Just a little bit of sunshine.

We have been having a whole lot of rain around here recently...actually it has been quite a rainy summer and I'm not sure what that means for our winter. Lots of rain, early winter?? Through all of this rain, we have been having bits of sunshine at times too. Yesterday we took the sunny opportunity to go to the park. We all needed a bit of fresh air and the kids needed to let out a bit of energy.

In the end, the sunny break was truly hot and muggy, so we headed home sooner then we had planned...a good thing too, because soon after we got home, we got another torrential downpour. We are getting a cold front tonight, which will bring the temperature down to the 70s for the rest of the week and I am looking forward to that and hopefully a bit more sunny opportunities.

Peace, Yasmin

Weekending

Hello friends. Well my plans for apple picking fell through on Saturday due to quite a few rainy days leading up to Saturday. I was not in the mood to go pick apples on a muddy day, so instead we went to one of our favorite breakfast joints, visited the tailgate market for some yummy produce, and just enjoyed peaceful family time at home after my planned night out with friends fell through. It really was a nice low-key day off. Quite lovely.

Just a few pups waiting for their breakfast. Loved this.

Rian, slightly cranky on an empty tummy.

Mmmmm stuffed French Toast.

Ashleigh really enjoying her bagel with cream cheese.

Ashleigh in a blissful state after her meal.

New haircuts for me and my boy. That was the best picture I could get of myself...sometimes it is so hard to take pictures of yourself.

On Sunday I pretty much worked all day and after a pretty mentally challenging night at work, I requested a family late night movie night with lots of cuddling included. It was a nice way to de-stress from a pretty stressful night. I highly recommend it. One week exactly until I start back at school and I am so ready for a slightly easier work schedule. Have a great week.

Peace, Yasmin

 

Through the Blue Ridge and into the Graveyard

After swim classes today we were all feeling a little bit sluggish as we have been trying to adjust to a more school time sleep schedule. All three of us actually took an hour of rest time before eating lunch. As I awoke from my rest and saw that the predicted high percentage of rain had not happened yet and it was actually quite sunny outside, I decided that we needed an outdoor adventure while we had the luxury of open play time. We ate a quick lunch and headed onto the Blue Ridge Parkway with a gallon bag in my pocket. People are allowed to pick a certain amount of wildflowers off the side of the parkway and up to a gallon's worth of berries a day. We drove about 45 minutes away to Graveyard Fields which normally has plenty of berries. It was great to just be outdoors and on the trails, but unfortunately most of the berries were not ripe yet. Still, the kids really enjoyed themselves and were so happily exhausted by the end. It is good to be spontaneous sometimes and no money was spent on this activity, other than the bit of gas that my hybrid used.

The view of Graveyard Fields. Notice how it really wasn't sunny and the weather is at least 10 degrees cooler up there, even with the exercise of walking on the trails, I could have used a light jacket.

Down the stairs into the Graveyard. Actually Graveyard Fields wasn't looking anything like a graveyard today with all of the greenery. In the past, due to a huge fire everything was bare and truly resembled it's namesake.

Unripe Blackberries spotted.

 These flowers were everywhere with tons of bees buzzing around them, luckily the bees were only interested in the flowers and not us.

Checking out Ferns along the trails.

 First blueberries spotted, unfortunately not ready for picking.

Yay, ripe blueberries spotted! With a bit of time constraints and the lack of ripe blueberries, we were only able to pick about a cup's worth.

These flowers/berries?? were everywhere. We have no idea what they are. Anyone out there have a clue?

The view afterwards...I love it when I catch the sun shining on parts of a mountain. So so pretty.

One of many tunnels we drove through. There were at least eight.

I made tacos for dinner. The mix inside is a potato, mushroom, onion, Mexican spices mix. I had mine with avocado, olives, lettuce, and roasted chipotle salsa. So yummy. Unfortunately these Ezekiel Sprouted Corn Tortillas didn't hold up that well, but they were quite tasty anyway.

That one cup of wild blueberries was used to make this banana blueberry bread. It smells delicious, so hopefully it will be a hit with the family. I ended the night with a knitting session with my knitting partner in crime. This day turned out pretty fabulous and I hope to have lots more of these. I am also overjoyed to announce that my baby sister gave birth to a baby girl yesterday in Colorado. The kids and I are so excited for our first niece/cousin. Ok off to do a bit more late night knitting.
Peace, Yasmin

A week in Review

Is it just me or has this summer just been flying by? In exactly two and a half weeks the kids go back to school and I go back to school just a few days before that. Crazy. There was so much more I wanted to accomplish this summer with cleaning/organizing/craftiness, but I try not to stress about those things at all. Actually this summer has been filled with a lot of open days, which is kind of what I wanted. We didn't go hiking as much as we wanted too, but there is still plenty of time to do that even after school starts back. The kids have been enjoying their swim classes and we took a pretty awesome vacation to the Keys...great stuff. Anyways, back to summer flying by. I have been meaning to post a blog earlier in the week, but the days seem to melt away before I have been able to, so here is a week in review.
~We went to swim lessons Monday through Thursday.

