more of the gardens

a wedding!

this is one of matt's sisters, amanda, with her fiance', kevin. he's been like part of the family for a while now, but amanda finally called this week to tell us that they are going to make it official this fall. (this picture was actually taken a year and a half ago, but it's all i had.) we are so happy to soon promote kevin from "almost-uncle" to "uncle"! they make a great couple.

we are especially excited for the wedding because it is going to be a long-weekend event with pretty much only their immediate families, probably at some type of resort. they have decided to spend their wedding budget on this instead of going the traditional route. and, i'm sure the dresses will be fabulous, as amanda is my #1 fashion advisor. :)

neighborhood patrol

it appears i have been issued a new job this summer. yes, we are excited to discover that there actually are other kids in our neighborhood. but how is it that they all come out to play in the direction of our house with no parents to be seen? on one hand, i really don't mind (as long as they are getting along) and appreciate the fact that my kids have playmates. on the other hand, it does add some stress to my afternoons when sometimes it seems like i am the only adult eyes on the block!

social graces

our week has been filled with graces... miriam had playdates with both of her friends named grace this week. she spent tuesday at grace r's house, and on friday grace h (and co.) came over, all the way from virginia! we got to see the hemmekes two day in a row, as they are a part of a little overisel reunion that we had yesterday, as well. six of us (that's minus the spouses, though they too are now an integral part of us) have literally known each other since birth and grew up together in the same schools and in the same church. it is rumored that some of us even used to take baths together, though we won't name any names... now that the hemmekes (and soon the pates) live out of state, we try to get everyone together when they are in town. it's always a special time, but this time was extra special because we all brought our kids! what fun to see them all together. so far miriam and grace are the only girls out of the bunch of ten! any day now, though, little girl pate will be joining them. she was actually due to arrive two days ago but has not yet made her appearance. there is also a little harmsen on the way, which we celebrated yesterday with cake and gifts.

(photo compliments of rebecca)

one month

that's exactly how long until our trip to seattle! can't wait!

we've run into loads of people, it seems, who have either been to or have lived in the seattle area, so we have been trying to rack their brains as far as where to go and what to see. if there are any more ideas out there, please let us know!

so far on the agenda: matt's aunt & uncle's house and a tour with them through the city, pike place market, mt. rainier, san juan islands, and possibly olympic national park or mt. st. helens... we will have 8 days and 0 kids... :)

i am in love

…with my new square foot garden! i have been itching to have a vegetable garden for the past few years, but always thought we had too much shade. and in fact, we do… in our back yard. that’s why this year we bit the bullet and plopped our veggie patch right in our tiny—but very sunny—front yard.

i think it was my friend joni who introduced me to the square foot gardening method last year, and i instantly knew i wanted to give it a try. it is perfect for small spaces, and its neat appearance was also a factor for us since it would be in our front yard for all to see. besides that, it is a cinch to water and weed!

it feels good to have finally plowed through my intimidations with the whole thing (my perfectionistic tendencies sometimes slow me down because i am so afraid it won’t turn out just right). it’s a big step forward from last year’s gardening attempts. now here’s hoping the bugs and bunnies don’t snag our harvest before we do! so far, things are looking pretty good, and we have already been enjoying the lettuce. i can’t wait to make it twice as big next year!

here are some photos to document our progress so far:

though i did remove the sod from underneath, we added our own (purchased) soil inside the frame so that we know it's good stuff. matt built the frame (8' x 2' --we are not starting out overly ambitious, people), and the kids and i have had a good time this spring visiting our local seed store and putting it all together.

started a few peas, lettuce, and spinach plants in egg cartons before transferring them to the garden...

and here they are in their new home... (viewing from the side)

and here's what they look like now. (viewing from the front)

what fun to watch the little seedlings pop up! these are the bean beginnings...

and here they are today, with a tomato in the background.

and here are the zucchini, then...

and now.

one other new thing i am trying this year is a potato pot that i found instructions on how to do here.

strawberry heaven

lovin' the lens

i have been spending the past month doing a lot of experimenting with my new camera and lens. i was really frustrated with it at first (had to force myself out of the comfort zone i was in with my other camera) but now i love it. the tiny depth of focus i can get with it is crazy. i still have a lot of learning to do, but thought i'd share a few favorites so far.

yellow jacket on my sea pink

lupine

this year's window boxes!

mr. blackbird was not fond of having his picture taken... either that, or i was too close to his nest, because he dive-bombed me a couple of times.

miriam's feet on our front steps

first beach day of the summer

the kids and i headed out to lake michigan today with our new friends. trekking to the beach with three kids is a bittersweet experience -- a lot of fun and a whole lot of work! especially when you factor in the 200 stairs we had to climb to get over the dune. (while carrying stocked beach bag, cooler, camera, oh, and 40 lb. toddler... i think i got my workout for the day!) the weather was hot but overcast with a light breeze -- perfect!

view from the top, and an empty beach! ahhh....

my little surfer dude

ezra, sawyer, jude, miriam, levi, & georgia

our beach site came equipped with a nice little wading pool that someone had left behind -- it was perfect for the littler two.

slippery slope

first i give myself permission to buy those frozen chicken tenders to have one or two easy meals on hand for the kids... then i come home with these. justification: because there were more of them in a bag for less money... and of course, because they are shaped like dinosaurs. makes perfect sense -- processed chicken molded and breaded into the shape of prehistoric creatures. oh Lord, help us.

(p.s.--this being the second time this month that i have returned home from the grocery store inspired to write about it, i was thinking maybe i will start documenting my food shopping experiences with a new blog series entitled "val's grocery store chronicles" or something like that. we'll see. i'm sure you are on the edge of your seats.)

what day is it?

this morning i was more motivated than usual and got up for a jog at 6:00 am. when i came home, matt was still in bed so i decided to take a quick trip to the store (2 minutes away) for a few desperately needed groceries. miriam and levi were awake when i returned, but sawyer--my late sleeper--was still asleep, so i let the kids put on some cartoons and went back upstairs to read until sawyer woke up. about 10 pages and 3 hours later... i woke up again to a quiet house and a rainstorm outside. miriam and levi were still quietly watching tv and sawyer, though awake, was still quietly hanging out upstairs. and even though it was pushing lunchtime by the time we had breakfast, it still felt like early morning because of the dark storm outside. i guess i should stop blogging about it now and go and get something done today.

finally, a water lily!

also at the gardens today, i finally had a good opportunity to take a picture of a water lily! aren't they beautiful flowers? now i may have to update my home page... maybe after those little water bugs get photoshopped out...

and why not a shameless plug while i'm at it: don't forget--my card sets make great gifts! :)

critters at the gardens

we picked a perfect day to visit frederik meijer gardens today. we bought a membership this year and have already been a few times. it is a great place to let the kids (and adults) explore, experience, and enjoy. today we ran into a few friends along the way--the fox was a fun surprise--and the turtle picture is from the last time we were there.

big boy bed

we put away the crib this week and transitioned sawyer into his big boy bed. at night he has been doing great... naptime, however, is a different story. the first day we tried it, i was downstairs hearing the little pitter-patter of feet above me, and then it was quiet. i forgot to check on him until miriam mentioned it, and when we went upstairs, his bed was empty. miriam's closet, on the other hand, was not -- nor were her slippers!

noticing a trend

i got to thinking as i was out walking tonight... will they think we are clever or just not very good spellers??