found: at the thrift store today

We headed to the thrift store this afternoon because I was hoping to find some old clothes or linens I could use to make pants and shorts for the babies, and I wanted to take advantage of the "50% off clothing Wednesdays." Boy, did I find some treasures today!

I just love milk glass. The hen lifts to reveal a bowl for...what do you think? Candy? Eggs?

I also found two shirts that I think will convert into some nice lightweight pants for Felix, several children's books, a cute little picnic basket perfect for all our picnic lunches on the back lawn, a small planter, and.....THIS:

I couldn't believe my eyes. A wooden, non-girly dollhouse for a whopping $14?! I could hardly believe it. Sure, I've always dreamed of having one of those gorgeous Waldorf-style dollhouses, but for $14 this will do just fine! Once I fill it with Mama-made dolls, rugs, and furniture it will be great. Of course we walked there so Dan graciously agreed to carry it home.

Now we wait to see if my little boys like playing with a dollhouse...what do you think?

music makin' jamboree

Our musical instruments arrived today!! We were outside when the UPS truck drove up and I was so excited that I literally jumped up and down and clapped with delight.

Much experimentation and music-making ensued by all:





And eventually we decided a performance was in order. The view "backstage:"

THE PERFORMANCE

We got everything from Nova Natural Toys & Crafts, and I love it all. Everything is handcrafted from around the world, well-made, and visually appealing. I see many more performances, parades, and more to come...

found: at the library today

A father and his child plant vegetables, watch them grow, harvest them, and make them into soup!

A beautiful story about the journey of a quilt through several generations.

A little girl and her father plant a window box garden together in the city - at the end, you discover it's a birthday present for the mother!

I love all of these books so much already, it's going to be really hard to return them! They may find their way onto the Amazon wishlist...

What are some of your favorite library finds? Do you know of other children's books about handcrafts or gardening?

gardening at SOVA

After we finished all the gardening we could possibly do in our front and back yards, Henry and I sat down to admire a job well done...and watch the plants grow. As much fun as this was, it got a little boring. What we enjoyed most was picking out the plants & digging in the dirt...we needed more land to work with! I mulled this over for a little while and had an idea. I asked the owner of our local coffee shop (a.k.a. our second living room), SOVA, if he was interested in some free landscaping services. He said yes! So, last Sunday Dan agreed to stay with the babies while Henry and I set out to transform SOVA's back patio.

First we went to Frager's to get all the supplies. Henry picked out the flowers and pulled the wagon around with much enthusiasm.


Here is the space before:




After a little while, Dan brought the babies over (Felix was hungry by this point and needed a little Mama time!). While I nursed, the big boys enjoyed kicking the ball around in the alley.

These "H"s made their debut two years ago at the H Street Festival. It was fun potting plants in them!

And here is the space after. This is the view from the stairs at the entrance to the patio. I love how the first thing you see is the hanging plant.










Spending a lot of time at SOVA has a lot of benefits. We've become friends with the people next door at the Biergarten Haus. When I found out they are planting a garden, building a greenhouse, and keeping bees two blocks away, I asked them if the boys and I could help with that too, and they said we could. I am so excited!

homemade granola

Everyone in our family loves this granola so I always try to keep it on hand. It's super easy and quick to make. Here's the recipe:

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup cashews
• 3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 1 cup raisins (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.

Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add raisins and mix until evenly distributed.

*my note: our oven runs REALLY hot, so I find that I only cook the granola for 30 minutes, stirring once after 15 minutes. So, I would suggest you check it frequently - it's done once it starts to look golden brown.

moments with my sweet Jude

I realized today that most of what I've been posting about centers on Henry, so I wanted to post a few "Jude highlights."

Piloting an airplane a couple of weeks ago at the air and space museum.

Playing in his kitchen is one of Jude's favorite activities.

This tongue curling thing he's doing is his word for "open." It's so cute.

Making cookies with mommy! He's actually quite helpful: I measure the ingredients, and he dumps them in. He loves helping me work the mixer and of course does lots of taste testing.

Stories in Art at the National Gallery

My last post reminded me that I wanted to post about this...The National Gallery has this wonderful (free!) program during the winter and summer months. Their description: "This series of programs uses storytelling to introduce children to works of art. Led by museum educators, each program includes reading a children's book, looking at one work of art in the galleries, and completing a simple hands-on activity."

Henry LOVED this program and he talks often about the artists he learned about each month. I can't wait to see what they do in the summer! Below I have a picture of him working on his art each month.