~We visited the Folk Art Center and I took just a few pictures indoors before I was reminded that pictures aren't allowed, woops. I have been wanting to revisit for awhile and was so happy that I did even after not being completely sure I wanted to on that day, due to feeling a bit tired. They have such lovely Art to look at, and the kids enjoyed it as well. They loved that apple especially with bunches of tiny apples on the inside, like seeds.

~While we were there, we decided to walk on the Mountains to Sea trail a bit...just a bit since we didn't have the proper shoes on. On our walk we saw lots of mushrooms, wildlife, trees, and various insects. Walking on a trail just has this amazing effect of refreshing our souls, we needed that.

 ~We bought much needed new shoes for the kids. They were both on sale and such a good buy for the quality that they are. I am still astonished that both of the kids' feet grew two sizes since last school year. I especially love Rian's Chooze pair with the skateboards on one shoe and bicycles on the other. They need to make these for adults.

 

~We also celebrated my husband's birthday where he was gifted this hat and some new eco t-shirts. We went out to dinner at one of our favorite Thai restaurants to celebrate the day after. It was so yummy.

~We also were able to take advantage of the tax free weekend and get the kids a second pair of shoes, school supplies, and some clothes for the upcoming school year.

~ We ended our week with a family walk with the dog up and around this mountain/big hill we live on...what a great way to end a week I might add, something to keep in mind for the weeks to come.

 

So that's it, my week in review. I will try to take more pictures this upcoming week, especially with possible first of the season apple picking next Saturday....weather permitting of course. I also hope to share more knitting progress and possible craft making by my daughter for the birthday that just passed...we are not punctual people here :-) Ok off to bed.

Peace, Yasmin

 

Dog Days of Summer

These days:

~We are enjoying slow breakfast at our favorite bakery/café. Stuffed French Toast for my husband and a veggie biscuit for me.

~The kids are playing chess, dreaming up crafts, and building dens (raccoon dens they say).

~I have been cooking up nourishing meals, such as this Gumbo....so yummy.

~Also lots of knitting has been accomplished, yay.

Looking forward to more summer days like these.

Peace, Yasmin



 

Stress?

I have been feeling slightly off for a couple days/weeks now. I wasn't really sure what was going on and I thought maybe it is just working too much and filling my life with too much right now. I didn't necessarily feel emotionally stressed, but definitely physically stressed. It has been hard to wake up any earlier than 9am, which for a mom is quite late. Thank goodness for independent kids that can figure out how to get themselves some cereal in the morning. I have felt unable to be patient with my children and I haven't had the want to cook at home. This stress (or whatever it is that I have been feeling), came to a head on Sunday with a major headache, that has been lingering at a lesser level since then. So, I booked a massage to try to clear some of this stuff going on. As I was sitting in the "Tranquility Room" waiting for my massage, watching waterfalls on the TV, I started to feel completely overwhelmed with needing to cry. No, I did not cry, but sometimes I think it is a good thing to watch a really sad movie or read a really sad book to have that emotional outlet and just cry. I haven't cried in a really long time, maybe that's my problem? Actually I think part of the issue is that I am frustrated with my body's inability to reach certain goals that I put forth and probably the fact that I set somewhat unrealistic goals in my life...and I am not just talking about physical feats. Anyways back to the massage room...my masseuse came out to meet me just when I felt like I was at breaking point and took me back to my massage room. This was my first time with this masseuse and he was incredible. He knew exactly where to press and how hard to press in those areas. Some of the massage was painful, but I was seriously tense. He used peppermint and eucalyptus aromatherapy and spoke in a truly calming manner. I started the massage with my shoulders practically off of the table due to their tightness and I ended with my body totally sunk into the table. I can't thank Brent enough for the magic he dispersed on my body. I feel much much better. A couple of things that I realize now, is that:
1. I need to take care of myself (already booked my next massage for next week, thank you Massage Envy for making regular massages possible).
2. I need to increase mind/body activities, like yoga.
3. It is okay to not do it all in one day.
I feel refreshed and able to take on tomorrow.
Peace, Yasmin