She's Not a Huntress Yet

Mr. Moon finally talked me into hog hunting. I usually scrunch up my face at the thought because the weather is either too hot or too cold—but that excuse wasn't going to hold any ground this time. Adam generously gifted me his old camouflage garb to keep cozy and my own gun. So, I squeezed into four layers of clothing and secretly hoped we weren't going to see any hogs that night (because I was feeling too lazy to gut one.) And we didn't see one. So my very first "hunting" experience was lovely.

(Above: Adam, Anna, Nick)

I enjoyed Adam's company in silence, and we watched: two young buck play-fight and graze until it was too dark to decipher them from the trees, long single strands of spider web gently float and sparkle past the blind, and finally the appearance of a night sky full of stars. And when Adam got too cold—we went home.

Italy: Teasers

We took most of October and went to Italy with some friends! Two days in Rome, then ten days cruising, and several more we spent literally zig-zagging all over Italy. I took over 5,000 photos. So, obviously THOSE are going to take some time to get through. So, here are a couple of teasers in the meantime. 

 This is what looking down is like in Italy:

We lost ten pounds just before the trip—and found them again in Italy:

Advent Tree 2022

This year, Irie is old enough to receive an Advent Calendar so she can count the days until either cousins come into town or until Christmas day. It's up to her.

The girls in Utah count down the days until we get to see each other, and that's fun.

The blue tree matches the Christmas decorations at Irie's house and the red tree matches the holiday decor at Zuki, Malaika and Zania's house. I enjoyed making two different calendars but it probably won't happen every year. (It's twice the materials! A detail that I hadn't consciously considered.)

The trees were a little tricky. As easy as drilling a hole is, I couldn't seem to manage a perfectly horizontal one. ALL the branches ended up tipping a little to the right and drove me crazy. But I don't think Irie will mind—she was more focused on the "ball" on top.

The pouches are made from PAPER NAPKINS! I cut them and sewed them up just like one would do with fabric. Now they can be ripped into when the time is right. (And now I have the remaining holiday napkins to don my table for the next 6 years.)

I created a tutorial for the trees here.

Harvest Hall Chick and Biscuit

Another date for the books: We have a train station just a few blocks away from the house. Passengers can be delivered to the doorstep of Harvest Hall in Grapevine. It's a good looking building. The architectural details are reminiscent of a train station, only modernized.  It houses several restaurants in a sort of open cafeteria setting and the food is great.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We both ordered from the Chick and Biscuit and look! Gorgeous food right?

 

 

And when you're finished eating, Harvest Hall is on the end of main street...so just walk out the door and take a stroll to visit all the charming little shops.