Sunday, August 30, 2009

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

i can feel it, see it & taste it.


even though the days are still averaging about 97 degrees, i can definitely notice the evenings getting cooler. school is starting. touches of halloween greet me in stores. high school football is around the corner. blossoms are fading. the nights are getting longer.

every mid-august i start to look for signs of autumn. i let myself think of hot apple cider, roasted pumpkin seeds and beautiful grey skies. autumn is my favorite season, i love everything about it. i love the smells, scarves and coats, the crunchy leaves, the promise of family gatherings and peppermint, hot chocolate with marsh mellows, and shades of reds, oranges and browns. i love love LOVE autumn! :)

i remember living on my own in my first apartment in seaside oregon, watching the rain drip off an evergreen out my living room window. the cool beachy fog clung to the hills as i watched joey's breath puff when we were outside. that first autumn on my own really made me appreciate how beautiful the season is. now i'm excited for my first fall season in my new house! i'm excited to light some pumpkin spice candles, decorate indoors and out, and carve some jack-o-lanterns.

as i type this, i'm sipping on some trader joe's spiced cider. :D easy fall prep tip: heat some spiced cider and some lemon and orange zest on the stove for some yummy hot apple cider. it makes your kitchen smell amazing too!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

lil' bit of oregon



this is my little '96 suzuki esteem, i bought her when i was 19 years old while living in oregon. at the time, she was my largest purchase ever of $4,100!

i took this picture today after driving her for the first time in 8 months or so, (michael usually drives her to work when he's not riding his bike.) she's got squeaky upholstery and is starting to get that "old car" smell, but i've been missing oregon a lot lately and it was so nice to be reminded that i still have a little bit of oregon left. :)

i took this picture to show how dirty and forgotten she looked, but it actually makes her look cleaner than she really is. all that it shows is the cobweb on the bumper but she's actually pretty gross. so... use your imagination. :)

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

i think...

...2nd day spaghetti is tastier than fresh spaghetti.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

how you, bien?

i've been pleasantly busy since returning to the sweltering heat of southern california. i say sweltering, not blistering because it's been very humid and hot here the past week. i was listening to the radio today on my way to work and npr was reporting on the upcoming flu season. hmm yeah, i guess summer is about over for other parts of the country. we still have until mid-october before we see any turning leaves. (not soon enough!!!) still, one must remain optimistic; i heard el nino is going to push a lot of rain our way later this year. :)

i've started running in the mornings again. i run around the city park near our house, it has lots of shady trees and wild bunnies. very nice. i'm at two laps around the park now and i hope to push to three laps sometime next week. i got the inspiration to run again after examining my sweet chicago calves. there's just something about walking for five days around a beautiful city that brings out that muscle definition i've missed for so long.

michael starts school next week, so we've been putting his room together. he's in the journalism room now, (this is his first year teaching journalism) and hopefully this is his last room move for a long time. we've already hung his maps and salvador dali posters, he just needs to organize his office and create a student work wall. i'm back at working in the church two days a week and am unsure about subbing in the school district this year. i don't expect to get a lot of work because of the current budget, but we'll see...

i've also been planning my fall garden. most of my summer flowers are spent and my vegetable garden is slowing its production, but my peppers and tomatoes are still going strong and begging to be picked. i've decided to plant pumpkins this year, i have the perfect sunny corner for them. i've also decided on bachelor buttons, alyssums and pansies for the front flower beds. i'm going to try forget-me-nots also, but it may still be too hot. i've been neglecting my plants lately for the most part due to the green june beetle breeding season. they've infested my peach tree with their pheromones and erratic flying. i don't know about you, but i don't enjoy sharing the same yard as huge lusty beetles. so, while my flowers have paled in the heat, my weeds have been flourishing wonderfully!