Some days were hot as expected and other days more surprisingly cool, hinting Autumn’s breath. We enjoyed it all and soaked up what seemed like a quick end of Summer with visits, a mountain view, runs through the corn rows, garden wanderings, a wine tour and beach fun. it was quite perfect really. Note; the red hat was forgotten, quite on accident, at home, and so opened the opportunity to fall in love with blue.

grandma’s front step. i love it.

this guy hangs out with his buds in the hollow of my parent’s property. he’s been around a couple years and only ever grows 1 horn.

indeed the corn has grown high over my own head. the cobs were still small but we ate them anyhow.

grapes to the left corn on the right;

so many great wines to try. i feel that we should encourage the fruit farmers to grow more than grapes as there is a mono culture trend spreading throughout the Okanagan. i suppose the money is good but what will we do when there is such a small variety of BC fruits?

should we go back for apple picking in the Fall?

Little bean’s got a new friend all the way from Tadoussac Quebec. i had no idea there were whales (belugas included) swimming free in the Saint Lawrence River. Learning something new everyday.

sign me up to the club. i’m addicted. photo booths are super fun.

i remember being 4. i remember being 2 but i remember being 4 when i loved to spin and spin and spin. We spent a good hour dizzying ourselves this morning.

i think i’ve got this tree fabric in every color way. i love it. it’s a favorite. i’ve also got a nice stash of echino stripes which i finally cut into and used. Gosh that feels good, especially when it all turns out alright. A full yard for each pair to cover my not so little one’s long legs (and a pair for his buddy too).

new rain boots. puts a smile on my face to see his feet in anything but crocs which he’d wear year round if i let him.

schuck. prelude to our next Okanagan adventure. see you in a week…

We celebrated our little friend’s 4th birthday this beautiful hot and sunny weekend. Water balloons, eats and treats, friends and family gathered in the shade, mama made teepee, presents galore… all good things to put a smile on all of our faces. ooh and lucky me - i got to have 2 boys for the day! Mama Anna and sweet Micco had some chill time while big brother B joined us at the party.

Happy Birthday Cedar. Thank you so much for the jelly beans and strawberry fruit bar. Love Arlo.

Last week Little A sat on the front porch and made several cards to give out to the neighborhood dog owners requesting play dates and wondering what sort of dog treats they prefer. We are not able to have a pet for a number of reasons and in many ways this mostly suits us fine. i must admit that i was quite out of my element in the doggy bakery. i had no idea how over the top it could be; carob covered pretzel shaped treats, bone birthday cakes…i could hardly take it all in but we settled on some chi chi baked treats and away we went. Soon we will be all the neighborhood dog’s best friends. As far as furry friends go Daisy is pretty awesome. She doesn’t bark, she’s super mellow and pretty cute no? Little A had a blast and was so so proud. Today we learned that Daisy digs treats and needs to learn some new tricks, that dogs sniff each other to say hello, that leashes are pretty cool, that dogs get super excited when you talk to them in super silly voices and that they get pretty thirsty after walking in the hot sun. Fun times for everyone.

i like it. most people like it. how many of us make our own? i really like the home made version and despite feeling like crap all day with a Summer cold i mustered up enough energy to set the pizza making in motion. After all the dough needed using. In the end we mostly let Little A take over the pizza making. He was the most sure and the most adamant of how it should be done so he won. The abundance of corn meal set the smoke detector off but the ones that didn’t over bake were pretty tasty. Better than take out still imo.

This is what i’m on right now - along with oil of oregano, homeopathic aconite, extra zinc lozenges and cups full of miso with spring onions. A couple days ago i went shopping at the mall!? which i despise for a number of reasons, one being that i always get a sore throat in heavily air conditioned environments. This time was no exception. i was awake in the wee hours trying all sorts of good tricks i know to kick this before it progressed but still, i found myself in a bit of a bubble today. We made it only so far as the City Farmer and community gardens where these cone flowers gave me hope of better health. Indeed we did have a little tincture left when i returned home. fingers crossed.

that’s what it says there on the bell and appropriately so because i do really love my new bike. it’s been a long while. my thighs will be so grateful. i had some anxiety about making it back up the wee hill home but it was pretty easy breezy on this lovely ride. i’m sure there will be more revealing photos in the future but this post is more about where i can go (san enfant). Weeee. the seawall is pretty fantastic for a novice, traffic avoiding cyclist like me.

the days are beautiful.

we went to pick blueberries with Auntie this AM but there were none so we picked from thornless raspberry bushes instead. Though the rows were abundant in berries, ripe and falling into our hands, it was still too hot to pick many. Bellies full, we wandered back in the direction of home but stopped off a short while to make ourselves dizzy in this field. Hopefully “Auntie” will have some spinning photos to share…eventually.

Sunday is Papa day and this past weekend Saturday was too. i sewed crowns aplenty, went out walking, joined a friend for coffee, wandered the tracks and picked a few blackberries with my boys, hung out with passersby on our porch and ate some corn. it was a free and easy weekend.

eye candy;

overwhelmingly simple. beautiful. hot. seemingly still at first glance but if you pause long enough you’ll notice that it’s busy full of life. i feel the heat and smell the sage when i look back on these. sigh. sometimes i like to go to this back road for a little perspective.

so bright out;

at grandma & bestafa’s house we see deer every day. they like the cool shade of the gully and sometimes a doe will birth a bambi or 2 there. ooooh their sweet bambi spots. so adorable. we got to see2 newbies this time. this gal, she’s just wandering by on her way to the vineyards next door.

a little randomness that i couldn’t leave out - Betty’s garage doors. i like them. and grandma’s treasures. i see where i get my gathering from;

i’m getting a little lazy on the words here but i can’t post about the Okanagan without including the sunny folk & farmers, family & friends;

Okanagan Lake;

3 of 4 - We met in Kindergarten and we’ve been friends (and sometimes not as girls will be) ever since. i’m a tad envious that their kids will grow up so close together. Pretty darned special and i bet the grandmas all are thrilled too.

While the little one slept i took advantage of grandma’s babysitting and went to town, stayed out past midnight and didn’t worry for a moment. That’s huge for me! (oh yes Michelle, we closed Theo’s. That hasn’t happened in eons.)

damn tourists;