To the pumpkin patch!

Posted on October 24, 2017 by makemendgrow

It’s fall again here and I couldn’t be happier! This is one of my favorite seasons and with it comes changing leaves, cool weather, cozy fires and my very favorite, trips to the pumpkin patch. Each year we drive down to Carpinito’s to play in the hay mazes, throw corn and play with the animals. Izzy leaves tired and happy and I get to take pictures and pick up pumpkins. I love supporting local businesses and farmers, too, so it’s usually a win-win and this year was no different! I’m convinced that these traditions are my favorite part of parenting; I love watching her explore and play.

We ran from one animal pen to the next, squeals of happiness coming from all of us (ok, mostly me). We giggled at the frizzle chickens, cooed over the week-old piglets, and fed the goats. When the skies darkened and hard rains arrived, we ran into the barn to play in corn and hay; the screams of happy kids filling the air. An hour later, the rain had been replaced by sunny skies allowing us to make our way back outside to do rubber duck races and rope cows. We sipped lemonade, and ate chili and talked about how great all of the animals were.

We made our way past the corn stalks into the muddy fields on the hunt for the perfect pumpkins. Green ones, orange ones, speckled ones were all inspected by my tiny pumpkin hunter until we found 5 that met her expectations. More pictures were taken as we headed back to the car, holding hands and excitedly talking about which ones we’d carve first.

My sweet girl. I wish every day could bring as much magic as my time with her this weekend. These are the days that make my heart happy.

As 40 creeps closer…

Posted on August 20, 2017 by makemendgrow

It’s been a year since my 40 by 40 list post was created and I am slowly getting through the list! I still have a lot of work to do, but have ticked off quite a few big items. One more year to go to as 40 creeps closer!

38 was the year of bills and home improvements. I paid off a small left over mortgage loan, and paid for a chimney rebuild and a new roof. That will be a lot more money in my pocket in the long run, but it sure was hard to say good bye to all that cash. It’s also really nice not to have a failing roof, and a leaking chimney (hooray for maintaining structural integrity of this money pit…um, house!)

It was also the year of pushing myself-to learn more, do more, be more. You know, without getting all sorts of overwhelmed.

I also traveled alone, including business trips to Portland for Feast and Vegas to eat and for the Vegas Food Expo. I’ve never really been somewhere by myself, and so this was pretty huge for me! Feast was my first time away from Izzy and while I was both terrified to be without her, I was so excited to be away and treat myself to a weekend away. Turns out taking a bath by yourself after eating a few thousand calories and then not sharing a bed with a tiny, raging octopus/toddler all night is AMAZING. That trip really prepped me for Vegas, where I hit quite a few of my goals-eating an amazing dinner, getting my first tattoo, singing loudly in front of strangers, and dancing in a huge sea of people.

I wrote more and collaborated with brands while not losing out on any of my creative desires. I spent more time learning herbal medicine and did a lot of wild crafting. I spent time nurturing my heart by making herbal goodies for friends, which reinforced how much I enjoy chemistry, biology and botany!

I built up the farm, too! I brought in 2 rabbits, which led to even more rabbits (see that whole thing here), and worked hard to not screw up growing carrots and peas. My corn thrived and grew taller than my house. I fed neighbors with the extra vegetables, and ripped up my lawn for more gardening space. It felt good to get up and out and push myself physically to make my home what I wanted it to be.

I participated in activities that fed my soul, more than fed my bank accounts. Let’s look at what I’ve been up to this year…the bold, italicized items are completed!

1. Do something that scares me, often!
2. Go to a ridiculously fancy dinner
3. Finally get that tattoo!
4. Pay off a large bill-not super exciting, but getting rid of any bill is more cash for fun
5. Be more accepting of my body, strengths and flaws
6. Go overseas again/travel more
7. Continue to get in shape -eehhhhhhh. A work in progress.
8. Skate more
9. Learn to knit
10. Make sourdough, actually keep it alive for more than 1 week
11. Do 5 push ups, well. Yeah, I said it. 5.
12. Do more karaoke
13. Make a blood orange olive oil milkshake like the one at the Olive Pit, in California-so good!
14. Fix up the garage and make it into a studio
15. Raise rabbits
16. Make more quilts
17. Finish up my herbalism classes
18. Eat fewer processed foods
19. Rock climb again
20. Hunt a deer and properly butcher it
21. Write more (hmmm…check?)
22. Make cheese
23. Go clam digging
24. Set up a friend version of Outstanding in the Field.
25. Teach Izzy to fish
26. Find more happiness-actively seek it out, and hold it tight
27. Successfully grow peas and carrots, and not little dinky ones
28. Bring Izzy backpacking
29. Take a photography class
30. Dance more
31. Build the fence that has been sitting in raw materials in my garage for 10 years
32. Kayak on Lake Washington
33. Ride in a hot air balloon
34. Go to Disneyland
35. Camp on a beach
36. Buy more nice knives
37. Teach more
38. Hike to a hot spring
39. Take a train ride
40. Read more

So what’s on tap for 39? More travel, more food and more finding and keeping what makes me happy. I’ll continue to tick things off of my above list and keep reporting back on all of my adventures!

