I hate the heat. I really do. (The subject is fresh in my mind as we settle back home after a wonderful camping trip up in the 80-degrees-at-max mountains…) And while there are a lot of things I love about Summer, the other three seasons of the year definitely suit me much better. So, I’m won’t exactly be sorry to see Summer winding down.

Next week the kids go back to school. And what does that mean? I will officially have two children in school everyday from 8:30 to 3:30! Can I get an Amen?! (And maybe a little sniffle. Because this has been the mythical goal for so long and really it just means that my kids are officially big kids and ever so much closer to thinking I have cheese for brains.)

My back is still pretty much screwed up. I have very little range of motion and I can’t open jars (which I could, before, so I know I’m not that much of a weenie), and I’m pretty much always in pain, which makes me especially nasty after about 7:30 every night.  But its manageable, and I can get around just fine, which makes me feel even worse for resting on my laurels while the Mr. handles all the work. And I got turned down for health insurance. Whee! Lets see. I don’t qualify for any health care assistance, I can’t get anyone to cover my preexisting ass and I can’t afford the thousand’s of dollars in medical bills that seeing a specialist would take. Fun!

Next weekend we are having a yard sale. I hate having yard sale’s, but I really need to de-clutter and let go of things I’ve been pack ratting away. Also, its not at my house, which will make it much easier to just donate everything that doesn’t sell to Goodwill. I won’t want to unpack any of that crap.

But enough about me. Even I’m sick of hearing about it.

Camping pictures!

Ozzie is always the first to get dirty. He had a great time shooting his bow and pretending to hunt woodland creatures. We have a “you kill it you eat it” rule that prevents many a squirrels untimely death.

We left Friday intending to camp at Sand Bar Flat but when we got there the entire campground was inaccessible. Bummer. Our trip kind of started off on a shaky leg anyway. Both kids came down with the flu Thursday, work deadlines got shortened and we weren’t able to leave until much later in the day… which meant most of the best spots were sure to be picked off and we would have to take what we could get. But after getting everything packed and ready to go we felt like it would be just as big of a hassle not to go, so we went. We ended up at Herring Creek, since we were burning daylight and didn’t want to drive around trying to find something else. In the end, we made it, tents were set up, marshmallows were roasted and I effectively wiped the floor with Jason during a game of rummy.

This used to be a lake. I wonder if any bodies were found when they first drained it?

This is my friend Snake. He was a little pissed when Dad pinned him down so I could pet him.

My Dad and brother drove up Saturday morning to spend the day and fish. Unfortunately, the usually full reservoir was maybe 2 feet deep where  it wasn’t completely dried up. So, no fish there. We headed over to the Stanislaus River in Strawberry and Ivy and I laid on a blanket (after being fine the day we left, she immediately threw up our first morning there. Nothing spells fun like a vomiting child in the wilderness!) and decorated a Fancy Nancy sticker book while the guys fished and looked for gold. (Jason may have found a flake. He’s very hopeful.) No one caught anything, but it was a beautiful day and it felt good to be out in the fresh air, hearing the river roar down below.

Jasper was extremely tired that evening. I think he must have walked 80 miles compared to our 4.

Ivy, feeling better. I tried to play Badmiton with the kids, but it quickly became apparent that I should only try and play that game within a padded cell.

We ended up coming back a day early (see vomiting child, above.) so now its off to wash eleventy million loads of laundry and try to sand down my feet so they stop looking like goat hooves.

Tyler and Ozzie explore what used to be an island, accessible only by boat.

The water is usually right up to the very edge of the dam.

… also known as “oh shit she’s moving everything/painting/changing everything again”.

Only not really, because I can’t move anything. And I don’t want to paint. So it’s mainly reorganizing and even then only in spots where I can kneel or stand. So, you know, not a whole lot.

But look! New pillow covers for my couch:

And, in action:

And where there are new pillows, there must be new curtains. It’s a rule.

I’ve managed to organize my fabric stash a little better, so it no longer looks like the behemoth beast that it is and I therefore feel entirely justified in buying  more fabric. There are bare spots people. Bare. Just begging for a gorgeous linen cotton blend with poppies on it. Anyway, with all this reorganizing, I found a bunch of fabric squares, already cut out for patchwork goodness.

Speaking of patchwork, I must say it is the ultimate sewing zen. If you are in between projects, bored with whatever you are working on or just feeling antsy, there is nothing better than sitting down and turning a whole bunch of little pieces into one big piece. I like to do that, a lot. It requires minimal brain activity and even if you do nothing with the piece for years, one day you will happen upon the perfect complementary fabric and viola! Instant beauty.

I was very excited to come across this site the other day: Craft Haven Collective. I’m definitely signing up for their serger class, since I can just manage to thread mine but have yet to make it actually work without breaking all the thread and jamming  it up yet. And draping classes! And fit classes! Watch out, you just might see me on Project Runway soon. Ok, not really. But a girl can dream!

… Followed by a very good one. Here is the beginning of “Furr” at the Blitzen Trapper show we went to last Friday; terrible in quality and not complete, since I am not one of those people who can really enjoy a concert while videotaping it. But they were fantastic! Go see ‘em!

And here is the real video. Much better than mine.