"This Cocktail"

I usually participate in "this moment" inspired by soulemama but to be honest I really didn't capture any great moments with my camera this week. We had some. We just didn't get them digitized (did I make that word up? I can't say "on film" I don't use it anymore) 

So in keeping with the cocktaily spirit of things, it being a holiday weekend and all, here's a little tutorial video I made.

A simple but genius use of a mason jar!

Cocktail Hour!

I know. It's a little early and only Thursday but we've had runny noses and sniffles for the past few days around here and mama could use a drink right about now. So instead of imbibing at this "inappropriate" hour I thought I'd share this cocktail recipe. Since having a baby and nursing have been at the forefront of my priorities for the past 8 months, cocktails have been reserved for fridays and only one.

So here it is in the spirit of the season... Basil Strawberry Lemonade Cocktail.

Muttle basil and strawberries in shaker.

Add ice, vodka and lemonade to taste.

"Shake what your mama gave ya."

Pour into glass.

Garnish with a sprig of Basil and/or strawberry.

Enjoy!

Options:

You could substitute tequila in place of vodka, mint in place of basil. 

Also, champagne would be nice too. (Do not put champagne in shaker!)

Random things...

Here are some random things we've been up to this past month or so...

Attending a Beltane Celebration in which I got to wear fairy wings and indulge my inner hippie.

Creating scrummy snacks out of a bunch of rag tag ingredients floating around my fridge like this morrel, eggplant, red onion, bacon and goat cheese "quesadilla". 

Going from these delicate pink blossoms with sparse gray trees as a backdrop...

... to this!

Same tree. I swear!

Finally getting the little nugget out in the grass to enjoy some fresh air and sunshine.

What have you been up to?

{ this moment }

a friday ritual - a single photo - no words - a moment I want to pause - savor - and remember

inspired by soulemama

P.S.

I forgot to add #26 to my list yesterday.

Here it is officially...

26. Organize and sort baby clothes... like this.

My girl's closet is pretty organized. But her outgrown stash is not so much. I've been removing things as she outgrows them and placing them in a large bin. That's about it.

2011 TDL: What's next?

Well here's the list again with just a few more items checked off.


1. purchase mushroom growing supplies and make preparations for logs

2. pot rack for kitchen
3. organize phone and message center in kitchen
4. clean and organize under kitchen sink
5. purchase supplies for maple tapping for next spring
6. new couch for living room and general living room design
7. paint dining room
8. figure out a better situation for shoes/recycling by the front door
9. finish reorganizing and clean dressing room
10. clean windows

11. start and finish handmade gifts for Jenny, Helen, Becky, Melissa, Allison, Carol, Sarah and Pat.

12. new lighting for Iris's room

13. organize and backup iphoto

14. clean out pantry and wipe down shelves and bottles (ANTS!!!)

15. find and purchase vintage ceramic egg holder

16. sort through wardrobe and donate, trash or repurpose

17. learn one new knitting pattern

18. learn one new crochet pattern

19. paint giant urn and candle stick holders

20. finish mending and repurpose projects

21. plant salad greens, tomatoes and kitchen herbs

22. keep blog up to date

23. start etsy shop

24. buy more vintage and handmake more of our clothing

25. run in at least two 5k's 

I posted about #19 here (although I neglected to include a picture of the candle stick holders, see below), finished a handmade project from #11 (it was a rush job so no picture) and plan on cleaning the windows (#10) just as soon as it stops raining. 

Cute, right?

I think #7 is on deck. All I need is a gallon of paint and some new rollers. I've decided on Rendezvous by Olympic. It's a nice subtle 
not-smacking-you-over-the-head robin's egg blue with a slight gray undertone.

Rendezvous is the top center color sample

#9 has been in progress for sometime and I will share some before and during shots soon. Complete after shots may be a little ways off yet. 

#19

The Painted Urn... sounds like a Polanski movie. But alas it is just one of my attempts to bring some much needed coolness (as in temperature of color) into our already very warm palette. You see we have lots of dark wood in our home. Furniture, cabinets, trim, floors, etc.. This urn was a wedding gift and I really like it's shape and even it's color if it were in a different home. We often put branches in it in the spring and watch them bloom. It's very dramatic.

Here it is before...

I taped off the strip of earthy detail...

During...

and after.

The picture is a little blurry but it still looks nice all the same under some lovely Aboriginal art that G. brought back from Australia (which I might reframe in a more black gallery frame kinda look).

I cleaned the urn with some alcohol to remove any dirt or build up that would prevent the paint from sticking properly and I used Rustoleum Spray paint in a high gloss finish for this project. It took about three coats and required very little active work time on my part. The most timely part of this project was dry time. No effort needed by me whatsoever.

My advice: Wear a protective mask and make sure it's not going to rain!