good monday morning

yes it is! i have this next week off. getting ready to go the finger lakes in new york, for my dear friends wedding. we decided to make a vacation out of it, so afterwords we're going camping!

its hot here. 90's for days and days. there are a few things that are getting me by in my air condition free environment...

currently i can't get enough of :

1. tank tops and cut offs
2. popsicles and water ice
3. berries
4. making things outside on the grill
5. eggs in a basket
6. fresh flowers inside and out
7. cold showers

so, we're off on another adventure. be back in a week, with travel tales!

last week...

i made some major decisions about my future. decisions that will hopefully aid in my goal of opening my own cafe and allow me to work on more baking side jobs! speaking of which. this is a cake for a co-worker of mine. her daughter is getting married, so she asked me to do the bridal shower cake!

it was also our third anniversary last week. i came home from work, walked up the stairs to this amazing banner that my husband made and put in my little craft studio. here's to three years darling. i love you more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow <3 data-blogger-escaped-br="">

raspberry fair

the raspberries are here! months of staring at the mess that was left us in the garden, is finally paying off with some pleasant sights. so i donned my long sleeves and galoshes, jason his machete. together we waded through the weeds and brambles to have a most marvelous time picking and eating the delicious little fruits from our backyard. one dream of many coming true this summer.

bears, blackberries and bubble photos

weekend recap:

i saw my first bear at my in-laws. 5 years of visiting before i see a bear.

got to spend some campfire/ bubble blowing time with this little man. he's the best bubble blower i know.

which got my attention when i saw the sunset and landscape reflecting in the bubble. that would be an awesome picture, if only i could capture it. many bubbles later, it worked

we finished our weekend out with some homemade blackberry lemon ice cream. we are on a mission to think of amazing ice cream combinations. let me know if you have any?

and cake

the cake did indeed turn out very well. lemon pound cake with raspberry filling and butter cream icing! the oven worked well. the butter cream icing recipe is a new favorite. pictures to come of the real cake in a few weeks. we are soaking up our leisurely time. have a lovely weekend, all.

june staycation day 2

in no particular order at all. chips seeks out all the sunny spots. he's a sun chaser, really.

made homemade naan for the first time. it turned out just perfect. recipe can be found here. it was pretty easy. didn't change a thing.

mulch makes everything look so much nicer!

look, we have steps. many thanks to my landscaper husband.

welcome to our breakfast picnic. did i mention we like to take picnics. really just eating outside is the most marvelous thing.

june staycation day 1

we are currently on a mini vacation. a couple of weeks ago i called my husband from work, rather frazzled and told him we really needed a vacation... so we came up with the idea to stay in town. to relax, do things we've been meaning to and just throw any agenda out the window for one week. sure there are plenty of things we could be fixing or tidying. we are focusing on some of those, but mostly we are catching up with each other, and renewing our weary spirits a bit.


here we are, almost at the end of our first day. a little recap... sleeping in. breakfast out. thrifting around town. found my bridesmaids dress for $10! took our bikes to the reservoir for a picnic. baking lemon pound cake for a cake order in a few weeks. a little trial run, if you will. never baked a cake in the new oven! some tequila and a movie. be back tomorrow evening with more tales of the days adventures.

strawberry pie

who put miracle grow on this little flower patch? yes, that picture up there is queen ann's lace. the biggest stuff i've ever seen. ever. we must live in an enchanted wood after all.

june is for strawberries!

blossoms

i've been planting flowers. hoping to see this fill out in a month or two.

its been a treat to see all the different flowers and greens that have been popping their heads up around here, with each season.

i am eagerly awaiting the raspberries and peaches. they are starting to bud with fruit.

craft bazaars, donut dates and more

so my sister and i went to art star again this year! possibly the best craft fair in pa! its held at penn's landing in philly! we go mostly to get inspiration and enjoy what our local folk are making. a few purchases were made. hard to resist those homemade candles, endless colors of felt and reusable snack pouches.


a new donut/ coffee shop opened up a few months back. donuts on main, which is only a couple minutes away from our house. so one morning last week jason took an early break from work, and we met for donuts and coffee. they make cake donuts and sell my favorite local coffee. we were surprised to find we knew one of the employees, a young girl from our church. it was a lovely overall. so glad to squeeze little moments like this into our day!
there has been a lot of hard work going on around the house. lots of generous people, helping us work on our project home. scraping paint, digging holes, smashing plaster, wiring electric.... the list goes on. in all of that mess, i like to go out doors. i've planted herbs, and hope to plant some flowers shortly. a garden will have to wait for another year i'm afraid. when we have more time to dig it up and plan it out.