When I was 16 I decided I wanted to be a vegetarian. I have never been crazy about eating meat, and so I thought being a vegetarian was right for me. So for about four years I didn't eat any meat. Not even chicken. But for some reason, at some point in my life, I started eating chicken again. I stuck with only chicken for a few more years and then I found myself eating some red meats. And now I eat both, a little, here or there. So the other day I was trying to think of something to cook for dinner and I got this overwhelming feeling of disgust towards meat again! I believe I actually said aloud, " I loathe chicken." Where did it come from? Why is this feeling back? Now, out of no where, all kinds of meat totally gross me out. No, I am not pregnant. ( Isn't if funny how once you've had a baby, every time you start to feel a little sick everyone assumes you are pregnant?) Anyway, to make a long story short I have done some extensive online research to find some tasty, vegetarian meals. Heres what I found, for all you vegetarian readers. (If there are any).


Last night I tried this recipe. Stuffed peppers. They turned out pretty good and were actually very filling. John ate the leftover pepper for lunch today and he claims they are better the next day.

Tonight I tried this tasty dish. This one is a definite keeper. Even the little one liked it. I was giving her little bites of broccoli mixed with the rice and she didn't notice, until one bite I said " I sneaked in some broccoli in that bite"...and then she spit it right out and said "yuck". Oh well.

So far my family has been very understanding with my relapse into vegetarianism. Who knows how long they will last, or how long my meat loathing will last.

Here are a few things my new best friend and I have been working on. First is what I now refer to as the beast. I had this great idea for this disapearing nine patch quilt I was going to make. At first everything was going fine. I made a few little mistakes as it was my first time attemping this pattern. I wanted it to be a really big, comfy quilt that would make a perfect Christmas present. But days turned into weeks and it felt like I would never finish. So, I eventually finished the quilt, and very hastily might I add. In my haste I soon realized that on one side of the back of the quilt I did not cut enough fabric. So I had to hand sew an extention piece on the back, because it was too late to fix it the right way. My Mom thinks you can't even notice it, but all I see when I look at this beast of a quilt is the big, fat part where I screwed up. So, I gave it to my Mom. She loves it. But she's my Mom and she loves everything I make. She's got a growing pile of things I made that I didn't like or messed up on. Anyway, here it is:

Next is a little dress I sewed up for D. It was my first time sewing with elastic thread and I think I made it a little too tight. Didnt' get a good front shot, as usual. Here is the back:

And last night I found a tutorial for this little bag. I actually had the same fabric as her tutorial, only in different colors. Love love love the fabric. I haven't decided what to do with it yet, but here it is:
Well, now its time to start on Christmas gifts. I probably won't be posting any sewing projects any time soon because they might be a gift for you!

I know, I know! I never really gave bratwurst a fair shake. My family never ate them, Morgan's family never ate them and my friends never ate them, so it's not my fault. They have always looked good but I always thought they were a meat that sat on the periphery of the sausage world, somewhere just above liverwurst. I only considered them after seeing someone else eat one.



We were watching Paul Deen on the Food Network and they were making tailgating food. These brats were the main course. They boiled theirs in beer first, but I skipped that and went straight to grilling. Then I topped them with grilled onions and peppers and wrapped in a toasted hoagie roll with spicy mustard. Delicious!



I have to say that the bratwurst has definitely brought itself to the forefront of the sausage taxonomy, just behind Kielbasa and Linguica.

Today we went to the pumpkin patch for some fun photo ops. We saw big pumpkins, we saw small pumpkins, we saw animals...and then we saw the slide! This was no ordinary slide. This was a full fledged Carni slide. It was tall, fast and probably hadn't passed inspection. Sounds to me like an equation for FUN!

First I went with Devan, not knowing if she would like or not. She was either going to love it or hate it. As we scaled the inflatable beast the worker shouted, "Don't put her in your lap because if you tumble you could crush her!" Oh man, this must be one bad ride. We got to top and surveyed the surroundings, then sat down and prepared for action. I placed Devan next to, made sure Morgan was ready below with the camera and then slid. It was fun and Devan loved it.

