Farm Share Food

We decided to sign up for a farm share this summer. I thought it would be easier for me to do a pick up rather than waddling to the farmer's market during the last stretch of my pregnancy.  And I also like that it forces us to try new veggies that I probably would never pick out on my own. 

Last week we received arugula, scallions, french breakfast radishes, bok choi, and a variety of lettuces. And then our refrigerator decided to die on us.  So I'm functioning with two mini fridges while we wait for the delivery of our new one which I am very excited about, I've never had a fancy appliance (ice maker included!).  

I know we owe you pictures of the baby's room and the things Country Mouse and I have made for her, I promise we will share soon! But for now, here are pictures and links to recipes I used for our first farm share as well as a few of where and what goes one while we eat (doggies wanting to play ball!)....  

Rosie's Bok Choi Salad - added radishes

Grilled Shrimp and Arugula inspired by this salad from the Cafe at Nordstroms, I used this recipe for the croutons

It's a Girl!!!!!!

Country Mouse could not believe the news when I told her! Yes it's true - we are going to have a little girl join us in the sewing room! Boy or girl, the most important thing is for the baby to be healthy, so we really weren't setting our hopes on either one.  But when we found out it would be a little girl, we just couldn't believe it!

We dug out the bins of my old schoolwork, artwork, awards and Country Mouse had even saved a few of my sweaters and shoes.  It was so sweet to go through things and read about myself when I was little...Jamie's a Super Snoozer (award at preschool).... an excellent helper....always likes to help clean.  It's funny how so much has stayed the same! 

We are thinking about all of the things we can make for the new baby (and hoping we have enough time - she's due July 31!).  I picked up these floral hooks for her room on clearance at Pier One the other weekend.  We'll get started on sewing for the nursery as soon as we are finished updating the shop with all the new fabrics that have arrived - above are aprons from Denyse Schmidt's Flea Market Fancy re-released fabric. More shop updates and pictures soon :)

Oh Baby!

It's finally time for us to share our exciting news: Country Mouse is going to be a grandma by early August! I'm almost 18 weeks along and things are going great.  A bit tired so this explains the lack of posts and new items in the shop.  But we are still sewing! Just taking our time with everything.  

This is what the baby room looks like at the moment.  I've always used this room for photographing our products, but I'll have to find a new home for the ironing board and Violet (the dress form).

We ordered the crib so once we have that things will start coming together.  And soon we'll find out if it will be a boy or girl.  It's been really interesting to hear everyone's predictions based on what I'm eating, what my skin is doing, etc.  

I don't know what our fur babies think yet.  They definitely know life is changing, animals have a funny way of understanding how you are feeling and what you are thinking without words.  

We'll be sure to let you know as soon as we find out if it will be a little boy or little girl joining us in the sewing room! 

Thanksgiving Morning

Thanksgiving morning walk. Turkey in the oven. Furry ones in their beds. Country Mouse on her way. Wishing you a wonderful day with your loved ones! 

xoxo, City Chic & Country Mouse

Enjoying Summer

Summer always flies by and this one is going to be no exception. We're trying to make the most of it with evening fires, summer drinks, and visiting new places with old and new friends...

 

 

 

Hope you are enjoying every bit of summer!

Bird Watchers

Yep, that's us. My husband and I set up two bird feeders the other weekend and we can't stop watching the birds. I'll be making dinner and he'll say, whoa - what's that? And I have to stop what I'm doing, walk over and then we try to identify the bird. We both have a degree in Wildlife Biology and had to take Ornithology, which was one of my most favorite courses - lots of walking outside looking and listening for birds.

We cleaned out our storage area under the stairs this past weekend and one of the boxes contained my binders from college. I ended up recycling a lot of papers (I'm never going to need to go back to Finite Math or Short Calculus, at least I hope not!) but I kept my bird notes out and am going to refresh my memory. It's become a competition in our house, who can identify the bird first and I don't like to lose.

