Summer Break At Last

Another semester over and only one year of nursing school left. I'm already several weeks into my summer break, just as busy but much less stressed! I have so much to do and catch up on during my break, but as long as it's not studying or never-ending care plans, I'm up for it.

My husband started a garden, which I am SO happy about! I have always wanted a garden but I don't have the time or, let's face it, the motivation for it. He is doing the square foot gardening method and blogging about it here, where he points out the endless similarities between his garden and the video game Minecraft. If you're interested in square foot gardening, you can learn a lot on his blog from his experiences. This photo of his snap peas was taken a few months ago -  look closely, they are holding hands!

And this was taken the other day - his very first strawberry!

 

...in honor of which I have made this pillow:)

 And this one for my new sofa.

 On the left of this picture, you can see my drop-cloth curtains I made over spring break. Let me tell you, people, there's a reason why this trend hasn't died out yet. They are the perfect weight, color, and texture and just look so good! At least for my style, anyway. I absolutely love them.

So, new sofa, curtains, pillows - just a fraction of all that needs to be done around here, but I'm hoping to really do a lot this summer and show you more pics of my house - not because I have one of those big, beautiful, blog-worthy show houses... but because I don't have that. I have the opposite of that, and I just want to encourage all of you out there who live small and simply like me to value your space, make it into the best version of a home that you can, and then love it for what it is. More on that later:) 

So, that was off topic. I think I was trying to catch you up a bit... you know, since I'm the only one with anything going on and no one is ever as busy as I am. ;)  My oldest son played his first ever season of baseball, graduated from elementary school, and won the Citizenship award for being the most caring, helpful, and conscientious of others' needs in the whole fifth grade. He really struggles with his grades so this was a huge encouragement for him - and I have never been more proud of him, as I value these character traits far above academic achievement. 

My youngest son tested above his grade level all year for math and constantly amazes us with his ability to do algebra in his head. He's in second grade! But more importantly, he got "blue", which stands for remarkable behavior, every single day of the entire school year. 

My little sister got her driver's license and graduated from high school. I'm so proud of her, too, for making it through her teenage years intact, which we all know is never easy:)  She will turn 18 next month - can NOT believe it - and her birthday quilt is in the works. (It has been for a while - I started making it when she was 16. But let's change the subject.)

So, that's all the bragging I'm gonna do today. We've also had our share of troubles lately, including a death in the family, a major health crisis, and car trouble (of course!), so it's just uplifting for me to sit here and write out some of the good things. Overall, I am blessed beyond measure and looking forward to a summer of mental rest, productivity around the house, quality time with my babies, and creative sewing time.