Home | Orchard Apples

Apples, Yogurt and Honey

I stumbled upon this blog and this idea the author calls You Capture and thought it would be fun to join in. Anyone who enjoys photography can participate by following a weekly "assignment" and enter their photo on the site. It's supposed to be a fun, creative exercise in photography that is posted each Thursday.

So here's mine! Topic: Fall. Don't judge. I tried to be different.

Have you bought—or picked(!)— any fresh orchard apples this Fall? I bought a huge 10 lb. bag and made 2 batches of apple crisp and have been enjoying the few remaining apples with vanilla yogurt and honey drizzled on top. Perfect.

cakes, gifts & weddings (oh my)

Awesome braid (more Southern Wedding)

[via]

Cakes that I want to stare at and then devour

Today (yesterday b/c it is 4 a.m. now...) I had coffee with a friend that just got engaged. With weddings on my mind, I couldn't help but share these photos/links with you.

Also, have you heard of this gift wrapping technique? I'm so excited to try it. Who wouldn't want to have yet another excuse to buy beautiful fabric? I am especially excited to try the kangaroo wrap.

It's love, really

Why haven't I read Anne of Green Gables yet? I'm embarrassed. I think this picture is so charming and captures probably one of the best hate-turns-love romances out there. Speaking of, you must see Life As We Know It.

Home | Sshh... baby sleeping

In those fleeting moments of quiet when Seb is sleeping and I'm mostly caught up with house chores, I am struck by how nice and cozy it feels to be sitting in my chair in a quiet apartment. It's so very delightful. I imagine the feeling is akin to something like what this woman feels on her houseboat. How relaxing would it be to have one of these to escape to?

Speaking of peaceful places to live, I wouldn't mind living here, or on Clingstone, perhaps.

[photo via]

Seb | More booties!

Sorry if this is booties overload for you today, but I just made a pair for Seb and couldn't wait to share. I roughly followed this tutorial. The fabric is sherpa on one side with faux suede in a giraffe print on the other. They were surprisingly simple to make, even though I had to alter the pattern due to the thickness of my fabric. I think they turned out pretty cute. I can't wait to try this in some wide whale corduroy.

Little One | Boots for wee ones

I can't get over how cute these little boots are. They're meant little ones aged 0 months to 2.5 years. How adorable. I would love to get a pair for my baby, but somehow I can't justify them since he can't walk yet (no matter how slushy our winters get).

Textile | So pretty... darn.

As I sit here devouring a bag of Andes mints baking chips (don't judge, it's the only chocolate I have) I feel compelled to share with you a little discovery of mine. The purl beehive. It's a headquarters of sorts for all these crafty blogs that are so lovely. A few favorites are here, here and here.  (Okay, chocolate is gone. Not because I have any self-control but because it's difficult to eat tiny little "chips" of chocolate and type at the same time). So to continue, the 3rd "here" is just lovely and hateful at the same time. I consider myself to be fairly crafty/creative/artsy, and therefore it bugs me that I can't do anything with yarn. That's right, I'm not a knitter or a crocheter. I doubt I can even make a lovely yarn poof like the one my dear friend made for me one time. Yes, you guessed it, this is a knitting blog, and one of the most gorgeous I have ever seen. I think maybe I'll just start collecting scrumptious yarn in baskets around the house for a little added color and texture. Despite all appearances, I do realize that hair and lint on unswept carpets don't count as decorative texture.

So back to Pickles (that's the 3rd here). Not only is it a reminder of my wanting abilities as a manipulator of yarn extraordinaire, but it's in a different language. What's worse is that this language is very close to German, which means I am very close to being able to decipher it. Close, but no cigar. (Pause for dramatic effect a.k.a chocolate break) This means that every time I look at it, It teases me with it's similarites, and then poof! All understanding goes out the window. Example: Lille Petra kom til verden for noen uker siden... Seems a little German until the last 3 words. Maybe if I were fluent I could decipher a little better. The good news? There is an English translation under every post, so go see the pretty yarnage and FREE. PATTERNS.

And thanks to all my friends and momma-in-law who made me/Seb baby blankets... out of yarn. Maybe I'll be able to manage a quilt someday.

[Photo via]

Husband | Two things romantic

My husband woke me up this morning with this beautiful bunch of flowers. Isn't he wonderful? I, of course, could barely see them because I didn't have my contacts in, but I am awake and able to see now and I love them.

Isn't this photo from Kissssing just beautiful?

Art | Yummy rubber stamps

Bacon and Eggs

In college I took a class about patterns. As you can imagine, this was the highlight of my week. One of the things we did was make our own stamps out of block erasers and then for our final project, we had to create a pattern using different colors and the stamps that we had made. It was so delightful.

I was so excited to find CupcakeTree on Etsy. I think these stamps are just so darling and would work extremely well for DIY onesies. You can also get each stamp personalized!

Home | My chair

Here it is! I am so grateful to my cousin for willingly surrendering this chair to me. It used to be my grandma's and it is so comfortable. Just the mommy chair that I needed. Eventually I would like to reupholster it, but for now, the "buttery off-white" color is just fine with me. I really like it, actually.  What a testament to how God provides in such wonderful ways.

P.S. Don't you love how big my little buddy's feet look in this picture?

Home | Let's call it... a smattering

This is going to be all over the place. If I were a good blogger, I would save up some of these for some especially tantalizing "weekend links" but I'm not a good blogger, and am far too impatient to save these all too delightful and perhaps pertinent-to-your-daily-lives information. Okay, I highly doubt that any of this is the latter, but I hope you find it to be the former.

