For the holiday weekend, my wee family and I went hiking about our local area. We found some curious, yet past their prime, pinecone-like blooms. After a quick search, it seems they are California Ground Cones. I think they're lovely and I hope to see them next year a bit earlier in the season. Strange I'd never seen them before...so much to discover!
Jeff screeched the car to a halt for me to retrieve this giant pinecone from the side of the road on our way to Southern California. It's wider and shorter than a sugar pinecone, but I'm not sure what type of pine it came from; they were tallish with rather anemic long needles. The tree just didn't match the heft of these murderous cones.
So, I'm enjoying posting from my phone. However, the photos seem to be heavier than the text as they sink right to the bottom of the post...I prefer them to float. Humph.
After our drive through the redwoods, we arrived at the coast...to a beach I don't believe we've been to before (we seem to try different ones each time).
Most every time I'm at a beach, there's a bit or quite a bit of one thing to be found. I remember as a child once going to a beach and there were ladybugs everywhere....Sometimes, it's jellyfish, or I find a lot of beach glass. This time, there were sand dollars in abundance. Most of the sand dollars were broken, as though they were pecked at by the sea gulls. However, some were buried (I only kept the sand dollars that were not alive, live animals stay where they are or are put back where they have a chance at survival):
I carefully moved the sand away from the sand dollars so as to not break them. I collected five (and a piece of sea glass which I've lost because it was clear)...
Some have small holes in them, but they're still so beautiful.
Many of the sand dollars were in a creek that led to the ocean (you can see it in the background of the above photo) which was puzzling...then we realized that the tide probably brought them up the creek and then left them when it receded.
I suppose it's also possible that the sand dollars get buried in the sand and then fall into the water when the creek changes course or widens (note: those doggy prints are from someone else's family).
Such a beautiful day.
Today is beautiful as well...and my favorite weather...65-75 degrees and overcast. Lovely.
Well, mommies...have a happy Mother's Day on Sunday! And for everyone else, enjoy your weekend as well!
My wee family and I decided that we needed to get out of town this weekend and took a day trip to the Oregon coast (the weather was finally sunny for it). In order to get there, we first needed to drive through the redwoods (I know, terrible isn't it?). We took a new route this time which was mostly a dirt road, but it was worth it for the beauty.
The trillium were blooming. White ones and purple ones like this one above growing out of a redwood stump.
These bog plants (if you will) were also blooming...here's a close-up of the yellow flower:
The above plant looks to be some sort of berry, if you look closely at the leaves. I wouldn't have guessed from the pink-purple flower.
The above fern is so incredibly delicate and has a beautiful form..and the black stems!
And this little flower, which looks like a yellow version of a violet.
I suppose I was looking at the small things on this trip through the big trees. The flowers are only a fleeting moment in the spring, and I thought I would pay attention to the details.
Next time we meet, I'll have some pictures of the sand and sea....Until then, enjoy your week!
We went over the hills and through the woods yesterday. The fir and pine (and spruce, if there were any) were freshly flocked. The road was ice most of the time, but it was a beautiful, sunny day.
Happy New Year!
Last Saturday, Jeff and Boo had a father/son day while I did something church-related. They went to a car show and I uploaded the pictures on the computer yesterday. Apparently, they made a gopher friend:
Oh, my goodness....I chuckle every time I look at him, he's so cute!
Funny thing is, Jeff went to another car show on Memorial Day weekend (while I was home with a sick Boo...Jeff was already committed), and he made a gopher friend there too (who really liked peanuts).
First off, Happy Mother's Day to all the mommy readers!
I have some links to share with you from the week!
1. I went to a play yesterday. A friend of mine happened upon free tickets...what a gift!
Pride and Prejudice. You may already know I adore Jane Austen and this play had a comedic twist to the book. Imagine the triplet in the picture bouncing up and down as if they were in a carriage whilst conversing. edit: After thinking about what I wrote, I feel it necessary to note that if you are not familiar with Jane Austen's work (or if you are and thought that I was nuts for not noticing Austin's humor), her books are full of wit...but for me, this play boredered a bit too much on a comedy which overshadowed the romantic qualities.
2. I've always wanted a collection of scented geraniums. A collection of different varieties of mint as well.
3. A fantastic new-to-me blog and shop via (if you love Scandinavian and Japanese design, you'll love it).
4. Perennial veggies! I've really enjoyed the return of strawberry plants and chives on their own...now here's a list of perennial veggies.
All for now!
We got home Wednesday night. Boo, is much better, thankfully. He has just a couple more days of antibiotics (grrr....I try to prevent that as much as possible). While we were visiting, I snapped some shots on Easter of Jeff's Dad's ice plant (it's a ground cover that's a succulent) which always blooms this time of year...breathtaking!
Hard to believe it's real isn't it?
I hope your weekend is going well!
My mom, Boo and I were at a yard sale today (my parents are visiting for Boo's birthday, so posts will be spotty for the next week, week-and-a-half) and there were two baskets filled with over 100 cookie cutters and Jell-O (ish) molds. I almost offered the gal some money for all of it, but decided that I simply didn't have the space to hoard all of them. So, I got a little over 30. We're about to leave to go get some Jell-o to use them and Boo hasn't ever had it before, so it should be fun! I'll share some pictures of the cutters and molds soon, but they reminded me of this recent contest:
I just love the vintage-inspired look to the poster. Here's a link to the website so you can see the results.
Happy Fourth! Well, I guess this post was appropriate!
Jenny and I did a big-ish thrifting adventure a couple weeks ago or so and I've done a couple really quick ones with Boo in the last several days (quick because Boo really learns by touching things and it makes me a bit nervous when he wants to check out fragile items...he really has a tough time just looking, can you blame him?).
On my trip with Jenny, I mainly found items for other people, but I did find a couple scarves that I thought I might wear:
This one doesn't have a tag, but it's so beautiful! I love to wear these colors. Here's another part of the scarf:
This next scarf it just cute (it's vintage...I can tell by the tag):
On my first trip with Boo, I found a couple embroidery hoops and three tea cups in the pattern that both my grandmother and Jeff's mom had; I've been resisting when I see this pattern, but I can't help it, I'm going to try to slowly collect them up for a full set:
Then, on our last trip, I found another hoop, some rogue tea cups for a future project, some plaques for another future project and some thread that I'm guessing is used to crochet doilies:
I thought the string/thread would work great for garlands. I had so much fun making the one for the birthday gift, that I'm surely going to make something for the house.
All for now!
Happy Tuesday!
