Gardner Village ~ Field Trip Friday

After riding the new UTA train last week, my boys and I took a stroll through Gardner Village. If you live anywhere in Utah or are planning to visit ~ make sure and stop by Gardner Village. It is a beautiful place, especially in the spring and summer. Right now Gardner Village is sooo patriotic. The Bridges and Shops are decked out in Americana!

All the shops are fun to browse and full of wonderful products. I love that most shops are historic homes and having lived in a historic home myself, it bring back fond memories. One of my favorite shops is of course Pine Needles!! Of all the quilt stores in Utah, Pine Needles in one of the best. The store is cozy and full of wonderful, inspiring fabrics and quilts. Plus, it is right next to the pond so my boys are occupied while I shop. When you stop by and visit Gardner Village make sure and visit Pine Needles.

Oxnard Strawberries ~ Mid Week Munchies

No surprise here I am posting about strawberries for Mid Week Munchies. My sister lives about 20 minutes from Oxnard, California. Home to the best strawberries on Earth. They are sweet, juicy, red and I am addicted!! They have little corner strawberry stands all over Oxnard and a even a few stands where my sister lives. Almost every morning I ran out and got a half flat of these scrumptious berries! I don't think I've ever consumed more strawberries in a week.

The "Chic"iest Chicken Coop

I spend last week at my sister's house. She is an amazing friend and it always re-charges my battery to spend time with her. She is an amazing cook, extremely creative and has a zest for life that always puts a smile on my face. I wanted to share her chicken coop with you. It is so "chic". I never thought a chicken coop could be so eye catching!! You see it in her yard and you just have to check it out.

They took their old existing outdoor play house and chopped the legs off, made a few other structural adjustments and added chicken wire.

The chickens are smelly, poopy and so darn cute. They love their little roost and hen boxes. Happy Home.

Her flower boxes are the perfect "Tina" touch. If we ever get chickens this is exactly how we are doing it.

If you've got a chicken coop, add your link to post/pictures in the comments. I would love to see it.

Linking up:

BCD

Holly's Quilt

I have an exceptional friend who is expecting a baby in October. She has two little boys and is expecting her first GIRL!! When I found out what she was expecting, I got straight to work on a baby quilt. When I attended Quilt Market Meetup, in my goody bag I got a sample pack of reproduction Micheal Miller fabrics. I thought they colors and fabrics were perfect match for my friend. I recently finished the top and can't wait to quilt it, bind it and present it to my dear friend. Stay tuned on the progress!

Ride UTA ~ Field Trip Friday

Last Friday, my boys and I we had the oppotunity to ride UTA (Utah Transportation Authority) brand new rail line from History Gardner Village to Daybreak. Growing Up in Oregon I waa always riding the pubic rail sytem, with Oregon's freeways and insane Traffic as a teenage, riding MAX (that is what its called in Oregon) was a great way to get from point A (my house) to point B (downtown Portland). It was safe and inexpensive.

When UTA came up with the concept of letting bloggers and their families ride and try/test out the new rail line, I couldn't resist. I don't know about you, but Me and My Three Boys in the Car ~ can get a little CrAzy!! The rail line was like a breath of fresh air. No seat belts or car seats, lots scenery and room to move. My two older boys happily boarded the train, picked their seats and chatted about the scenery.

The train is pretty, clean and smooth. The stops along the way are are all convient and have easy access on and off. The Gardner Village stop is awesome, right accross the street from Archibald's. I can tell already that is going to be a busy stop. Our last stop was on the backside of Daybreak ~ which isn't super close to the Daybreak shops or where my friends live, but if I asked I'm sure they would come and pick me up!!

GiVeAwAy!! Want to try and new rail yourself! It opens August 8th to the public. Leave a comment here (on this post) and you'll be entered to win a family 4 pass to ride the train. Giveaway ends one week from today: July 30th at midnight. Good Luck!

Baby Food ~ Mid Week Munchies

Now that my baby is 9 months old. (yikes!) I thought I would share a few of my tips and tricks for feeding the little guy.

Disclaimer: Everyone has their own ideas about feeding their baby, these are just my suggestions and what has worked for me. As a Mom, please do whatever you feel is best for you and your baby.

I make my own Baby Food. Yes, I do! It is super easy and works the best for me and my schedule (a.k.a LIFE) I mash my own bananas, buy regular applesauce and cook my own carrots. Since I am already feeding "normal" food to my two older boys I just lump the third one in as well.

When I had my first baby, traditional Gerber baby food was too expensive on our tight family budget so I just improvised and made my own: mashed potatoes, peaches, raisins. It worked so well, I have never looked back. All my boys, to this day, are great eater, they aren't picky and just about any food makes them happy.

I follow doctor's instructions and don't give them any milk products or meat until they are one years old and I do try and really limit their sugar intake, but honestly with two older brothers they are always slipping Henry something sweet.

Happy Wednesday, Enjoy the summertime!!

Propeller Quilt Finished

Over the weekend, I finished the border (machine quilting) and the binding on my propeller quilt. I choose three straight lines for the borders. I didn't feel anything specific calling out to me and since my machine quilting skills are below minimal I decided for Safe and Simple.

I choose a checked yellow binding. I thought it brought out the yellow in the border and since yellow is never my first choice...I went out on a limb. Don't get my wrong, I love yellow. I adore yellow: sun + bananas + flowers + hair color + yield signs. You name it yellow and I love it. But when I look through my closet or my stash yellow is hardly seen. Maybe I need to make an all yellow quilt just to prove to yellow that I like her. Brilliant!!

FYI ~ these pictures do not do this quilt justice. My camera was really acting up.