what a difference a paver makes

remember a few weeks back when i went a little crazy? no...well, maybe this will refresh the image.

in the midst of grief i became slightly destructive. justin, wonderful man that he is, didn't say a word at our torn apart front porch. he also didn't raise a brow when it stayed that way for weeks. i finally had my fill and was ready to recreate the damage.

this is what we started with this morning. (ignore the front plant, those are awaiting a transplant). justin and i after some compromise of vision went to lowe's to get supplies. i acted as supervisor and errand girl during the process.

step one: level area and fill with crushed rock...check

step two: cover with paver sand and level once more....check

step three: lay pavers and level just for good measure...check

 step four: measure measure measure level level measure level and repeat...check

 

 step five: arrange rock (again an exercise of compromise) and perform test run...check

step six: enjoy!

justin is going to repair the cement around the porch that was damaged in my destruction derby. overall our little saturday project was a complete success.

before:

after:

garden heaven

i was driving home today and spotted a small sign that said plant sale. i called justin to see if he'd join me and we headed over to the sale right before it closed. our timing couldn't have been any better. there was only an hour left of the sale, and all of the plants were half off. even more amazing was their prices to start. gallon buckets of raspberries for three dollars, we nabbed 'em for a buck fifty! i was in garden heaven. the sale was put on by beaverton garden association, which means there were about fifteen grandmas manning the joint. they picked up on my frenzy and started throwing in free plants. they were so excited about my enthusiasm, and my cute daughter may have helped sweeten the deal too. all that to say, i drove away spending a whopping twenty bones on plants that would have been easily over one hundred dollars at a nursery. and yes, i signed up for the mailing list.

here's a look at my new friends:

("aster" grows into a fairly large bush with cute daisy-like pink/purple flowers)

("epimedium" is a blooming ground cover that grows perfect in those shady hard to grow places)

("feverfew" also has daisy like blossoms, this guy was new to me)

 ("gooseneck" and that is just what this will look like...it also is known for being invasive, maybe that's why it was free)

("japanese iris" not sure if this will be where they stay, but love these dramatic gems)

  ("lilac"check out this little champ--from the looks of it, it might be awhile before we see any sweet blooms)

(raspberries yum!)

("st. john's wort" will be sportin' sweet yellow flowers in the summer)

 ("yellow wood violets" will go perfect with its new neighboring columbine)

earlier this week i was lured into a garden sidewalk sale with promises of great prices. i spent four times as much on these little guys as i did on today's steals! lesson learned.

 ("burning heart" hybrid cousin to bleeding heart)

 ("helleborus" grows like a champ in the shade)

(tomatoes--i am working on some seedlings too, but wanted some variety)

("oak leaf hydrangea" i mistook this for a regular hydrangea until i took a good look at it, i still think i will enjoy it--the hunt is on still for a hydrangea)

restored style

hey! 

check it! http://www.restoredstyle.com/

 my new favorite website---if only kir would make a guest appearance at my house!

mom's 60th

my mom celebrated her 60th year yesterday. our plans changed about 50 times but to be expected with this family. in honor of her birthday and how very special she is to me, here is a little list of allmy favorite things about that woman:

• 
  
  she listen really good (actually she does it for a living)
• 
  
   she is goofy
• 
  
   she is passionate
• 
  
  she is so good at loving people
• 
  
   she knows how to sail
• 
  
  she babies me when i'm sick, or down, or just feeling like a baby
• 
  
  she LOVES her grandchildren
• 
  
   her nostrils flair when she laughs
• 
  
   she makes a mean porkchop
• 
  
   she knows how to have a good time
• 
  
   she wears wild clothes
• 
  
   she is a dreamer
• 
  
   when she is mad, it never lasts long
• 
  
   she knows me inside and out
• 
  
   when she drinks coffee it is the most fun
• 
  
   she sends holiday cards for valentines and halloween, who does that?
• 
  
   she is mushy
• 
  
   she is so mushy she cries when anyone sings her happy birthday or gives her a card
• 
  
   she got voted best nose in the 7th grade...and she does have the best nose!
• 
  
   she is healthy
• 
  
   she is a loyal friend
• 
  
  she has an open mind
• 
  
  she drives fast
• 
  
   she loves to eat
• 
  
  she is a great dancer
• when i was little, she would let me have "mental health days" off of school
• i don't mind that she is late anymore...most of the time
• she values her family
• she is a romantic
• she makes me laugh
• she supports me in my newest role as "mom"

happy birthday mom! i'm glad you were born

Mother's Day

mother's day rocked my world. i love it. it came at just the right time this year. we celebrated papa's life saturday. i started the day of the funeral with dread, not ready for the finality of it all. but as the service progressed and i listened to family and friends describe my grandfather with such accuracy and beauty, i felt my broken heart began to mend. i know it is just the beginning of the process.

