Moving to the Central Coast of CA!

It has been a whirlwind as of late!  We are finally settling into our new digs, but I have to share some of the travel/moving fun with you all....

The trip started out well, but there was never a point where we were not a little (or a lot!) freaked out by driving our 26ft Winnebago.  Whether over the passes (clear, but the downgrades are tough), through traffic near San Fran or on Hwy 101 with the bad wind and road work.

The animals actually did pretty well, and the cats seemed to enjoy the sun that we started getting as we got further south.

Kaitlin's kitty was feeling more secure in her carrier....

But Lacy and JB were good to go!

The view from the Winni....

And then we got to the ranch....

Feeding time!

Gloria the pig gets some treats from Kaitlin.

The views from our new spot on the ranch....

Our little set-up.

And funny Charlie, one of the ranch cats... (he also rides on the farm equipment!)

This is the nearby town, Paso Robles....

Such a cute little downtown!

Much more to share soon!  Hope the holiday season is treating you all well!

Ash

Big changes and exciting new adventures...

There are some big changes headed down the pipeline.  I have made Eugene, OR my happy little home for over 10 years now, and it has treated me rather well.  I have learned a lot, met wonderful people, loved the natural environment here and had the opportunity to work in a field I am passionate about.  But change is good, and it is time for brand new adventures.  So, my hubby, my friend, and I, along with all our animals, are downsizing dramatically to fit into our new-to-us 1986 Winnebago and traveling down to our new home in Central California to try our hand at raising some animals and farming a little.  It is scary, but also so very exciting!

I will make sure to share with you all the transformations of our little Winny (we have named it Oliver) as we get it all spiffied up and ready to live in. (Have you heard of glamping?  Because if not, look that up!  Or here, check out my pinterest board on ideas for my tiny house renovations!  Or check out this earlier post of another blogger and her adventures in glamping!)

Here are some before pics of Oliver.  (By the way, driving a 26ft RV is some experience in itself!)

So far, we have torn out the carpet and linoleum and repainted the interior all white.  Pics of that to come as soon as the paint job is completely finished.  But already there is a huge difference and it feels much more bright and even gives the illusion of a larger space.

So stay tuned for our big adventures in remodeling, traveling, and relocating!  The big move happens at the end of next month!  So much to do!

Ash

Weddings galore!

Wow....I just looked at the last time I actually blogged...it has been WAY too long!  I big reason for this was that I was helping friends and family get ready for weddings.  There were 3 weddings in a one month period, 2 of which I helped with, and one of which was my little sister!

First wedding I assisted by sewing a corset for my friend who was a bridesmaid here.  The bride and groom had a sweet wedding with a steampunk theme to it. 

I somehow missed getting a pic of the bride!  But there was an awesome photo booth, where we got a lot of fun and crazy photos taken. Like the one at the bottom left. 

The next wedding was my little sister's wedding!  Crazy to know my lil' sis is now grown up and married. It was a fun and gorgeous wedding.

I loved the colors and the dresses my sis chose for the girls.  And I must say that my hubby was pretty excited about the groomsmen's outfits, too.  But my hubby and I had to switch the shoes up at some point....(bottom right photo).  A good friend of mine performed the ceremony, my dad made the awesome arbor, and everyone pitched in on food, set up and take down.  I even had good friends helping take these wonderful pics! It was really nice.

Then this last Saturday was the last of the weddings with my one of my cousins.  They got married in Hood River, OR, and it is a very pretty part of Oregon.  And they lucked out with the weather (as did all the weddings, actually) as there was a couple days of down pours with lightning the days approaching this wedding.

It was great to see and catch up with some of the family whom I had not seen for years (way, way too long).  The ceremony was held at a vineyard and the reception was conveniently located just up the road at the bride's grandmother's house. (And grandma was so very cool! We enjoyed chatting with her about times she rode a Harley!) It was very nice.

I have more to share from our crazy summer soon.  But for now, I am just feeling excited for all the newly weds we know! (And somewhat relieved that all the weddings are done!)

Ash

Busy times in the Summer!

Man...I have been so busy!  Not just work this time...also fun summertime activities!  But, it has definitely taken a toll on my blogging.  Sorry all my wonderful followers!

So just to prove I have not been completely slacking off...let me share some of the fun with you!

First...I have baking a TON of delicious bread in my new, gorgeous dutch oven!  Best investment ever! 

(You have GOT TO TRY out this recipe.  So easy and really, really good bread!  Find it here at Frugal Living NW!)