Above is a picture of us on my husband's birthday a few weeks ago. See the bird feeder in the background? I thought it went with this post and one of my goals this year is to take more pictures of my friends and family. I have no problem taking tons of photos of the furry ones or the sewing room but I totally neglect taking photos of people. Don't worry, I'm not going to post a bunch of photos of my husband and I here, but I just wanted to document his 31st birthday with the one picture of us I took that day. He's not into posing for pictures, but that's one of the things I have to get better at - just pulling out the camera and snapping one whether he wants his picture taken or not, someday he'll thank me right?

And isn't this one of the most stylish bird feeders? It's by Studio Liscious in case you are looking to feed your birdies this Spring :)

In the Summertime...

we make time to relax at the lake

 and play some serious ball games with our furry friends

Our summer project list was set aside due to an unexpected surgery for my mom (Country Mouse). Sometimes life has its way of telling you to pause and reflect, don't you think? And being at the lake is a wonderful place to stop and just be.

Even at the cabin we can't be without a little stash of fabric and a notebook full of lists and ideas for future projects. So although it may seem a bit quiet here in blog land, we are sewing and creating...it just might be interrupted by a weekend trip to the lake every now and then. 

And don't worry, Country Mouse is back at the sewing machine...which means she is well on the road to a full recovery. Hope you are stopping to take a dip in the lake and enjoy your summer!

Parks, Flowers, and Patterns!

Why hello! It's been far too long again since Country Mouse and I have updated the blog, please forgive us! It's been crazy with preparations for Spring Quilt Market and our new patterns. Here's a quick recap on what's been going on in the country and the city...

1. I took a vacation to Florida with my husband and his parents, while Country Mouse came to the city to housesit and take care of our furbabies

2. In Florida it rained nearly everyday! My favorite part was the Safari ride at Animal Kingdom...here are just a few of my many favorite animals...tigers and meerkats...oh so cute!

3. I made time to have breakfast with a good friend I had not talked with for nearly a year! Time flies! And that same day I visited Como Park Zoo with another dear friend and her two little girls. It's so much fun to bring kids to the zoo!

4. My husband has big plans for our yard. We went to Lowes, Menards, Home Depot, and several greenhouses all in one day! And then it rained.

5. Then it snowed! This is not a lie! Last weekend while I drove over the river and through the woods to Country Mouse's house, the rain turned to snow! It was still there in the morning, but melted during the day.

6. I treated Country Mouse to Hanabi  in Duluth and we found our new favorite drink!

7. Finished sewing projects for RJR Fabrics Quilt Market Booth (coming up May 21-23)!

8. Met a very nice lady at the sewing machine store. We came home with a new machine! What better Mother's Day gift can you think of??

9. New fabric arrived and a new apron design is in the works

10. Plans for a sewing room makeover at Country Mouse's house have been developed...more on that soon...

Just had to stop by and update you on the recent events...

Tick Tock

Is it just me or is Fall the fastest season of all? It's really flown by these last few weeks, don't you think? But stick around because next week I plan to share some of the things that have kept me (& Country Mouse) busy lately and you won't want to miss it. Until then here are some fun things that have been a distraction to me (in a good way):

• Dreaming about what color to paint my office/sewing room, I think I'm set on Creamy Mocha and Cappuccino White.
  
• Accepted the fact that it is going to get cold and snowy again, so I bought this to keep me warm.
• Also accepted that it is going to be 2010 next year! So I'm considering a new calendar.
• Trying to get to the theater to see Michael Jackson's - This Is It
  

That's all for now. Hope you have a wonderful Halloween weekend! See you back here next week!

Welcome Fall!

Well, hello Fall! I've said my goodbyes to Summer and trying my best to welcome Fall. Don't get me wrong, I love what Fall has to offer:

• wearing cozy sweaters

• keeping warm with others

• celebrating at apple festivals

I'm just not so sure that I'm going to be welcoming the season that follows Fall (you know, the one that starts with "W"). I'm hoping to do the three things listed above this weekend. What about you, how are you welcoming Fall? Doing anything crafty? Trying any new recipes? Please do share :)

image: cattales on etsy

Puppy Love

Puppy love...ahhh...need I say more?? This little guy stole my heart and I haven't even met him yet. I told you how heartbroken we were when we lost our Lady over a week ago. My mom (Country Mouse) wasn't sure she was ready to have a new puppy quite so soon, but after several days of silence in her house it was clear that the pitter-patter of paws was needed.

