Laowai

I’m having a good tomato year and I can’t seem to stop taking photos. I’ve gotten enough tomatoes from my five plants to try a little canning.

I bring them inside when they have started to turn red. I’m reminded of my grandma’s table, on her porch, where she would lay out all her ripening tomatoes. It was always a welcome summer sight by her door.

Aren’t the colors wonderful?

I’m way behind posting – we started off our August with a raclette feast. It was Swiss National Day and also a sending-off celebration for Bea. She’s off to Vienna taking some more German lessons at the University.

She said she sees this view everyday.

And she’s sent other nice photos of Vienna and a visit to Salzburg too.

Duck crossing.

Back at home it feels quiet. I’ve been trying to go swimming often – it feels so good to end the day with a dip in Lake Michigan. Claire is mourning the end of apricot season. She’s crazy for apricots!

Brian and I went for a nice walk at the botanic garden.

He also sent this picture from a run – two different shoes! I think he’s feeling distracted.

And I’ve been slowly working on my windows.

Claire starts school in about 10 days and we continue to wait to see where Bea will end up in the fall.

A pie – used the delicious blueberries that we picked in Michigan.

Some more itty bitty art for the Little Free Art Gallery

And I’m working on a stripy sweater – lots of knitting in the hammock. Time to start the sleeves.

We’ve have had the best weather over that past week or so – days in the 80s and cool nights. The garden is at the wild unruly stage and some things are starting to fade. And the cicadas are doing their thing so it’s slightly deafening outside. Anyway, here are some photos of lovely colorful things that are making me happy.

Even the compost-bound dead headed flowers of my geraniums are nice to look at.

Claire and I spent last week visiting Michigan.

We started off with a quick trip to Tawas.

Jennifer took us for a walk along the water and we looked for Petosky stones.

Claire learned how to pump gas.

Then we spent a day at the Tawas Bay Yacht Club. Swimming and relaxing and getting to see Jennifer’s new boat. It’s a very pretty one!

Then we went back to Midland and hung out with mom for a bit. Now that she lives downtown we can walk to The Tridge easily

We picked blueberries with mom.

Claire got in lots of practice driving.

Then it was time to go see Grandma C. and luckily Mike, Michelle and Naomi were also visiting. We started out at a Loons baseball game.

We had never met Naomi in person – so it was a treat to get to know her. We discovered she’s a clever little sprite and she loved Claire.

I brought Hama beads and they were a huge hit.

Masterpieces.

We also had a chance to visit Whiting Forest.

And then I was eager to get home to see Bea (she’s been away for seven weeks). Nice to have my whole family together.

And Bea brought us the mother-load of Rittersport Chocolates.

Claire has a friend who started something she calls The Little Free Art Gallery. It’s like those little libraries that people put up but it holds art.

So you make some art and leave it or you can take some art. It’s the sweetest thing ever!

Claire and I added some art last week. I made some quilt art and Claire made the cut-paper fruit pictures and a couple bracelets.

She has an instagram account and I see that the art is constantly changing. I love it.

Brian turned 50 yesterday. We had a little celebration – just the three of us. We went out for a yummy dinner at a restaurant called Ada Street and then had cake at home.

It’s frustratingly hard to get something special for this person who gives us everything. He has to settle for a nice dinner with us.

After dinner Claire drove us home – she’s doing so well driving in Chicago even!

These two look like they are related don’t they.

Bea will be home on Sunday to they can eat some cake together too.

Happy Birthday Brian.

While Bea is away and Brian is often traveling for work – Claire and I are holding down the fort. 

Claire is learning to drive this summer so I’m either driving her to and from driver’s ed or I’m riding around in the passenger seat helping her practice. It’s been fun.

Otherwise I’m up to my typical pastimes. Like being pleased with the things I’ve grown. My sweet peas are just starting to bloom and I think it’s going to be a good sweet pea year.

Here’s my friend with the fuzzy tail – I spend a lot of time with him.

And I’ve been making lots of mini bouquets. It’s small scale abundance filling up my windowsill.

I’ve gotten to do some yarn shopping and some knitting.

With Bea and Brian gone we go through a jug of milk much slower and there aren’t as many mouths to consume baked goods. So I’ve only been doing occasional baking. The most picture-worthy thing was the sculptural pile of dirty baking tools on their way to the sink.

And so it goes.

Conveniently the trains are set up with space for bikes.

They started in Vienna and Brian rode between 75 and 110 miles each day. They stopped in Melk, Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck – staying near the Danube most of the time.

So 402 miles of riding for Brian and the two of them got to do some hiking too. I think they had a fantastic, memorable time.

And Claire and I got a pile Austria’s yummy chocolate wafers.