visiting mom and dad before the big move to amelia.
love sleeping in my old bedroom.
the morning light is so lovely.

coen edward moschler. not even a day old.

the moschler family plus my mom.

mother and child.

aunt ginger helping out her brother and nephew.

meet my new baby cousin (technically first cousin once removed), coen!
we are blessed indeed to have a new little life in our family.

a visit to the lovely maymont park in richmond.

life. at the moment.

jeremiah's handiwork.
custom metal trim and siding for our friend stewart's house.

how to make sweet tea.

when i married jeremiah, i learned there was a specific way to make sweet tea. 

this is how the austins make sweet tea:

1. start with your teapot, seven Lipton tea bags and a cup of sugar (for a special occasion, use more sugar). 

2. put the teabags into the teapot (i remove the tags). 

3. fill the teapot with two thirds water and bring to a boil.

4. once boiling, pour in the sugar. bring to a boil again. after bringing to a second boil, remove from the eye and let sit for a while. 

5. pour tea into a pitcher. refill teapot (with teabags) with cold water and pour into pitcher. repeat until pitcher is full. 

started packing today.
the house already feels so different without familiar books on the shelves and pictures on the wall.
it's odd how material things can make a house feel warm, comfortable and safe.

today i...
planted kale & swiss chard seeds.
blanched & froze fresh, locally grown roma tomatoes.
made a batch of pizza dough.
made signs for our yard sale this weekend.
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menus from this week...
mon: ? don't remember.
tues: whole wheat pasta with pesto & sauteed veggies.
wed: wheatberry salad. mushrooms & broccoli cooked in liquid amino acids (soy sauce substitute). fresh greens with oil & vinegar dressing.
thurs: pizza with mushrooms, pepper, onion & jalapeno. fresh greens with raw corn & oil & vinegar dressing.

now that things are starting to cool off, jeremiah and i have been spending some evenings out on the porch, talking and talking.
it has been so nice to step away and sit, looking at the moon and enjoying the cool air.

we finally got me a redskins jersey.
a $2.50 purchase at value village.
yes, portis no longer plays for the redskins but at least i am wearing the skins' colors on game day!
(i never thought i would be this girl. but it makes my husband happy. and i can't help but enjoy it too.)

just put a new tote on etsy.

this is all a big experiment but i am enjoying it!

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this particular bag is based on a drawing a friend did for me.

i was given a crane mobile as a gift. my friend drew a picture for me so i would know how it was supposed to look.

i have always loved that drawing and wanted to do something with it.

well, here's what i did with it. 

restitched is now open on etsy.
go here to shop. 

ten years ago today i was a sophomore in high school.
i was sitting in mrs. keck's english class when we found out.
she was so frightened.
we watched images of smoke and debris on the tv.
the rest of the day was a dream.
where were you?

my second scarf of the season!
i have been wanting a chunky cream/white scarf for fall and winter and now i have one.
jeremiah and i went to michael's the other evening so i could pick out yarn. while i was there, i grabbed a free pattern for a crocheted cowl. i started the project that night and would not let myself stop until i was finished. i am pretty satisfied with the final result.
now i can't wait for my next crochet project. i love having something to work on while i am watching a movie, waiting for an appointment, etc. idle hands drive me crazy!

i found this little debacle in my sewing room/guest room today.

looks like wake took a liking to the wastebasket. 

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last night i made my first soup of the season! 

i chose to make my mom's tomato potato soup, jeremiah's favorite. 

tonight we had pizza again. a standby when i have nothing else to fix. 

every few weeks i make a batch of pizza dough, divide it into six servings, and freeze it. when i decide on pizza for dinner, i pull out a serving of dough and let it thaw out throughout the day. then when i am ready to cook, it is wonderfully pliable and easy to roll out. and i love the taste of homemade dough! 

my first scarf of the season! nothing impressive but i do feel encouraged that it is not even technically fall and i already have something crocheted. the scarf is an infinity scarf and is actually a dark purple though the picture makes it look brown.
i've slowly been collecting seeds and have made a few cuttings of coleus, dusty miller and basil to root.
i thought i would start sharing my weekly menus.
mon: portobello mushroom lettuce wraps with homemade sweet potato chips (recipe).
tues: homemade veggie pizza. iceberg wedges with homemade blue cheese dressing (recipe).
tonight: whole wheat spaghetti with pesto and broiled roma tomatoes.

this weekend:
wedding in south carolina.
lazy days at home.
cats. always cats. doing something.

puppy love.