A Weekend with Gram

The day after Seth & Miranda's wedding we picked up Gram at my cousin Keith's football game and headed to Arimo. As we were leaving the football field she spotted a hop scotch and decided to have a go.

She was insistent that she have her book out of her purse in the trunk. I figured it'd be some literary classic but she pulled out this:

We laughed and tried to answer trivia. This is so my grandma. She was a beloved English and drama teacher at Marsh Valley High School for 30 years and can quote any play or musical ever written but still likes to read bathroom trivia. I was excited to have her trapped in the car for a few hours so I could ask her tons of questions. She told us stories of grandpa and his childhood in Bancroft. She told us about her parents and their journey from Kansas to Washington.

We stopped for lunch at flags west in Downey. She knew half of the people there including the waitress. We went into Downey for a few groceries and then headed home for some naps.

In the evening we had a frozen pizza and played cards. She taught me how to make Swiss steak. I love her Swiss steak! We played continental rummy and she called me a little shit. We started on a game of phase 10 but got too sleepy. After a few episodes of the Big Bang Theory we retired to bed.

In the morning I made biscuits and gravy. We tossed the prepared Swiss steak in the oven and headed to church. I always love going to church in Arimo. Nothing changes there. People's families grow but everyone is still the same.

Sunday afternoons at Grams are the best. We put a puzzle together, started another one and lazed about the house. I dug through the recipe box and pulled out some of my favorites to copy and take with me. There was the chocolate cake she would make for my Grandpa- according to him chocolate cake was the only cake worth having-, carmel corn, fudge, pancakes, rhubarb cake and zucchini bread. I have already used these a few times in the last couple months and look forward to eating lots of carmel corn for years to come.

I spent the afternoon with my camera trying to capture the beauty of this place. It's probably nothing too special to anyone else but like I've said before, Arimo holds a special kind of magic for me. Something about the memories there with my cousins and grandparents makes it near and dear to my heart.

This old tack shed with it's halo or barbed wire still holds the saddles on which we used to ride Peppy, Barney, Duke and Tono from the time we were babies. The bridles my Grandpa taught us to put on the horses to lead them up the hill of the pasture. Horseshoes used by my grandpa as he would fix and protect the horse's hooves. Watching my Grandpa farrier horses was where I learned all my cuss words.

Under this tree in the back yard I remember sitting on a blanket eating tuna fish sandwiches and classic Lays potato chips in the summer. We loved spending our week at Gram and Gramp's house each year. There's a piece of bailing twine grown into the trunk of this tree. One of the cousins tied it there years and years ago, we all thought it was so cool when the tree started growing around it.

After a long weekend at the "Lazy JK" ranch it was time for us to head back home to Boston. I was so glad we got the chance to spend a little one on one time with Gram. She really is one of my very most favorite people in the entire world. I always say when I grow up I want to be just like her because she's still so young at heart. She's goofy and fun, she's wise beyond measure and she has hoards of adoring grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She doesn't have much worldly wealth to speak of but to me she is the richest woman I have ever met.

Boston Blooms

After the winter we had this year Spring could not come soon enough! I feel like it's been struggling to really warm up and the trees have taken forever to start blooming but it's getting there, slowly but surely. We plan to have a very full summer this year and see as much of New England as we can before it all freezes over again. 

We took advantage of a Saturday with no plans to jump on the train and head downtown for a little Boston day. We normally go to the city with out of town friends but this time we had no agenda, no list of places to see and no timetable. 

Our one and only goal for the day was to ride the swan boats in the Boston Public Gardens. I have been wanting to do this for the last couple summers but we always get to there just as they're closing or too late in the season. The experience was relaxing and beautiful! The willow trees in the Garden are just so dreamy, it feels like you're in a storybook.

We caught a glimpse of Romeo and Juliet, the resident swans at the Public Garden although one of the two was busy looking for lunch under the water.

The tulips were unbelievable! They might almost rival the flowers at Temple Square. It'd be a close call anyway.

We spent the remainder of our afternoon wandering down Newbury Street and people watching along Commonwealth Ave. I love the houses downtown. I wish we could live in one of these beauties.

For dinner we ended up in the North End at Fiore Ristorante. They have the most amazing roof-top dining area and the food was incredible! I have never had lobster ravioli with so much lobster packed into it!

I really do love this town, even if it does snow for a good portion of the year.

Peaches and Plum Crochet

I tend to buy yarn for specific projects I have in mind but sometimes I just like a color or I order too much of something and I've ended up with a whole bin of colors I don't have a plan for. Every once in a while I get out this stash of yarn and lay it out on the living room floor. Thomas loves when I do this. I spend hours hemming and hawing over the colors, trying out new combinations in an attempt to use up some of these odds and ends. This color combination is the result of one of these yarn chaos sessions. I am obsessed with how this blanket turned out! I think it's just the right mix of modern and classic.

The pattern for this blanket is from Raverly and it's a free download! Woo! You can get it HERE! I like the look it created, a little twist on a classic chevron pattern. It's basically two rows of a regular chevron stitch followed by two rows of a granny chevron stitch. I love that it ends up looking a little like lace or eyelet- so girly!

It's going to be difficult to give this blanket away, I might have to make a duplicate for my own stash of baby blankets.

Peaches and Plum Stats

Yarn: Stylecraft Special DK
Colors: Cream, Apricot, Plumb, Silver
Pattern: Here

First Trimester in 30 Rock Gifs

I thought I would summarize the first trimester of my pregnancy with a few gifs from my all time favorite TV show, 30 Rock. You know, so my kid can see what a weirdo it''s mom is someday.

When I first found out we were expecting:

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When I am watching Dancing with the Stars:

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And Thomas is like:

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Every night before I go to bed, I must have a snack:

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I take so many naps that we practically never leave the house:

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The first trimester bloat is no joke!

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When someone is cooking smelly food in the lunch room at work:

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I have never thrown up but some days I feel like it could happen at any moment:

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I am hungry all. the. time. All the time!

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And when I need to eat, I NEED to eat NOW:

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I forget everything, trying to remember something I thought about 5 minutes ago, the name of a restaurant or friend? Forget it. Literally, I forget it.

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Every time I see a friend with their new baby:

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And this last one just because it's disturbing:

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