capture2011 :: no. 171 :: 8.31.11:: annabelle, stella, becky, and ruby

i apologize if you are getting sick of my landscaping posts, but truly, i am so determined to get the front of our house looking good and checked off my list. i installed the edging on monday (just the basic black stuff). after laying down the landscape fabric this morning, i put 28 plants and one tree in the ground. my fingers are aching but i am a very happy woman. oh yes——and the names in the title are from some of the plant tags: annabelle, stella, becky, and ruby. i think we will be be great friends.

mulch next!

haulin' dirt

yes, that is what we did yesterday——we put the black dirt in our front landscaping beds! yippee! so my last three pictures from the week were taken by hands that had a lot of dirt underneath the fingernails. :)

capture2011 :: no. 168 :: 8.27.2011 :: the modern-day farm boy

armed and ready with smartphone in hand.

capture2011 :: no. 169 :: 8.27.2011 :: a yard of dirt

we borrowed a truck from ben's uncle, drove to ben's parents' house, used the skid steer to fill 'er up with black dirt (ben even gave me a ride in the bucket), and then drove up to our house to unload. three trips back and forth gave us enough dirt, and a little left over.

capture2011 :: no. 170 :: 8.27.2011 :: self-portrait

because sometimes i get bored in the car. and sometimes i run out of ideas.

we finished just in time to shower and hustle up to lake calhoun, where our church small group met for a little potluck picnic. it was a perfect, perfect late summer evening——cool and clear.


hope you are enjoying this weekend——the last of august!

capture2011 :: no. 167 :: 8.26.11 :: circles

friday night pizza night is one of our favorite traditions, but it has changed a bit without gluten and dairy. ben gives these crusts two thumbs up.

capture2011 :: no. 166 :: 8.21.11 :: first birthday

my niece hannah is one. for reals, how much fun is a first birthday party? SO much fun!!!

cabin week 2011!

hello friends!

yes, there has been silence on my end for the past week. we just returned from a family vacation at a cabin up north. we vacation with another family, and this year there were 15 adults and two babies——our (almost) one-year-old niece, hannah, and our friends' eight-month-old son, miles. it was a relaxing and wonderful week, and we loved every minute of it. my immediate family has had this vacation tradition for almost 25 years, and i am so thankful that we all make it a priority to keep going, even though life gets so busy. grateful.

i didn't take many pictures. okay, that is a lie——i didn't take many pictures of things other than hannah. :) but here are my five for the week, plus a few extra at the end because i'm a sucker for my niece's eyelashes.

capture2011 :: no. 161 :: 8.14.11 :: baby swing

 
hannah spent a good amount of time in it!

capture2011 :: no. 162 :: 8.17.11 :: the week's reading

most of us are big readers, so it was fun to see what everyone had brought along as vacation reading.

ben and i listened to an abridged audiobook version of this guy a few summers ago, but i wanted to read the entire thing. so much to like, so much to cringe over. i'm still only a third of the way through.

capture2011 :: no. 163 :: 8.17.11 :: a three-hour tour

pontoon ride at dusk. love the warmth of the sky, the sun sparkles, and my dad's smile.

capture2011 :: no. 164 :: 8.18.11 :: lunches at the beach

we had really lovely weather. not too hot. beautiful.

capture2011 :: no. 165 :: 8.18.11 :: sand toys

the babies spent water time at the kiddie pool, but when the time comes, there are plenty of toys at the resort for building sand castles!

and here are a few of my favorites of hannah. she's getting so big. i bet she'll be walking soon.

i hope you all had a great week!