I was so pleased with how these these turned out! Unfortunately they are too small for Durian.

We went hiking yesterday. It wasn't suposed to be a hike exactly. We were driving to Todd Lake (never been there) managed to get stuck in some snow (In July!?!) waited for an hour or so until some drunk guys came by and pulled us out. Then the road was washed out and all the signs were missing, so we started hiking up the trail, thinking the lake had to be "just up ahead" right? But aparently we missed it entirely. Anyhoo, the hike was beautiful, the weather was cool, and I have no complaints. We google-earthed the lake when we got home, so we know where it is for next time. Though, I think we're going to try to take the kids to Paulina first. It's a bit lower in altitude so the kids will probably enjoy swimming a bit more and there are hot springs! So cool!

More Handpainted Yarn! I love how these came out. The ww yarn is a mix of purples/blues/pinks, hopefully gender-neutral enough for the mama who is receiving. I believe she plans to knit some longies for a coming babe. The blue/purply one is a bulky yarn I love dyeing & knitting with this one, and I still have 2 more skeins of it to dye! (Thanks again to Shannon!)

I need to finish up a little felted bag for a swap buddy of mine. Of course I can't find my tapestry needles anywhere.....I guess that will be on my wish list for next month! Chris is out of town again, at least he comes home tomorrow morning.

WoW The trees are so amazingly green! I am in love with Spring here, now that is has finally arrived! It's June now, so the season for weddings is here. We've got one in Portland next week, another to attend in July on Lopez Island. I am very excited about that one! Our 12th anniversary is the 15th so we'll be staying a while on the island to celebrate for us too. Grammie will be along for the ride, so we'll have a babysitter (glorious!) And Chris and I will get to have some time alone. Sooooo difficult to do now that we've got 4 babes! Hopefully, we'll have our new vehicle by then so we'll all FIT! I've been knitting outside......a little handbag for my neice, I think. I was planning to felt it, but I'm just in love with how summery the watermelon color is and how lovely it shows in the stitches, and the yarn is so soft, it might be a shame to felt it. I might line it with fabric istead and just leave it be.

An outfit I made for a craft swap. I'm really pleased with how cute the little bloomers came out. I'm wanting to make some for myself!

Received a wonderful MBOY today! no pics, I NEVER get pics of those things, I'm so impatient I start unwrapping them in the driveway! I also got some homebrewed beer in the mail from a mama on MDC, YUM! Can't wait to break into those!

In other news, Durian is 3 months old and FAT. Oh, the rolls! I think he may be teething as he's been a bit drooly and a touch cranky. Which is odd for him, he's such a happy, easy baby. Chris had to take the car in to the shop today for a new alternator, and we've got a wedding to go to next week in Portland, so I should probably pay the registration so we don't get a ticket......I've got more interesting things I'd rather spend money on though!

I've got to finish my wrap skirt for the wedding, though Cedar's is almost done, and I'm SO happy with it! I've discovered designer fabrics online. And I guess I see the draw.....but at Joann's I can use my 40% off coupon and buy fabric for much less, so I'm resisting the temptation.....Amy Butler, stay away!

MBOY teaser....

We hiked again yesterday. Pictures coming, I swear! There was still snow on the ground which was lovely. And the kids got to crawl through some lava caves. Afterwards, we drove to town for burgers (black bean, of course) and beer. :) All day today it has threatened to rain, overcast and grey. I'm just not sure if it ever rains here though, it being desert and all. It's so quiet in the house right now, baby is napping and the other three are camping out with dad in the backyard. The sun is still up so I have no idea what they are doing back there! We've had lots of deer in the yard the past few nights, some of them pretty big. (I should get pictures of that too.....)

The snow is melting and we tried out our first hiking trail of the season. Unfortunately I forgot the camera, but the river, falls and cave were beautiful, the weather was bright, clear and cool. I've got a whole list of trails I'm ready to hike, and I swear next time we'll remember the camera! I really like the little town of Sisters, though some think it hokey. They've got the best little fiber shop.

Local Yarn Store Haul! I bought 3 balls of wool, some circular needles, and away I go! Chris did great bringing home library books so I could learn. And Alder is already hanging over my shoulder wanting me to teach him. I keep telling him I have to figure it out first before I can show him how. :) I'm just going to knit some 6 x 6 swatches, basically "samplers" of stitches as I learn them. This way I can buy small amounts of wool, they don't have to match. I can impulse buy a ball just because I love the color or feel but don't have to make a whole sweater out of it.

Baby Longies on Loom

Not sure if they'll fit a newborn as I kind of winged it. But I figure they can be rolled up at the bottoms and tied at the waist, right? And if all else fails, they can be worn later. These were knitted with my amazing goodwill find yarn, ($1.00). And the wool was SO soft!

I love Paula Deen. Especially when she's actually cooking and not coming up with recipes that require you start with a "package of". She makes me want to be an old southern lady. This is her lemon cake recipe. And o mi god. It's really, really good. Kind of sugary, okay, really sugary. But if you like lemon meringue pie....or marshmellows....I think you'll really like this cake. It's beautiful too. We made it last night after Chris & Alder left for Portland for the weekend. Now, this is way too much cake for me, a 3 year old and a 1 year old to eat. Seriously, I don't know what I was thinking.