Smile And Wave

Adding Color to Our Backyard

One day early last week Ruby and I stopped in at a local thrift shop to look for a few more planters for the yard. Like most things in our home I can usually find most of what we need second-hand if I just keep an eye out for the things I know we'll need and look semi-regularly. I don't go hardly as often as I did a year ago unless I'm searching hard for something specific. This trip didn't disappoint with three beautifully worn and patterned terra cotta pots shown nested above. 

We then stopped in at Lowe's for a few supplies to finish off the cedar panels I've built to give us a little more privacy and came home with flowers that remind me of California. Marigolds, Hens & Chicks, and the red ones above. I brought out the yellow blooms I'd been keeping indoors for some early spring cheer and finally set our sprouts outside to adjust to the weather now that it's warmer at night. Everything is still waiting on a free afternoon to be paired with a container and placed in it's happy spot but this little corner by our back door is already feeling better.

It helps that the original owner of this home added a variety of fruit trees to the backyard along with lilacs and another flowering bush that I still can't figure out above in pink. There's still not much chance that our lawn from last year will return, especially with this year's water restrictions, but we're going to make the most of the rest of our space. Let's hope the neighbor's new bird feeder continues to hold the squirrels' interest so they'll leave our sprouting vegetables alone!

I think I could spend all day outside planting and tending if it were possible. 

-Rachel

P.S. The stories coming out of Moore, OK continue to be both sobering and hopeful. Have you seen this video of the woman who thought she'd lost her dog and then they found him while filming her for a news piece? 

Family Photo Shoot with Rebecca Caridad: Part One

The lovely Rebecca and her sister, Alysia, came down from Boulder about a month ago to do a home shoot and an outdoor shoot with our family. I just got the prints and cd in the mail today and couldn't wait to share my favorites. There are a lot of favorites! 

Funny story: I'd spent a few days getting our house super clean along with the help of Brett and despite the help of the smaller people that also live here. I'd been so busy I'd put off coloring my hair to hide the (quite) noticeable difference in browns (and maybe a few grays) and finally made some time to take care of it a mere three hours before the ladies were to arrive. I couldn't remember which color I'd used the previous time so I just picked something that looked right and went for it. My middle name is procrastination.

As soon as I got out of the shower I blow-dryed the top of my hair to see how it turned out and grew a little concerned that it was more fiery red than auburnish brown. I went out in the sun and had Brett take a picture of it so I could see and then panicked a little when even he said I should probably high tail it back to Walgreens. I threw my hair in a bun, checked for dye stains on my face and neck, and tore out of the driveway. Thankfully, I still had enough time to redye my hair a more subtle shade of what I wanted and got things diffused just in time. 

Despite the hair drama it was such a fun afternoon and evening. The kids were pretty cooperative and loved the extra attention from our company, the weather was great, and Rebecca and Alysia were so warm and full of whatever it is that makes you feel so much at ease around them (and their large lenses). After our shoot Brett took the kids home to put them to bed and the ladies and I went to Shuga's for dinner. I loved getting to spend a little extra time with a fellow creative that I've only previously known online. I was so inspired by stories they shared about their mom and how much she nurtured their creativity as kids and taught them about farming and gardening and different mediums she was interested in herself. It's so evident that that made an impact.

I have more photos from our venture out to Garden of the Gods to share in a future post. If you're in Colorado and are looking for a photogapher you can check her out and get in touch with her here.

 

Devastation in Oklahoma

Every May there are sirens and every May there are tornadoes along with jokes about going back to sleep or watching the funnels from your front porch. Then there's that year when the interior closet or bathtub aren't any safer than standing out in the rain because the force that is moving over the earth is just eating everything up as it goes. 

I've had texts and phone calls from my parents the last three Mays saying they were driving to the local hospital to get in the basement, waiting in lockdown at work, or running to the library just down the street from their home. They're Oklahoma natives but I think they've had more close calls since they've been in the OKC area than in all their years living further south. My dad texted me this video he took on Sunday, May 19th right after he and my mom ran to the library down the street from their house. They were just about to lock the doors when they arrived. This tornado went nearer to Edmond and did a little bit of damage to power lines and ripped trees out of friend's yards.