So we got up and did it again. This time, when we got to the top Devan insisted on going by herself! That's my girl! I yelled down to Morgan for approval, "She wants to go by herself!?!" With a nod from the mother I placed Devan down. Without any hesitation she shot off. It was pure comedy. That little body with legs in the air, hair flying and huge smile raced to the bottom.

We will look back on this and remember the slide and the time Devan wanted to do it by herself.

Last week at the Farmers Market I bought some fresh basil. I usually also buy cilantro, but now I have my own cilantro plant in my garden so just basil this week. I have this great recipe for an artichoke salsa with basil. It is so delish. Everyone in our house is snacking on it right now, even Devan. John thinks it needs something extra, but my experience with salsa is that you need to give it time to let the flavors mesh. Homemade salsa always tastes better the next day. Anyway, here is the recipe. Definitely give it a try if you like artichokes and/or basil.

There are too many reasons to list why I LOVE this photo.

So the other day we took Devan to the Zoo. She had a lot of fun looking at all the animals, and we had a lot of fun carrying her and chasing her around when she woudn't sit in her stroller, which was most of the time. We passed one family with a little girl who looked slightly older than Devan, and the little girl was wearing one of these. A kid harness. My first thought was "Wow, we totally need one of those!" and then my second thought was " I don't know if I could actually put my kid on a leash." My third thought was "Where did Devan go?"

So today I was walking around Target and I found this. I thought about it for a while but before I could make up my mind Devan was already attatched to him. I decided to give him a try. It's a harness and a backpack, so when you don't need it, your child can wear it as just a backpack. He was only ten bucks so I figured I couldn't go wrong. We brought him home and Devan already loves him. We named him George, after Curious George. I opted for something unique, but after hearing the list of names I came up with Devan insisted on George. As much as I wish my child would stay right by my side everywhere I go, I know that is unrealistic. So, welcome to the family George!

First things first. We got new new shoes. Here are mine:

Yes, they are cute. Yes, they were inexpensive. No, they are in no way comfortable. My dilemma was that I needed something other than my rainbows (super comfortable) or my crocs, (also super comfortable) to wear when I got to places like parties or out to dinner. Places that require something a little more than flip flops. So here they are.

Here are Devans:

We bought her a pair of new shoes and new sandals right before summer and she ended up wearing the sandals all summer. Well, it's been raining here for the past day or two and guess what I found when I put on her "new" shoes that we bought only months ago? They don't fit. At all. So here are the new ones. I have to say, I really like them and love the fact that they are velcro.

I have a vegetable garden. I love my vegetable garden. My vegetable garden deserves it's own post. I am excited for cold weather crops. Today I bought some Broccoli, Cauliflower and my favorite, Cilantro!

Also, I found a lonely cucumber hanging out today. Thats always a nice surprise.

Some of you have probably heard my recent laments about the sewing machine my Mom bought for me when I was about 16. The Val-u-Sew. The Val-u-Sew and I worked great together for many years but we recently have been having some problems. After consulting with my husband we decided it was time to let her go. I then did some research and found this beauty. She is shiny and new and runs so smoothly I don't know how I ever sewed without her. And the best part? I found her at Target for $40 cheaper than anywhere else I looked. Stay tuned for all of the projects we will create together! Oh, and I still need a name for her. Any ideas are welcomed.

You can check them out here. Thanks Q. Today I was going through all my fabric and my Hubby suggested I open a fabric store. What a comedian. Here is a great shot of my little one playing in the puddle behind the clothesline.
My neighbor has this great big Jacaranda tree that, when in bloom, is covered with hundreds of purple flowers. The flowers are mostly gone now, but, if you look closely you can still find one or two purple patches still blowing in the wind. I love it! I wish it was purple year round.

I've been thinking about making home made jam recently and finally had the time to do it. It was so easy and tastes great. I used this recipe. Devan tried to snatch it before I could get a good pic. I only wish I would have tried this recipe when strawberries were in abundance around here instead of paying more for them at the grocery store.