Say hello to Junior!

Day Trip to Chicago

I'm on vacation visiting my husband's parents this week in Michigan. We took the train in to Chicago yesterday and did some shopping and lots of walking. My feet are begging me to relax at the beach today :) I hadn't been to downtown Chicago for about 10 years, way too long!


There's something about big cities and their downtown atmosphere that fascinates me. I think I would enjoy living in a downtown neighborhood where you can walk out of your home and immediately have lots of restaurants and shops within walking distance. But I would still need to escape the hustle and bustle to a quiet country retreat every so often. Do you ever picture yourself living somewhere completely different than where you currently are? It's fun to dream a little :)

Forgive me for the slow posting in the next week or so while I enjoy our little trip. But Country Mouse and I are working on some new and exciting ideas for the shop and we'll share them with you very soon! I hope you are enjoying this last stretch of summer!

The Last Few Weeks

The last few weeks have been busy! I've been catching up with friends and getting ready for the craft show. I'm taking a week of from my day job next week and my husband and I are going to visit his parents in Michigan. I'm hoping to find some relaxation there! I'm the type of person that doesn't fully relax unless I'm on vacation. Otherwise I feel like I constantly should be doing something around the house, for the shop, making plans with friends, etc.

Here are a few photos from the events these past few weeks...

One of my very best friends is getting married in September and we had a girls night out (just dinner and reminiscing, nothing too crazy!) and her bridal shower the following day. Her aunties put on a darling shower with mimosas, a choice of salads and sandwiches, cake and the most adorable cookies. I'm not sure where they got them, but aren't they almost too cute to eat? I did eat mine :) The coolest gift she got (in my opinion) was a hula hoop. One of her friends makes them and I'm not sure if she sells them online, but I will find out and let you know.

And this past weekend we had the craft show in Grand Rapids...


Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate and we had rain off and on the entire day. So the pictures have a blue tint to them from the canopy. As always, we met some talented people. We even met another shop that is run by a mother-daughter team! It was so much fun to talk with them and hear their stories of how they started and how they work together. Go visit their online shop heim-made. Their soap is fabulous! They suggested to get some other mother-daughter shops together and do a show, wouldn't that be fun?


I must say I have a tremendous amount of respect for people who do shows, especially the outdoor ones. It's not easy to set up a booth or a canopy. My muscles are still recovering. In the meantime I'm working on taking pictures for some new items in the shop, so look for those this week! I hope you are enjoying the last part of July!

The Story of Two Houses

Wow! Another weekend just whipped by! Time is going by so fast. Too fast. This weekend Country Mouse came to the city to help me get my old house ready to be put on the market. As I write this I am actually feeling somewhat emotional about it. This weekend we worked so hard painting, cleaning, and planning I didn't have time to think about it but now my emotions are catching up to me. See this was my very first house all by myself. I lived there with my first dog and first cat by myself. I painted every room in that house.

It's been almost two years that my husband and I bought a house together thinking we would be able to sell my first house. Well, two years later and two sets of renters later we still have not been able to sell it. The thing that is hard for me is that I see the house that I fell in love with: hardwood floors, the coziness of a small house, sunshine gleaming through the windows. And it's difficult when I see that others have not loved it the way I have. But we gave it some love this weekend and I think it's feeling better...


Alright, I am through being emotional. For the moment! We did manage a trip to Ikea (oh and the fabric store, but sshhh don't tell my husband) and I found the most lovely painting! Here is is waiting for it's home on the wall:

I also ordered this chair from Target online. I had been looking for something like this and I thought the price was pretty reasonable and you can't beat free shipping plus an employee discount (thanks to my husband!). I figure I'll be able to use both in our new house. I thought my husband would not totally be opposed to the painting, but the first thing he said was that he didn't want it in the man room (our lower level living room). That's ok. I think I want to get our spare room set up exactly how I want it for our crafty business. I feel a little disorganized with pretty much all of my sewing room furniture going over to the extra house for staging. And I saw some furniture I would really love to have for my sewing room at Ikea this weekend. Maybe someday it can be mine.

