This post may make you think twice if you’ve arrived at the right place. It’s centered around food. Growing, eating, drinking, and baking with a little artsy-crafty splash thrown in just so you remember where you are.

This is my new favorite breakfast. Blueberry Oatmeal Bake. I found the recipe on Pinterest…where else?!  I modified things slightly to fit the ingredients that I had plus I don’t like using artificial sweeteners.

Check out this kohlrabi I got in our CSA box! Crazy!! I haven’t cut it open yet…I’m thinking today. I set it next to the loaf of bread we got as well with our farm share this week. I love it when they do community partnerships.

Between the beans from the CSA and my garden I needed to can some more spicy beans. I mixed up a double batch of the brine since I had so many. Not wanting to pour it down the sink, I grabbed some random veggies to try in a jar with some extra spices since I wasn’t including a jalapeno. Time will tell if we enjoy them or not.

Speaking of the garden…the high heat and humidity have done a number on the garden. The beans and squash have quit producing and of course you know about my deer chomped tomatoes. I was watching a youtube video about harvesting potatoes and the gardener mentioned doing a second planting of some of the quick turn around crops that stop production in the heat. Hmm…sounds exactly like what’s happening here. He said to look up the first frost date and count backwards from there to see if there is enough time. Our first frost date is Oct. 2nd so I have time!! I’ll let you know next week what I decided upon.

Since we’re talking about outdoor things…look at these lovely lilies my neighbor so generously lets me pick.  She had some other colors but those must be a little tastier to the deer…they beat me to them. My tiger lilies should be blooming this week…if the deer don’t get them first. Darn deer!!

With the heat and humidity I’ve been drinking tons of water. That gets boring sometimes so need to mix it up. My new favorite is club soda with a squeeze of lime or lemon. So refreshing.

All my walking is doing something that I hadn’t really noticed until I put on a shirt I hadn’t worn since my birthday.

I’ve lost 12 lbs. Both my walking and staying away from things such as those in the birthday basket I received. I want to keep this momentum going. Wish me luck!

On Saturday our state wide mask order went into effect for all indoor public spaces…its about time if you ask me.

I started making more masks. J will need a bunch at college. Mini-me will be doing her classes at home for her college courses. We find out later this week what the fate of K-12 school will be.

Are you still with me…I think we’ve finally arrived at the artsy part.

I’m not in love with this page as a whole. But I do love some of the little details.

The textures….

The colors…

And the message.

Today has me replanting in the garden, sewing and stupid household chores.

What are you doing today?

Over the weekend I decided to play with some watercolors.

For this first set, I began with stamping with Staz-on ink then came back in with layers of watercolor.

I really lik how they turned out. I’ll probably make cards out of them.

For this next set I decided to challenge myself a bit and try painting free hand then adding the black marker after.

These are really fun as well. I definitely need some practice but I imagine I’ll be at it some more. Its really fun!

My weekend walk took me along a familar path but this time I was surprised by 2 deer, 3 turkeys and a bunch…a gaggle…not sure what a group of baby turkey’s are called. I tried for a photo but they were into the woods too fast.

Instead you just get the path and secluded beach across the lake from the large beach. On my way back I crossed paths once again with the same group. It was really odd to me that they were all hanging out together. Perhaps safety in numbers.

 

It was a hot, sweaty weekend…lots of water needed.

This week has me working on house stuff. Boring I know. Hopefully I’ll do some fun artsy or crafty projects along the way as well.

What are you doing today?

Wowsers! My ADD is in full gear. I want to try everything. So many irons in the fire but not much getting fully finished. Its a self-diagnosed condition and I am not making light of those who struggle with the medically diagnosed form. I’m with ya…I get it!

Where or where to start….

These seem like the perfect way to begin to explain how my ADD is working these days.

I pulled out my sewing box looking for a needle and button thread to reattach a button on J’s shorts. Yes, this would have been the optimal time to teach him this skill but I didn’t think of that until I was done. Perhaps I’ll have to snip a few threads on another one. *insert evil laugh*

Anyway…I noticed a few completed yoyos and several circles ready to sew. Of course, I dive full in and begin sorting through my scraps for pieces big enough to cut circles, then sit down and sew all these. I decided to exhibit a bit of self-control and actually began to tackle my to-do list.

I canned my spicy beans…although 2 jars never properly sealed so those are in the fridge for immediate consumption.

I also made Kimchi for the first time. You can see that I sampled quite a bit from one jar before thinking to document. It is so good! I sort of cobbled together a few recipes since I didn’t have the exact ingredients for any of them. I wasn’t sure if it would taste as good as the local brands I picked up at the co-op but it did! Now I have my fingers crossed that we get another Napa cabbage in our farm share box this week.

Sticking with the food theme…

The summer squash is beginning to ripen, We really enjoy these grilled. I use the grill as much as possible to cook with during the summer. No use heating up the house if at all possible not to.

I came home from my walk yesterday to find this…looks ok since you didn’t see it before. The deer ate a good 1/4 of the plant leaves and stems in addition to EVERY SINGLE tomato on the vine. There had to have been at least 15 maybe closer to 20 tomatoes in various stages of ripening. UGH!!!!!!!

Moving on…no use crying about what is already done.

My walk yesterday morning took me to the lake where I would take the kids swimming when they were little.

