Spring here in California has come with an unusually lush riot of green and blossoms. Every day a new tendril unfolds, a new leaf pops up, and the tomatoes are hinting at a bumper crop soon to come. As the sun was rising in the sky and the house was still quiet this morning, I … Continue reading Watching my children and the garden grow
Our Front Yard Garden Experiment
One of the most instantly rewarding projects we've completed this season is the installation of a veggie patch in our front yard. It's funny but the decision to sacrifice a good portion of our lawn for a much less conventional venture felt nearly rebellious. I, the ultimate square, for whom rules were written because they … Continue reading Our Front Yard Garden Experiment
Springtime on the ‘stead
After an unusually wet California winter, our first week of spring has blessed us with a riot of color on the homestead. It seems silly to say it, but when I initially started gardening I felt like I should invest in "practical plants" only. My frugal mind balked at purchasing plants simply for the sheer … Continue reading Springtime on the ‘stead
The mess of motherhood
Up to this point in my short blogging journey, there has been a lot of focus on our house and all the fun craziness that has gone in to its beautification. You've seen nicely edited and filtered photos of how fabulous it (can look) looks and everything is very la-te-dah. We do live a charmed … Continue reading The mess of motherhood
What’s the deal with farmhouse?
It's month two of the whole blogging adventure and I have to admit, I had a major moment of faltering last week. At a dinner party I was asked by a friend why I would want to blog in quite a negative way. I didn't have a fabulous answer other than that it is the … Continue reading What’s the deal with farmhouse?
Medical Adventures: The Beginning
The world of medicine is for many of us, shrouded in a kind of mystery and awe. It encompasses a different language, a different culture, and holds an almost mythical power. The paths leading us here were wildly different. From the high ranking military official who had fought in Iraq, the emergency medicine adrenaline junkies, … Continue reading Medical Adventures: The Beginning
Simple Pizza Dough
A few of you have expressed interest in our Pizza Night recipes, so just in time for Friday night I thought I'd share with you some of our favorites. If you missed it, check out my post explaining our Friday night tradition here: https://menderandmaker.com/2019/01/12/why-you-should-kill-your-tv-and-make-pizza-instead/ The key to any good pizza (in my humble carb-loving opinion) … Continue reading Simple Pizza Dough
DIY Floating Shelves
It's officially year 5 of our urban farmhouse makeover, and we are still busy doing projects [actually finishing what we started]! Keeping the theme of bright, simple, and airy, we decided to go with open shelving instead of traditional upper cabinetry. Honestly, our number one contributing factor when deciding this was budget. For 4 solid … Continue reading DIY Floating Shelves
Urban Farmhouse Remodel Part 3
So when we last left off, we were living with a gaping hole between our living room and kitchen, and had just realized that there was a lot more to this whole "house flipping" deal than we had really anticipated. After smashing a sizable chunk of our house out, we started "adulting" and walked down … Continue reading Urban Farmhouse Remodel Part 3
Crazy noisy, beautiful life
Most mornings are heralded by the thump of our bedroom door being zestfully flung open by Jacob. Sometimes, if I'm already awake, I hear and feel the running drum of his little feet first. As I lay in bed I am soothed by the clunking of the pipes from the kitchen; the dishwasher is running. … Continue reading Crazy noisy, beautiful life
Mender and Maker 