We did have some excitement with the shop this weekend. Crafty Planet (the most wonderful fabric store!) included us as their Customer Spotlight in their newsletter. And our ironing board cover was part of Etsy's Finds: Crafting A Cozy Studio. We are so thrilled!

Thanks for listening to my emotional ranting. I do feel better. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Back to the day job tomorrow!

Before & After Front Steps

The husband and I decided to tackle a home improvement project this weekend: giving our front steps a makeover. Our steps were painted grey and it just never looked right to us. We decided to try black and are very happy with the results.

Check out the before...

Yucky, dirty grey steps...goodbye!

And after - classic black.

The finishing touch - a Smith & Hawken doormat - thank you Target!

I still think we need to put something on the ledges. I suggested lion statues, but the husband doesn't agree. Any ideas for us? In the meantime I need to tend to my first sunburn of the season. One of those that just seemed to come out of nowhere. Ouch! Hope you had a great weekend!

A Whirlwind Weekend

Wow, did the weekend go by fast or what? The past few days were a whirlwind with Country Mouse at my house. We spent the entire weekend sewing items for the shop and a few orders we needed to complete. Each sewing marathon we have, we seem to work faster and produce more. I am always amazed by what we accomplish when working together. We both had sore backs and necks by the end of the marathon. Country Mouse described the feeling in her neck as "a red-hot poker" sticking her in the neck. So I should welcome being back at the boring desk job this week to rest my body. But I really would rather be sewing.

We did manage to make time to eat a few meals and I'll share those pictures and recipes with you soon. But for now I'll leave you with a sneak peak of our new fabric - Wildwood by Erin McMorris. I adore this collection hope to get more of it. What do you think of these lovlies?

Weekend Plans

I am SO looking forward to the weekend. My sweet office boss is letting us leave the desk job 2 hours early today, so at about 2pm I'll be free!! I'm so excited!!! Country Mouse should arrive shortly after 3pm and then let the sewing marathon begin! I'm so excited! Wait did I say that already? Here is how I envision the weekend:

Friday: give Country Mouse her Mother's Day gift, open my purchases (owl mirror and mouse) from HelloVictory which Country Mouse so kindly picked up for me yesterday, make a game plan for which sewing projects to tackle first, and finally relax with some dinner and wine. I plan to use this dressing from fresh365 for a salad and as a marinade for some chicken to go with it.

Saturday: Start the day with a full pot of coffee. Country Mouse needs her fuel to get going in the morning as do I. Also going to try to make a Pannu Kakku (a Finnish baked pancake). If this turns out, I'll share the recipe with you from my dear great aunt. After completing the custom orders to have them ready for the mail, we'll take a little walk with the dogs. Some of us need exercise to gain control over the winter weight, not naming anyone specifically... Then its cut out, sew, iron, sew...and more until we are too hungry to operate effectively. Eat a quick dinner, finish up the projects and plan for the next days projects.

Sunday will be much like Saturday, but we'll be even more serious about what we can get accomplished because the weekend is running out! Oh no! Hurry up!

Monday: Country Mouse will pack up all her bins with less fabric to take home than what she came with and we'll say goodbye :( Then I'll start snapping pictures of all the new goodies to get them ready for the shop. The husband will arrive home from the BWCA man trip where they stay in cabins with no electricity and sit out in boats trying to catch the big one all day. We will most likely have walleye for dinner if all went well. And I'll have to listen to all the fishing stories and he'll have to listen to all the sewing stories.

Now do you understand why I'm so excited?! What are your plans for the long weekend? I hope you all have a great one!

image by: City Chic

Dear Mom, Happy Mother's Day!

Dear Mom, I just want to thank you for everything you have done and continue to do. I couldn't possibly list everything! But I will say you made some really awesome cakes for my birthdays. Remember these...

I wish I was there to spend the day with you! Love you! Jamie