So there's some guys out there cruising around fixing stuff, big deal. No one pays much attention unless something goes wrong or something explodes.

So, you want explosions? Check this out!

QUEST on KQED Public Media.

I turned up the radio this morning after Mazzy said, "Mom! They said Centaur!" and heard this story.

At the NASA Ames Research Center (NorCal baby!) they're building this SUV-sized bullet (nicknamed Centaur) that they're going to shoot at the moon. They hope to find water under the surface, and they're hoping for the resulting huge plume of moondust to be visible from Earth. If you're as dorkily interested as I am, you can visit the official website, where among other things there's a song written about the mission available for download (seriously!).

Now that's what I call newsworthy.

I'm such a nut, gonna paint my...WHAT?!

There are lots of times in the lives of parents when our kids do or say something we've never seen or heard them do before and we think "where did that come from?"

There are other times, though, when they do or say things and we can immediately identify the influence (i.e. "But daddy says it all the time!").

Here's what my girls were doing during a little quiet painting time today:

And I know exactly who's responsible...So, thank you, David Catrow. I'll go draw a bath now.

Rainbow of Goodness

The Farmers Market was a huge success yesterday. We both woke up on time. Our awning (that recently got broken) went up and stayed up for the whole day. We got a chance to visit with all the regulars. All of the Traveling Dresses sold out, as well as most of the Chakra Tanks.

However the thing I am most excited about from yesterday is all the produce I got for feasting on over the next week.

YUM!

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

If good fortune finds you in St. Helena tomorrow morning, you'll find us at the Farmer's Market.
Yes, the season is upon us. The one time of year when we have to get ourselves dressed and out of the house before sunrise to go to work. (Work!) We look forward to these early mornings of unpacking and displaying our clothes while the other vendors put out their fruits, vegetables and flowers. It's just us two, no kids (ahhhh). So we get to relax and people watch and chat with each other and all the familiar faces that pop into our little tent.
Here are a couple of new things you'll see if you're there:The Traveling Dress! A sweet little A-line halter with an attached side-tie scarf. For now, these will only be available at the Market. But if you'd really like to see them available in our Etsy shop, then comment away. We've been known to accomodate friendly requests.

The Chakra Tank is the newest item in our shop. We'll have these at the Market, too, in both black and natural (which is organic!).

This is just a teaser, there'll be a few other little things we've whipped up that you'll just have to come see in person. So be there or be square!

The Fifth Year

My firstborn just turned five years old. There was kind of a mad dash of events leading up to her birthday party (click it!), including the Avett Brothers show that kept us out until 3 AM the night before (it was worth every second).

As usual, despite all the planning and preparation the party slipped by in a flurry of presents, cupcakes, hot sun and kids splashing in the pool. Perhaps it had something to do with the aforementioned late night, but before she or I knew it, it was bedtime and her birthday was over.

Then in came Hoppy (my dad, her grandpa) the next morning to rekindle the dwindling excitement with a very special present.

There was some assembly required.Mazzy got to help, and got a little lesson in "righty tighty, lefty loosey."They flipped it over and voila!The girl got herself a custom built vintage low rider, and another little piece of family heritage. This was the bike that both my sister and I learned to ride on.

When he pulled it out of his trunk a whole bunch of memories came out with it. I still remember waiting for my dad to fix the broken left pedal with a piece of plywood he cut perfectly to fit (you can barely see it in that last picture). And who doesn't remember the first time they realized they were riding alone, turning around to see their dad back in the distance and wham! getting their first skinned knee. One such crash left the front wheel of this bike a little off center and you still have to hold the handlebars slightly to the right for it to go straight.

Sometimes it's a good thing that my parents were always the kind to never get rid of anything. Because I can't wait to watch Mazzy ride away for the first time on those same wheels.

Inspiration

The other day when I asked Scarlett what she wanted to do she instantly replied "let's paint in the garden!" That sounded like a perfect idea to me so we grabbed our supplies and headed out.Filled with inspiration from our surroundings we painted most of the afternoon. Butterflies and grapevines and sunshine seemed to be the theme.

I'm so grateful that she shares my love of painting. My heart swells watching her. Lately she's been asking for more direction on how to make her paintings look "real".

She's my inspiration. Constantly reminding me to look at the world with an open mind and an open heart.

Adventures in Homeschooling