Tuesday 10 - October

1. Fall leaves.  We have a bazillion trees and so we have a bazillion leaves. 

2. Youth soccer.  Jones is doing so good he’s scored 4 goals this shortened season this year.  Thea however sometimes seems disinterested she would much rather have done dance but it’s an inside sport, with the pandemic we need outside sports.

3. Graveyard Elsa got some clothes on.  Thea did the sweater and I gave her pants

4. After 5 long months we finally got our sofa!  Now I want to paint the walls. 

5. The trapeze swing.  I have debated whether or not it’s worth the costs to update the clubhouse or not.  In the meantime I bought a trapeze swing which was well worth the $20 already! They practice flips and tricks and it’s perfect addition to our other swings.

6. The new bike trail in oxford.  It’s got a starting point super close to the house it’s super convenient and sooooo pretty in the fall.
7. Preschool field trip!  Say what!  Theas class got to take a field trip to the pumpkin patch because it’s outside and they can transport the tues/thurs kids (there are only 7) in the schools bus and still space them.

8. My Halloween sweater.  

9.  Jones will return to school.  I am some what apprehensive but honestly he NEEDS school so we will take precautions and hopefully it will be okay. 

10. Theas makeup skills.  She did “nice” makeup for me.  I look like a forth witch from hocus pocus?

Fall 2020

Fall is upon us now.  It’s gorgeous here the leaves are changing and the weather is soooo nice.  Photo above from 9 years ago at the pumpkin patch and one from 2020.  

Things are so much different now with kids, then when we got those pumpkins 9 years ago.  For example despite getting 8 pumpkins at the patch and carving 4 between the kids and I nobody actually let me pick what to carve.  We run thru the corn mazes, and pick sunflowers for the volume of seeds not the actual beauty of them.  (My kids want to plant a bazillion sunflowers next year).

I made a pumpkin tree.  All the plastic pumpkins were purchased at a thrift store and I drilled holes in the bottom to let rain water out. I would like to get a few more because 15 seems better than the 9 we have.  

We are super into Halloween decor and have added to our collection of things this year.  Thanks to the dollar store for cheap pumpkins, skeletons and skulls.  

47 Fall Bucket List

We missed the summer bucket list we did have a quarantine one but I never took a photo of it.  This is our fall bucket list to replace the summer one I never did.  We’ve already done a bunch more since I took this photo like camp fire, Halloween movie, bike ride And more Halloween decor.  Lots of fun things happening. 

Bike ride - on the new trail by our house it’s super nice and we can’t wait to try it again

We loved the orchard.

We’ve had amazing weather it’s like 70s in the day and 50s in the evening perfect for camp fires.  (Let’s pretend I weeded the fire pit).

We did a Halloween craft kit thing.  thea loves to pretend with this little set.

We got new Halloween decor. thea has taken three of the skeletons as her “babies”.  

Fall Will be fun.

30 Fairy House

One of the things on our list was to make or get fairy houses.  We have 1 bazillion places we could have a fairy garden in our almost an acre yard so we may end up with more fairy houses in other places too.  I bought birdhouses on sale at the craft store.

We painted the houses.  Jones and Thea did the bases and some of the decoration and I helped encourage them to add patterns like stripes and dots and flowers to decorate them a bit more.  And I finished them off and put a coat of sealant on them.  We also found a old birdhouse in a honey suckle bush we removed and put it with them too.  

Jones calls this one the “mayors house” I like his camo he made for it. 

This one is one of Theas I love how she made a rainbow on the front and left the fairy a berry to eat. And that little stone path.

Here’s the random birdhouse.  Jones planted it wheat!

And these little ones are in the ficus tree.  The round one is Theas.

Anyhow it’s such a fun addition to the yard and we have since also painted acorns to add for the fairy’s as well.

Art

Something I haven’t really done since I left the bungalow is hang art.  I never really got settled in at my moms.  I just considered it her house not mine.  And now that we are in the new house I have less time but I have been trying to add touches that seem like

me.  Recently in my room I hung some art.  I ordered prints and spray painted frames I had as well as acquired some new frames which I spray painted bright pink.  I love them I need another big frame for the opposite wall and my new desk is on back order but slowly it’s seeming more like me.  

1) waiting for new art, 2) print by Lady Earthling 3) print by Carolyn Gavin 4) Print by Lisa Congdon 5) unfinished art by my grandma Ruth White 6) drawing by me.  7) rainbow by Thea and I 

I also hung some art up in our art room but I haven’t finished yet so more to come soon.

lambic

What seems like ages ago I gave up drinking almost entirely.  I have had a drink here or there but literally I hadn’t had one in several years.  So for my 40th list I added Drink some Lambic beer which is like a sweet fruity beer it actually seems like a raspberry cider to me.  This weekend while at Trader Joe’s I saw some and picked it up. I enjoyed it.  So did Graveyard Elsa who is our resident Skelton doll Thea got the other day.  I still have another bottle left to have another time as well.  

2 - bruschetta

I have wanted to make bruschetta for two years.  I don’t care much for tomatoes but tomatoes in things like fresh salsa and bruschetta are my jam.  I love them.  Bruschetta reminds me of my grandparents when I was in Michigan with them years ago i would make it as an alternative to my grandpa just pouring vinegar all over tomatoes.  

We recently got a Hello Fresh Bruschetta Burgers kit in our meals and I seized the opportunity to make the bruschetta.  This was okayish.  The balsamic vinegar included in the kit was not my favorite and honestly you needed like 25% less.  But I am crossing this one off.  If my tomatoes in my garden ever ripen I may make more or maybe I will make salsa instead.

29 - Geocaching & Hiking

We started some geocaching this last week it’s like a hike + finding things.  And this really made things more interesting for my kids.  It’s also helping them read maps and decipher how to describe things in relation to each other.  They love that some of them have little trinkets inside.  

I downloaded the geocaching app and so far we have only found geocaches available for free within the app. We do plan to meet up our friends to geocache with them sometime soon.  

I am counting this as one of our hikes for the year too because I have lost count of when we took them and when we didn’t. 

21 - quilt repaired

The quilt I keep on my bed has binding come undone.  It was hand sewn and probably poorly.  So I replaced it with new binding.  The new binding is much brighter pink but it was fabric on hand but I don’t dislike it.  

The quilt is mostly vintage sheets - both the flower prints and yellow are sheets so it’s sooo soft.  

Jones was my photographer and this one is so big I couldn’t really even hold it.  I need to find a tree in our yard I can hang quilts from. 

Up closer. 

From 2011 when I finished this quilt. 

40 works of art 1 & 2

One of my things on my 40th list was making 40 works of art.  I have wanted to do more experimenting with mediums for a while.  I considered making 40 works of art and sending them out to friends for my birthday but that never materialized.  So instead i am making 40 works of art and I may send them to friends, I put them in art boxes, I may figure out another solution instead I don’t know yet.  Anyhow here are the 2 I am labeling them on the back so they are numbered.  

Thea did this one with me we were experimenting with painting with textures rather than brushes.  I think we used cardboard, plastic, sponges, screws and maybe other things.  It turned out pretty fun.  She made her own which she almost turned into mud mixing all the colors together.

The second I did on my while my kids were playing actually.  I just picked three colors and painted it.  I have been really into neon colors and had this neon yellow from my failed neon yellow chair project.