I remember feeling relieved that the damage was minor until getting a call from my mom saying Shawnee, the town where Brett and I spent six years during and after college, had been hit. We called our friends to check on them and were able to reach them but later learned a whole trailer park had been wiped out ending in two deaths and more injuries. I went to bed right after hearing there may be more storms Monday.

I had arrived at Sebastian's school for his end of the year party Monday afternoon when I got another text from my dad saying he'd left work early and that my mom was in lockdown at her school again and that a big one was headed to Moore. I sat in the hallway outside his class glued to the KFOR news app but then school was out and there were teacher gifts to give and books to sign and other mamas to hug. It was raining and the sky was moody and we sat in the car talking about his day when my dad texted asking if I'd seen anything about the school being hit. My heart sunk. 

I sit here tonight with a heavy, heavy heart for the people in Moore that have been hit with yet another historic, devastating tornado but so much more for the families of those K-3rd graders and staff that have been the focus of all news stations. I really just can't imagine not being able to get to my kids or the agony of waiting to confirm whether they'd survived or not. My mama heart hurts for those families. 

It's been mentioned on Twitter and in the news that you can help the towns of Shawnee and Moore as well as surrounding areas by donating to both local and national charities. Here's another list of places. 

I drove through Joplin a few weeks after the destruction there and was surprised to still see volunteer tents with people handing out food and water to workers clearing debris from neighborhoods and commercial sites. I will never forget the feeling of driving down residential streets that I could tell had held 100 year old houses from the state of the foundations and not seeing a whole tree for blocks. Seeing the twisted metal of the roof of the sporting goods store, piles of shoes and clothes and belongings waiting to be claimed, stacks of crushed cars being gathered and removed from parking lots was haunting but I was so moved that people were still there working to rebuild.

Clean up is going to take weeks and recovery is going to take months for the families in the affected areas. Let's help in ways we can. 

-Rachel

Dining Outdoors

We have been enjoying mostly lovely weather these last three weeks which means more time spent in our backyard. Our apple tree has finally bloomed so we have all kinds of shade in the afternoon and end up only going inside long enough to cook. There's still a little bit of work to do to get our yard feeling summer ready but one new addition has made it a lot prettier already!

The lovely people over at The Makerage, a brand new consortium of artists, engineers, and designers, recently sent over one of their new products. It's a hexagon-shaped, concrete lazy susan and is absolutely perfect for our outdoor patio set. It's just the right size to hold all the condiments for summer cookouts but also works to create a lovely centerpiece and it won't get ruined if it accidentally gets left outside. I'm always a fan of pieces that are both practical and beautiful. 

Also, I need to give a shout out to Mel, one of the lovely people behind the company, who also happens to be the girl that introduced Brett and I after English class our freshman year of college. Let's all give Mel a round of applause for that, okay!

Also, let's give Colorado a round for not having many mosquitos! It's not it's best feature but it's definitely in the top five.

Do you enjoy eating outside? Have you done anything to make your outdoor space a little more special this year?

-Rachel

Note: Lazy susan c/o The Makerage.

Her Little Green Thumb

Ruby and I planted some seeds over the weekend in our self-watering sprout kit. We should've started a few weeks ago but we're still well in the safe zone for getting these little guys started and hopefully into a raised bed soon. I debated trying to grow anything new this year since the wildlife ate up anything that sprouted last year, including the mature sunflowers, but it's a great way to teach the kids about gardening and another chance for me to learn something new. 

We planted carrots, radishes, and bell peppers in our sprout kit and the radishes shot right up about 36 hours later! The carrots are on their way and we're still waiting on the peppers but it's been fun to see Ruby's excitement when she checks on them every day. We've planted moonflower and morning glory along part of our chain link fence line thanks to my friend, Ruthie, in hopes that it'll shoot up fast, too! The sunflowers will go up where they did last year but I have to finish bolting my cedar fence panels to the fence and then I hope to get some marigolds in a pot or two soon. They're my favorite summer flower because they remind me of my childhood.

My forsythia bush got planted in a bare spot and my burning bush shrubs seem to be alive even though the last snow did a number on them. The grass...well, I just wonder if it's time to throw in the towel since we're on water restrictions this year. If you have lush green grass, go roll around in it for me, okay!

Have you planted anything in your garden this year? I know some of you are probably already eating the fruits of your labor if you live somewhere warm!

-Rachel