This woman is brilliant. Onesies above? Made by her. Finally, I can have adorable plain onesies that don't cost a small fortune. Thanks AH!

Great lunch baggies that you don't have to make. Some of us get excited about crafting, but some of us don't. Fortunately, these are perfect for everyone. They're just so darn perfect, who would want to settle with messy seams and wacky corners, when you could have one of these beauties delivered to your door?

Now that our little Babe is over 4 months old, I've been thinking about our approaching need for a high chair. I've been searching high and low for something that is pretty but doesn't break the bank, and let me tell you, it is more difficult than I would have imagined. I tried my very best to avoid "Stokke fever," but was unsuccessful. I want the gray one.

Speaking of babies, did you know that Smitten Kitchen has a baby food blog? I am, well, smitten. Suddenly, even if I can't get the high chair of my dreams, I can feed my baby gourmet. Hello, Vanilla Bean Pear Sauce.

And now, speaking of Smitten Kitchen, I plan to make Breakfast Apple Granola Crisp and some yet unknown breakfast casserole. If you have any great recipes, let me know! The little guy is getting baptized this weekend, and we're planning a Sunday morning brunch for our family. I can't wait!

On a more tragic note, I have discovered that next to the name Grahame (it's own tragedy), I love the name Griffin, which happens to mean "hooked nose." Why?

And on a cheerier note, how adorable are my two guys after our walk this evening? I love them. Seb's Tiny Ducky hats came today. They're a bit big, but definitely still work well.

And on a wonderful and important note, our World Vision Christmas Gift Catalog came in the mail today.  When I saw the quote from a little boy who has parasites talking about how it feels like something is biting his stomach, I had my heart set on buying a well that will provide enough clean water for up to 150 people. Others that I want to save for are a sewing machine, immunizations for children, a new baby and mama kit, and a Mongolian Ger. I would encourage you to go to World Vision's gift site and choose something to buy for someone in need. We hope to make it a Christmas tradition that all of our children can participate in. I hope you'll consider doing the same! Do you currently give to any organizations? I'd love to know which ones.

I hope you have a lovely evening and a wonderful and fresh fall morning.

[photos left to right via Lunchskins, Baby Earth, me, and Fly Through Our Window]

Decor | Pretty Things

via Sew, Mama, Sew!

via decor8

Isn't this scalloped banner so lovely? I think this would be darling over a little girls crib or bed (or, let's face it, over an adult girl's bed). And these 3D frames are so neat, don't you think? I would put them in an entryway with with each item personalized to my family. What a fun way to welcome people into your home, and a great gift idea, too.

Style | Practically perfect...

...in every way. This tote is so roomy, it makes me think that even Mary Poppins' deluxe carpet bag couldn't hold as much as this canvas tote. I especially love that despite it's size, it manages to be delightfully structured. Yes, I wouldn't mind having one of these.

P.S. Carpet bags on Etsy.

DIY | Wild Things

How much do want these!? via

Last night Cody took a break from his GRE studying, so we took an evening walk, picked up a copy of Where the Wild Things Are from our local video store and a Fastbreak and Snickers Almond bar from the gas station (classy, I know) and headed home to enjoy our bounty. It was a fantastic night of popcorn, chocolate, movies and an early bedtime. Oh sweet sleep!

And now I am rested and can finish... da da da daaa... Seb's Halloween costume! Okay, so it's not a full out "costume", but I am making a few things to attach to some normal clothes to make him the cutest little dude Halloween has ever seen. I can't give away what he is going to be until I can show the pictures of him in his costume, but I can tell you that he will have a tail and ears. I am so excited.

In the meantime check out the pattern for Seb's Christmas stocking! I have it pieced together
(the going was rough!) but haven't taken a picture of it, yet. I'll get on that.

Some patterns I am positively itching to try:
Swaddler
Spool Ottoman
Applique pillows
Changing pad with wipes holder
Wet bag (although I wish this was a bit better of a tutorial...)

Style | Calling Coco

Look what I found on The Sartorialist today! I will always love Chanel's use of tweed. In fact,  I love much more than that about Chanel. Have you ever seen this movie about her life? The way it depicts Chanel creating first hats, and then clothing, is inspiring. Hello, jersey knit and truly inspiring womenswear. I love that she designed for the time she was living in, and it still rings true for later generations, albeit with a bit of perseverance on her part. Isn't she stunning in this photograph?

P.S. My excuse for being a bit MIA this week is that I am finally getting crafty like I'm always talking about. I might post pictures of what I've been working on tonight... but then again, maybe not. Soon, though!

Home | Have a spicy weekend

via kris's color stripes

via Smitten Kitchen

via Helen Musselwhite

Thanks for my favorite mug, Anna!

What are you looking forward to this weekend? I am going to make this tasty looking Smitten Kitchen recipe: beef chili + sour cream and cheddar biscuits. I also want to do a bit of reading and enjoy time with my family, and I might get around to working on some sewing projects. Oh yes, and I'm going to savor as many warm drinks as possible. There's just something about a warm mug cupped in your hands. Here's to a colorful Fall weekend. May it be filled with all the things you love.

Little delights:
My favorite easy peasy (and tasty) cappuccino. Maybe you don't like coffee? Put some half and half in your peppermint tea.

I just ordered this organic hat in cranberry and dusk for Sebastian. I got them 1/2 off at Eco Baby Buys! I love that place.

Want a cozy Fall home? Also, something I never knew.

Want to freshen up your bookshelf? Trade old books for new (to you) books. Thanks again, Audree!

P.S. Did I mention that I did make that banana bread? It was so tasty and the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves would make it pair so nicely with some hot apple cider. Consider that your weekend dare.