Dog Days of Summer

The summer got away on me and I came to the sad realization last week that there's really only a few more weeks left of sultry weather and lazy days. I probably feel like the summer was so short because Ada was born this summer and because there has been a lot to do around the house.

The garden was quite a success this year. I was pregnant when it had to get started, so Nethanel and the other boys were a big help with rototilling and digging up the garden. Liam loves to help out the big guys, even if the shovel is bigger than he is!

The broccoli had a great start, but a tragic ending. I'll spare you the horrible details.

The peas, beans and raspberries were wonderful. I blanched and froze what whatever Liam didn't manage to eat before I got to it. It was a real pleasure to watch Liam enjoy our raspberries and peas, but it made for some pretty gross diapers!

I also discovered a great recipe for Raspberry Italian sodas. It's sure to be a regular every summer at our house.

Raspberry Italian Sodas

4c raspberries
1c water
1c sugar
Club Soda

Wash raspberries and put them in a pot along with 1 c water.
Bring the fruit mixture to a boil and stir until the fruit breaks down.
Pour the fruit mixture through a strainer and collect the juice in a large bowl.
Transfer the juice from the bowl back into your clean pot and add the sugar.
Bring back to a boil and boil for 1 minute, skimming off any foam.
Remove from heat and cool.
Pour 2 oz of your raspberry syrup into a glass club soda and enjoy.

Liam is turning out to be quite the gardener. He loves to help me pick and wash the vegetables and is very good at putting our waste into the compost. I'm thinking next year he will be old enough to have a garden of his own - won't that be fun?

We weren't the only ones enjoying the food from our backyard this summer. The spider in the picture below lived in our tomato plant for most of the summer and, for the most part, stayed in one spot while he let his food come to him.


We've also decided to paint the garage, garden shed and house this summer because we're hoping we'll be able to sell the house in the next year or two. Thankfully Nethanel came over to help us with this chore.

Here Nialle and Nethanel take a break from the sanding and priming to chat.

I've come to realize that as much as I'd love for Nethanel to marry a certain gorgeous dutch girl at church, having a single and available brother around is very advantageous because we get a lot more work done when Nethanel's around to help. (Don't tell him I said that)

Here's the start of our priming. We're still not done all of the painting, but hopefully I can post pictures of our finished work soon.


Ada has been growing quickly and Liam is her constant companion. Liam is a wonderful big brother and likes to help me out by watching Ada while she has 'tummy time' - something she hates.

Ada sleeps in the living room during the day so that she can get used to our noisy household. It seems to be working great because I can vacuum in the living room and she doesn't wake up at all. She is such a content baby full of smiles and snuggles!

It's been a busy summer and I'm sad it's almost over. But at least with the cold weather I can look forward to lots of knitting!

Death of a Legend

Today I must say goodbye to an old, dear friend - my running bra. It's pathetic, really. I've had this thing for almost 10 years now and it was a hand-me-down from my sister in the first place. As of late, I've had to resort to wearing a regular bra underneath the running bra just so I could get enough support. Clearly, this thing was being held together by only two running bra molecules.

Why did I hang on to this thing for so long? I don't know! Surely not for sentimental reasons. I put off buying a new running bra for so long because I knew just how much a good one would cost - and with good reason. Today I finally bought a new bra and it almost cost me as much as a new pair of running shoes. But at least I know it will last me 10 years (I hope)!

Anyways, I'm off for a run in my fancy schmancy new running bra....toodles!

Ada: The First Month

Ada with Nialle, shortly after her birth. Even when she was only a few hours old, Nialle let Ada know she'll never be allowed to get married or have a boyfriend. No, siree!

Ada 5 days old. One of my favourite pictures of her.

Nialle and Ada taking a quick nap together. Ada is a wonderful sleeper. Already she's only waking up once, maybe twice a night and it's only for a quick 5 minute feeding.

Ada before we headed out to the Wetaskiwin airshow. It's proving to be a lot of fun to dress her up everyday. Here she is wearing one of the many outfits her great-aunts bought her.

Ada loves her baths! Grandma Farm made her a whole set of natural, lavender scented bath products that we use to pamper her!

Her first smiled caught on camera! This smile is going out to her daddy.

You can see that Ada has developed a pretty bad case of baby acne. It's on her eyelids, scalp and even in her ears. It looks terrible, but doesn't seem to be causing her any pain. I'm not positive, but I think it might be getting better finally!

Ada's been putting on weight quickly and is developing a double chin! Already I have had to raise the straps on the car seat carrier and I can tell some of her bloomers are fitting much tighter now than when she was first born.

A pretty picture of our little doll taking a nap. We had a great first month with her and here's to more fabulous months in the future.

Cheers!

Dreaming

Do you have a dream? My latest is to live in an old stone farmhouse where I'd keep sheep on the rolling hills around me. I'd have a little shop in the loft of the barn where people could come to buy my homespun yarn, woolen items and take lessons in knitting and spinning.


Nialle would own his own restaurant. In fact, we could convert the barn into a seating area and we could serve people food right from the garden we'd have on the farm. I wouldn't be offended in the least if our patrons knit while they ate their dinners.

What d'ya think...should we do it? One day? Maybe?

What would you do, if you could?

My Boy Turns Two

From this at two months...

to this, at two years of age...



I remember when this guy was only two...it didn't seem that long ago.

Liam 'blowing' out his sparklers (on the left, his future bride is looking unimpressed)...

Mmmm...that cake must have been good because it's all over Joel, Josiah and Liam...

Liam opening one of his presents. Oh, look, it's a diaper shirt for Ada. Sorry kid, it doesn't matter if you turned two, the baby still gets more attention.
Grandma Town hogging, I mean holding, Ada. That night, I could smell Grandma Town on Ada after everyone had gone home. Grandma Town is like a cat - she marks her grandchildren with her scent glands.

Happy Birthday, big guy!