Camping is Swell.

Three weekends ago Tim and I took our once yearly trip to the San Rafael Swell. Tim + Dogs + Tent + Subaru = a great weekend.

The bridge where we left some of Lady's ashes. It was one of her favorite places to swim every year and we had lots of great memories there.

Playing in the San Rafael River.

Gretchen's first time swimming.

Timber was so happy running around that she did a little face plant in the mud. Silly old gal still thinks she is a young pup sometimes.

Tadpoles.

Puppy G looking mature beyond her age.

Such a sweet little puppy.

Then she started acting her age and rolling around in the mud and on the rocks.

All worn out and happily napping with her stick.

Timber was ready for a nap too, but always keeps one eye open to make sure I stay around.

Wild flowers.

Timber getting a drink in the shade.

A sweet little spot to stop for the pups.

Smiles all around.

We took boots for the dogs in case it was too hot, but left them in the car because we didn't think we needed them. Ended up that Gigi's pads were too soft for the sand so we had to carry her down. She was happy to have a lift.

Cuddling in the back seat after a good day.

Home Sweet Home.

I love Gretchen's smiles, especially when Timber is enjoying the moment too.

Gardening, Vegies, Chicks, and More Toys

While Tim has been working hard to keep our garden growing....

The first few weeks of growth.

Ready to harvest last week.

They are growing beautifully and even larger now.

Onions

The cats being mischievous in the garden. I laugh every time I look at Lola's face :) She was so mad that I wasn't picking her up and bringing her into the garden with me.

 I have been working hard making toy fruit, veggies, and reversible baskets to put them in.

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In the meantime, our chicks have been growing big. I love their little peeps and coos.

They are sweet little things, but I must admit I have a favorite. Lucy, the little black one laying down in this pic.

Charlie.....she started as the boss of the group but has become quite sweet and docile.

Lucy......she is always watching what is going on around her.

Mu Shu....she is a spunky little gal.

 This fenced area didn't have much going on, so we decided to do some vertical gardening. The first step was getting things cleared....

Before..

After...with the hens digging for worms and Gigi wanting to be a part of the digging.

Naughty gals. They usually wait outside the door, but today they tried to sneak in for the first time.

A Hen Made of Chicks?

When I saw this decorative hen I couldn't help myself. I was planning on making a living wreath today, but that got put on hold. There are a bunch of hens and chicks (the plants, not the real birds) on the side of our house that are growing like crazy. They can grow just about anywhere, so why not make a hen out of them?

Started with the wire hen.

Lined her so she was ready for the plants.

Then got to adding some chicks.....

......and hens.

I'll add in some more plants tomorrow, but leave enough room for them to grow and make more chicks.

I think she makes a sweet addition to our patio.

It will take a few months for the roots to grow nice and secure into the body of the hen, and in a couple of years her whole body should be covered in hens and chicks.

B's Birthday Bag

It feels so good to have a project completed and sent off to a good home. B's birthday bag, as I mentioned in the last post, is for her very own diaper bag to take care of her baby dolls. Hopefully it will come in extra handy when her mom has a baby in a couple of months. She loves to copy what her momma is doing, so these should help keep her busy.

The "diaper bag" is a bag I found on sale at Michael's in the clearance rack. I also picked up a couple exactly like these (this link is what came up when I googled homemade baby doll diaper bags and helped inspire me) that were on clearance with an additional 20% off my total purchase. Hooray.

Reversible baby doll bibs, although the big one will fit B if she wants to wear it.

The other sides.

Her healthy snacks.

A baby doll burp rag . B LOVES Curious George so I hope she loves the little monkeys on this.

Of course I had to add some baby doll diapers. I had my sister measure B's favorite baby doll and then things took off from there. I really liked this pattern tutorial and this one too. I found that once I had an actual baby doll in hand to try diapers on I made my own pattern that seemed to be a better fit, for that doll at least. There are three different patterns in this mix of diapers!

There are so many fun fabrics.

These could be reversed, although it might be a little awkward. I made another pattern for a friends daughter that is reversible and looks the same on each side (hard to do if you don't have the doll on hand.)

A peek inside the bag once it is stuffed with the goodies.

The end pockets are a perfect fit for the magic sippy cups.

Happy Birthday B! You are such a fun loving, tiny gal who brings big smiles to everyone around you.

Toys for a Toddler

One of my nieces turns two this month and I wanted to make a special gift that she could play with. She loves to mimic her mother, who is due to have a second child soon and rock B's world. I decided to make her a diaper bag full of goodies so she could have her own new baby things to play with and be just like mom. B already has a few baby dolls that she adores, so I had my sis send me some measurements and went to work. Diapers, bibs, burp rags, and even wipes soon littered the project room (pictures to come later.)  Searching the toy isle at stores I found all kinds of cool plastic toys that I just couldn't bring myself to buy (I had already felt mildly guilty buying toy sippy cups,) knowing that they would just end up in a landfill someday. I wanted to have some healthy snacks for B to give her baby's besides the sippy cups.So I got to work on designing some healthy fruits and a vegetable made of fabric......watermelon, an apple that has velcro seeds to hold it together, a carrot, strawberries, and an orange. Hopefully little B enjoys them and possibly learns to love fruit even more.