7. She is a runner. She likes to run a lot.

6. She gives really nice gifts.

5. She will come visit you anywhere in the world and take you out to dinner.

4. She is a great Aunt. She's very hands on and loves to play.

3. If you didn't already know, she lives here. And she takes the 6 train to work every day, which is like, the best train, because she's the best Sister.

2. She totally reads my blog.

1. She gives really great gifts!! Guess who got a gift card to her favorite fabric store? ME! Thanks Quinn, I love you!

I Love reprodepot.com. Remember how I said I didn't love the last quilt I made? Thats because I didn't love the fabric. But, thanks to reprodepot, I now have fabric that I am dying to use! Check out what I got in the mail today:




How beautiful will this quilt be! By the way, if anyone wants to get me a gift certificate to reprodepot, feel free.

A few weeks ago Devan said her first full sentance. She had been catching on the the word "mess"(because I use it so often around her). So one day she was playing and looked down at the floor where her mess of toys were and said "I made a mess!" It was so great everyone was laughing. She said it several more times after because we were all laughing, but has not repeated it since then. She does however have some very cute baby lingo. Here are a few of her favorites:

Have you ever noticed that your friends vacation pictures always look better than yours? When I look at my friends vacation pictures I always think it looks like they are having such a great time in a beautiful place. Although I have fond memories when looking at my own pictures, I don't get that same sense of excitement that I do when I see someone elses pictures. Why? I don't know. I'll just have to keep traveling to new places to find out. Here are some pictures of places I've been. Some are close and some are far. I will let you see if you can guess the location.

I was cleaning out my fabric bins the other day and I came across some old scraps that looked so cute together that I couldn't resist them. So even though I have about five other projects going on, and about twenty other new projects I'd like to try, I had to put it all on pause to make this quilt. Shortly after I began sewing, I realized that this quilt was not only cute, but very, very cute. The only problem was that I didn't have anyone to give it to. But I kept sewing.


So as I was driving to my parents one day, I remembered I needed to make a hair appointment. So I called my stylist. I know. I'm thinking the same thing. Why do I have a hair stylist when I NEVER style my hair? I ask myself that question every time I fork over the hefty check. Anyway- I was talking to the salon receptionist when I remembered that my stylist is pregnant! I asked the receptionist what she is having and got the response I was hoping for: BOY! Alas, finally my quilt has a home!

And the best part? I had enough left over to make a matching onesie!

The even better part? Every time Devan sees this quilt she points to the monkey and says " Money! eee eee eee!"

Today we decided to brave the traffic and crowds to attend the local county fair. The weather was perfect, ( When is it not?) and there was plenty to do to keep my little one entertained. The trip was fun and educational. What do I mean by educational, you ask? Here are only a few of the things we learned today.

Did you know that all of this stuff comes from cows?


We all know that ice cream and hot dogs (gross) come from cows, but I didn't know that we also need cows for things like band aids and crayons. We also found this cool cow-fact sheet:


So if you are a cow, you aren't really a cow until you've had a baby. Well, enough about cows, we also got to see other cool animals like lots and lots of rabbits, goats, lambs, and the Budweiser Clydesdale's.

Every time I go to fairs, or carnivals, or the Santa Monica Pier, I always get sucked into playing the games that no one ever wins. Like this one:

To make a long story short, the next time I pass a game like this I am going to take the cash out of my wallet and drop it in the nearest trash can. So we didn't win one of the cute puppy dog stuffed animals, but we did get funnel cake!

So, after the fair Devan had a baby party to attend. All the neighborhood babies showed up for a fun pool party.

So that was our day, long and busy. It was unfortunately not the "get the work done day" I hoped it would be. Good thing church doesn't start till noon. Oh I also got the cutest hand made toddler bed at a yard sale this morning. I will be posting about that soon, so check back.

Seriously. If you don't have a clothesline it's time to get one. They are so great for so many reasons. And it's great knowing you don't depend on modern technology for everything. If you go out and buy a clothesline I guarantee you will use it way more than you ever thought you might. Below is a picture of my clothesline and hung on the line is my newest batch of fabrics for a quilt I will be making.

Can you spot my baby?
Hurray for clotheslines!