at the graveside i noticed this elderly gentleman, about five feet tall dressed in a brown polyester suit. he looked to be about ninety. i wasn't sure what the connection to papa was, most of papa's close friends have already passed or are living in california. i watched out of the corner of my eye during the military presentation. he was sobbing. he made his way up to my mother afterward, he tried to explain how he knew my grandfather, but he couldn't quite get the words out through his sobs. justin approached him a few minutes later, the old man's eyes were still wet with tears. he explained to justin he knew my grandfather because they were in the same central oregon naval battalion. he had enjoyed listening to papa talk about his experience in the war and they had formed a friendship. he had found out about the death through the paper. i was again touched by how far the rays of papa's sunny disposition reached. 

this gentleman, roy was his name, also said something interesting. roy thought it was funny how on a headstone they list the dates from birth to death, yet that doesn't really tell you anything. he said if we could only unpack that dash between the numbers, that is where the story of the life is held. in between the dash. in papa's case 1922-2010. interesting.

but that wasn't really mother's day was it? this was mother's day for me

slept in

breakfast made by the guys

massage and facial at jinsei spa with my mom, aunt, and cousin

mother's day was perfect. 

airstream dream

justin and i have a little obsession with airstreams. they are so cool.

picture setting it up right on the edge here:

growing up i thought it was a little sissy-ish if you "camped" in a rv of any kind. real camping was in a tent. and i still do love to tent camp. but now that we have a child who eats dirt and wakes at first light, having some sort of protection from the elements would be amazing. 

we have spent time studying the different body styles, lengths, years. my vote is for the 1969-1979 trade wind. 

 

i love the windows that wrap around the front (that style started in 1969) and i think this length would be just about right (i would love the bigger ones but they get a little hairy to pull)

what do you think? awesome right?

eugene half marathon

so brit, mackenzie and i had a little road trip down to eugene saturday afternoon. the boys came later. we checked in to the hampton. i put it in italics cause we pretended it was fancy. after, we went downtown (caught the tail end of awesome eugene-hippy-saturday-market) for dinner at ambrosia. yum! the food was awesome. my mom and mike stopped by to wish us luck and partake in a little food as well. mackenzie got a hit out of the oil to dip the bread. she was dipping everything in it, including her binky. we ate until we were stuffed. and even though we were a little uncomfortable with our engorged bellies and all, we still hit up the drive-thru tcby. brit and i both love tcby and it isn't everyday there's one with a drive-thru!

(my mom and mike at ambrosia, she is always talking when her picture gets taken)

we went for a little dip in the hampton's pool. kenze loved it, after she got over being a afraid. back at the room brit and i carefully laid out our clothes and race day things. then we tried for about 2 hours to put mackenzie to bed, but i think she was having too much fun. she kept popping up her head and peeking at us over the top of her porta-crib. she thought it was funny. so did we. so we got her up and she ran around like a banshee until justin and tom arrived. then we turned out the lights. then kenze started screaming. justin, lovely man that he is, took her downstairs and out to the car. he drove her around (tom went too) until she fell asleep. but when he brought her back in, she woke up. she was all hyped up from her midnight nap. we brought her to bed with us thinking maybe she would cuddle up and sack out. instead she crawled all over us, kicking and sucking loudly on her binky. she took another nap. at 3 or so justin took her to the lobby where she entertained the late night receptionist. 

(still half asleep, boarding the shuttle)

we got up at 5. after a minor detour (justin thought he knew where he was going, luckily i had memorized the route from our hotel to the expo) we caught the shuttle to hayward field, drinking our red bulls along the way. brit and i hit up the honey bucket and found our place at the start.

(ready....set....go!)

brit had told me that the first five miles would be a blur and she was right. i was caught up in the excitement. for the first ten minutes, when we were still packed tight, i just listened to the sound of breathing and pounding feet. oddly, everyone was silent that first mile. when i looked ahead there were bobbing heads for as far as i could see, when i looked behind it was a mirror image. we passed by houses playing music for us, people in lawn chairs yelling. we ran next to a 74 year old woman for about a half a mile, before she passed us. at about 3 miles we caught up and ran with a blind runner. my eyes filled as we trudged behind him. he was attached with a rope to a running partner, it was such an act of faith and i will never forget it. i was impressed with all the different walks of life that were there. 8,000 people from all over, varying in every way possible, sweat it out on the streets of eugene.  i was cracking up at the variety of outfits of the participants. my favorite was a man, maybe 65 or so, wearing a red sweatshirt with the sleeves cut off and red shiny spandex pants.

(mackenzie cheering on the runners)

(mile 8. still smiling!)

this was by far the biggest, longest, most exciting race i've ran in. i trained for four months. during that four months i was sicker than i had ever been, i lost my grandfather, i went on a cruise, had crappy runs, lost ten pounds, gained back ten pounds, had amazing runs...it was quite the journey. i had goosebumps as i funneled into the last half mile down agate street into hayward field. i spied my mom and mike cheering (she was easy to spot as she was spastically hopping up and down) right at the entrance into the field. i ran my hardest the last hundred meters, the crowds cheered, my eyes teared, and my name boomed on the loud speaker.

(crossing the finish line)

(future marathoner)