Yours in squeezing all we can into life!

Raina

Falling Leaves

Posted on November 6, 2015 by makemendgrow

Oh, how I love this time of year! The leaves are falling, the weather is cool and crisp, and everything is bathed in a golden glow. Fall came so quickly this year. The hot and sunny days were quickly replaced by shorter days requiring more and more layers. We’ve been spending our days crafting, cooking, playing, and camping; trying so hard to squeeze as much as possible in before it gets dark or the need for a nap takes over. Despite being busy, I try to keep to fall tradition and head to a pumpkin patch and this year was no different. Izzy and I bundle up, and make our way to play and find the most loveliest of pumpkins.

I look at these pictures and think, “Oh! My big girl! My beautiful love. She’s growing so fast!” I can barely see the baby in her now, but I love this phase she’s in-the constant energy, the desire to learn and explore. These are my favorite days with her. We spent hours at Carpinito Brothers, playing with the critters, making corn angels, playing in the hay; her happy squeals loud above the noise of the other kids. I loved walking through the pumpkin patch with her, watching her look at each one closely in an attempt to find just the right one. “Is this the one Momma? No, momma this isn’t it. I’ll keep looking!”. After hours of climbing, jumping, playing, and talking to critters, we settled on one massive pumpkin, and three smaller ones. We returned home to snuggle and talk about what other adventures we should go on next. I am so grateful for this time of year, and the adventures with her every day.

My heart is full.

A long time coming

Posted on December 15, 2014 by makemendgrow

Almost two years ago, this tiny wild child came into my life. We’ve had good days, we have had rough days, and we have had amazing days. All the days have pushed me to be better than I was the day before, and I know this will continue with each passing day, month, and year.

When Izzy was born, we were in a whirlwind of doctors, specialists, hospitals, and equipment (for those of you new to the blog, you can read more about that experience here).We longed for the day when kiddo could eat with us, and when we didn’t have to spend our time around a feeding pump, or a bolus syringe. We wondered if that would ever end, and if we would ever experience “normal”. It turns out, normal is overrated, and when you spend the first week of your child’s life in Children’s Hospital, you get your very own baby care manual.

After a week in the NICU and specialty care, two surgeries, hours of hospital visits and home care visits and who knows how many medical supply shipments over almost the past two years, Izzy is officially weaned from her g-tube and is eating on her own.

It feels so good to say that!

It wasn’t an easy journey. We started a couple weans in the past, and they just didn’t stick. We all ended up tired, sad, and frustrated. This time though, we had a lot of support! We worked with our tube weaning clinic team at Seattle Children’s and our feeding specialist at NW Center Kids. Folks came to the house weekly and we worked with Izzy to help her relearn to eat and swallow. Once she was able to master those techniques, we began the actual wean which was reducing her overall calories down to 30% to trigger hunger. She would do well for the first few days, live on Goldfish crackers the next few days, but eventually she learned and we used the g-tube less and less. Here we are now, feeding her what we eat and having her choose her own meals. We’re working on meal timing, versus just grazing all day (a work in progress for me as well!), but the main thing is that she is eating consistently.

Now that the hard stuff is behind us, we can focus on the fun. Our days are spent playing, painting and exploring. She loves climbing and hates butterflies. She dresses herself and insists on wearing hats as much as possible. She’s obsessed with boots and anything tiny (again, except for butterflies. I don’t get it) and is just the happiest little thing. She plays hard and then sleeps hard.

Dear reader, I am so, so lucky. Thank you for being on this journey with me too!

On a completely different note-stay tuned for some posts this week about drinks and new holiday recipes (buckwheat whiskey cocktails or chocolate bourbon pecan pie, anyone!?) Some DIY goodies-I’m whipping up some arnica and calendula salves, and even some beauty and date night recommendations.

It’s been an amazing couple weeks, and I can’t wait to share more, but I wanted to share the good news about kiddo 🙂

Yours in happiness,

Raina

Make, Mend, Grow.

Making A Happy Life, One Craft At A Time

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To the pumpkin patch!

As 40 creeps closer…

Falling Leaves

A long time coming