The water was so calm. Even the boat launch made for a pretty scene.

The rental craft are always a pretty picture but I was honestly very surprised that they are renting them during the pandemic. HMM…

This week after much deliberation, I decided to reopen my Etsy store. Mini-me said that she’d help me in exchange for a sales commission. I think that is fair and savvy on her part.

I have only gotten a few cards listed so far but its a work in progress.

More works in progress are masks for the family. J will need a bunch for school. They are required to wear them on campus while outside of their rooms. The dining center and any classrooms that require other protective gear are the exceptions. Mini-me will also need more if she will be attending community college as part of the PSEO (post-secondary enrollment option) program. She’s been accepted but her counselor quit two weeks ago. We’re kind of stuck at the moment. She may be starting her senior year at high school then transition to the college classes…who knows?!?!

Too soon? LOL I indulged in a cold beer over the weekend in my Corona glass.

Today I’m attempting to get some of the chores I really don’t like doing so that I can do a few fun crafty things I’ve been wanting to try. I’m dangling the carrot for myself…we’ll see if it works or not.

What are you doing today?

I was super inspired by the color of the packaging in the Ipsy glam box Mini-me got yesterday. I immediately took the paper and went to my work space.

I began layering papers from my table. Who said a messy desk wasn’t useful?!

This tiny snippet makes me happy. Its an off-cut of a masterboard. Just the tiny edge of a gold doily gives that pop and shine it needed.

The page came together in less than 10 minutes. Finding the words likely took me longer than piecing together the page.

The flower was a last-minute addition. Something was needed in that spot to draw the eye down through to read the words.

I have to say I’m loving the new theme When it’s hot on Art Journal Journey. Nice choice Erika!

The base of this loose leaf journal page is an equation sheet for an engineering course J had taken last semester. Actually just one of the crazy long, I don’t really see any numbers just symbols, type of things spanning three sheets. Wowsers. I’ll stick to middle school math, thank you.

I smeared some bright cheerful summery colors then began adding bits of paper not really knowing where I was heading. Since I had completely covered all the math I decided to add back in a table from a vintage math book so I’d remember where this page had begun.

After I felt my layers were complete, I looked for the right words. The birds made me think of flying, adventure, getting away from it all. The bicycle washi is another nod to getting out into nature and enjoying the fresh air.

Gosh, you’d think we were cooped up or quarantined or something. LOL Sometimes you’ve got to laugh or you’ll cry.

I’m so smitten with this theme that I created two pages in one sitting yesterday…either that or I was avoiding housework. Maybe both.

Art Journal Journey

Since I mentioned work…this is work I actually enjoy…gardening. It is a lot of work but I do love getting my hands dirty, having to wipe the sweat from my brow. But the things I love most is harvesting!

I’ll be canning spicy beans this week! And making cucumber salad…or maybe just peeling and eating.

I’m really looking forward to when the tomatoes ripen. I’m so sick of grocery store tomatoes.

These two bok choy plants and the habanero pepper plant I got for FREE when the local parking lot pop-up greenhouse was shutting down for the season. They always have nice plants.

What are you doing today?

When I think of summer, I think of road trips. I grew up traveling across country with my parents. Sometimes we made it all the way to the coast. Sometimes to Canada. And other times just to the neighboring state…but we always drove.

I have so many memories of back roads such as this. Dad never cared for taking the interstate freeway system. He wanted to see the small communities, the heartbeat of America. Times were definitely different in those days.

I used soft pastel colors to reflect the innocence of the time…at least through a child’s eyes. I’m sure my parents wouldn’t agree but compared to life now…it was definitely innocent.

I wish I were travelling down that road right now…

Linking up with Art Journal Journey for When it’s Hot hosted by Erika aka BioArtGal.

Art Journal Journey

I wasn’t sure I’d get another one in before my month of guest hosting on Art Journal Journey comes to an end…but I did!

I still had a pretty big piece of masterboard left over and noticed a pretty paper pad I had yet to have used. The colors went perfectly.

These mid century colors lend themselves to a more whimsical time yet full of tradition. Since I am adding this page to my three ring binder journal I was free to use super bulky objects such as the metal key and miniature frame. Both items have been rattling around in my stash for over a decade, So happy to finally use them!!

I began the search for a small vintage image but then this little guy caught my eye. I fell in love. He is just the right touch of whimsy I needed.

All I had left were the perfect words…and since I got this one finished at the final hours…I guess we did have time.

Art Journal Journey
I had to share this too…last week when I posted my By Midnight  journal page on Instagram, I had someone famous in the crafting world comment on my collage.
Mark Mortano is the author of the Big Ass book of crafts series, TV host and a designer.  Not gonna lie…that felt good to be recognized by a professional designer.
Since it’s also T stands for Tuesday as well I will share my obligatory drink and a bit about my week,
My garden is still going gangbusters…I think I’ll be canning some beans real soon.
Speaking of going gangbusters….I’ve been walking… walking a lot.
Here are a few photos I snapped along the way.
Those photos are three different lakes within easy walking distance of my house.
Gosh, I love summer in Minnesota!
I got this graphic in my email just a bit ago…
so yeah…I guess I did walk quite a bit last week. LOL
If its not raining…I’ll be walking!
What are you doing today?
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