Archive for the 'Photos' Category

June 30, 2008 @ 7:46 am | Filed under: Photos, Uncategorized

It is possible we shall put out some fires.

May 25, 2008 @ 7:26 pm | Filed under: Photos

April 14, 2008 @ 7:20 pm | Filed under: Family, Photos

It doesn’t seem possible.

How could two years have passed since

this day?

I know, it really is sobering.

This calls for extreme doses of chocolate.

Carpe cake, my dear. Old time is still a-flying.

April 5, 2008 @ 4:06 pm | Filed under: Baby, Photos

March 11, 2008 @ 7:43 pm | Filed under: Art, Photos

Remember how y’all thought my water-spotted windows gave the nasturtiums photo a nice impressionist look?

Alli took it to the next level. I admit it: I would seriously hang this on my wall. Oh my goodness. She did a Van Gogh version too, and I’m totally torn.

I’ll never look at a dirty window the same way again.

March 10, 2008 @ 7:40 pm | Filed under: Nature Study, Photos

All the San Diego papers are raving about the spectacular wildflower season we’re having. Bountiful late-winter rains following last fall’s fierce wildfires have combined to create an abundance of bloom that dazzles our eyes wherever we go. Um, as I write this it occurs to me it might be a little insensitive, given what some of you are dealing with. Can you forgive me?

I snapped this picture of ooh-pretty purple wildflowers on tall leggy stalks during our Cowles Mountain hike the other day. According to the identification guide in the local paper, they are Desert Canterbury Bells. We saw lots of other varieties but I got no pictures and don’t know their names yet. We did spot some whimsically-named “grape soda lupines” in thick clusters on the hillsides all around town, and there are orange and yellow carpets at every turn.

Also blooming, and very wild:

March 9, 2008 @ 7:57 am | Filed under: Photos

March 8, 2008 @ 4:29 pm | Filed under: Photos

On our Cowles Mountain hike last week, halfway up and looking west.

February 22, 2008 @ 7:49 am | Filed under: Photos

Photo by Funny Grandpa.

The burns are healing beautifully and she is back to her old tricks. Such as wrapping Daddy around her little finger. Business as usual.

February 3, 2008 @ 9:58 am | Filed under: Baby, Handcrafts, Photos

I learned to crochet when I was eleven, but I took about fifteen years off. And I’d never made anything but blankets, I think. This was my first attempt ever at a sweater (either knitting or crocheting).

Here’s the pattern I used: Baby It’s Cold Outside.

Rilla drew a lot of compliments at the park, but honesty compels me to confess what a mess I made of the project. First of all, it was supposed to be a present for a newborn. Of course, since I spent over a year on the sweater about ten newborn friends grew into toddlers before I had a chance to give what I thought was going to be the perfect new-baby gift. Hee. As I (finally, at long last) crocheted the final stitches, I had two dear friends who were counting down the days to the arrival of wee daughters, and I was delighted with the timing. The only difficulty was going to be in deciding to which baby girl I’d send the sweater.

Then I began whipstitching the sides together and it became clear that this sweater wasn’t going to work for either one of the newborn lasses. Rilla bopped past as I held it up by the sleeves, biting my lip doubtfully. The sweater looked more like her size (and she’ll be two in April) than newborn size. Hmm. I am sure I followed the directions meticulously. I can’t possibly have been at all distracted during the year and a half of sporadic bursts of hooking, right? The year and a half in which I packed up and moved to the other side of the country? No cause for absentminded mistakes there, surely?

Humph.

The sizing problems, it turned out, were the least of my mistakes.  I mean, there are worse fates than accidentally making a sweater the perfect size for your own child. Of much greater concern was the fact that the front left panel was some two inches longer than the back of the sweater.

Whoops.

I unraveled the extra rows, but now the two front panels are different sizes. As I said, you can’t tell from this picture. Since one panel buttons over the other, the discrepancy looks almost intentional—sort of boxy and chic.

At least, that’s the story I’m going with.

I haven’t made the buttons yet but when I do you’ll see what I mean. If you compare mine to the picture, you’ll see how terrifically I blundered.

Fortunately for me, Rilla doesn’t give a hoot about following instructions to the letter.