Then a couple awesome trips to the coast for fun and work....

The Oregon Coast Aquarium is always a good time!  And these sea lions were cracking us up on the bay!

Our friend's graduation!  Masters degree, schmasters degree.

Lots of times with silly animals!

(What is the cat doing?!)

Delicious food from our little garden...

Dirty Dash Eugene!  I am pretty sure we had THE BEST costumes!  Star Wars, baby!

Whew!  Lot's of exciting events!  

Stay tuned, as I also have to share an awesome table redux.  We took some interesting items to recreate a wonderful and sturdy new outdoor table.

More soon!  

Ash

Feature Fridays Revisits....Sneezy Detour!

I have definitely been enjoying doing Feature Fridays (even if I am late on occasion....), but today I thought that it would be fun to look back at a few of the blogs that I featured early on in the Feature Fridays and see what they have been up to lately!  Today I want to check back in with one of the first blogs I featured - Sneezy Detour!

So, what has Sneezy Detour been up to?  You may remember back from my first post on this great blog, that this blog's tagline is "Embracing high pollen-count in Eugene, OR", and it seems quite timely, as June is when the pollen count in Eugene get's just outrageous.  Grass seed is blooming all over the place and just hanging out in the valley.

Anyway, Tracy at Sneezy is a wonderful photographer and catches snapshots and glimpses into the beauty of Oregon. 

I love this pic of the North Jetty in Florence, OR.  

And her recent posts and photos of the Eugene March against Monsanto...

(This is totally Eugene!  I had to miss this march, so I am glad that she captured photos of it.  So cool!)

I especially love this pic and her comment.  

One day in Eugene, all these utility boxes were suddently painted pink (kind of pepto pink).  A few days later, messages started showing up on them.  I agree with Tracy, this is definitely one of my favorite corners in Eugene, too.  I always imagine back to a time when huge trees as big as the building sat, shading some ducks.

I hope you will check out Tracy's visually stunning blog and great commentary and tell her hello!

Happy Fr-aturday! :)

Ash

Feature Fridays is back, baby! Let's meet Noble Knits!

It is long overdue that I return to my blogging, especially Feature Fridays!  Today I am excited to share with you a blog who I discovered through my hours (and hours) on Pinterest.  (I am still unsure if Pinterest is the best thing to come along....or the worst!  I am on it way too much!)  But I digress.  This fun knitting blog is called Noble Knits.  I love their welcome message to their page, in particular this quote:

"Lots of people think knitting has to be complex and intimidating. Not us. We like to take a fun approach to knitting always remembering that it's a hobby - a great way to relax, unwind and relieve some stress."

It is a great point. I started out in fiber arts as a crocheter through and through, but eventually decided to try knitting.  And my first attempts made me think it was way too complicated.  But after a break and then trying it again, I am definitely glad I did. 

Anyway, I love this site because it has tons of great patterns and ideas for knitting.  For example, check out this cute cowl combo pattern:

Super cute, right?

Or how about this cowl? (I am into cowls a lot lately...)

I love that they have all these great one weekend patterns.  

What...oh, you don't knit?

That is ok.  This blog is still a lot of fun to peruse.  

Maybe you are still into yarn and crafting in other ways?  Then you should check out her great insider info on yarns, like the May Recap - Top 10 Yarns....

She also has a section for felting and for crocheting and more!

And if you do knit, they have an awesome resource for you.  The Knitting Doctor!  How cool is that?

So go poke around and maybe have some fun taking on a new, quick and satisfying new project.  Or just have fun looking at pretty projects in gorgeous yarns and ask your knitting friends to make you something.  

Thanks for sharing, Noble Knits, and happy Friday!

Ash

Events and elections time...what can I say?

Just wanted to let you all know I am still around, but have been caught up in work.  First we had our big annual fundraiser with over 1,100 people (whew!)....

So fun! And then I was off to Michigan to do some learning and networking at the national conference.    I got to go to Grand Rapids, drink some local craft beer, and also see Lake Michigan!  

The view of the river from the hotel....

It had recently flooded there, so the river is still very high.

And can you believe this is a lake?  Lake Michigan was gorgeous.  It felt like I was back at the Oregon coast!

Finally, I have been fully engaged in an election on the coast, in Newport, and I am working hard to get good things done there to help protect the ocean and the environment.  But that has taken up evenings and weekends...so come May 21st, I will be all yours again!

It was a wonderful day yesterday to hit the streets in Newport and talk to voters. 

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I am still alive and hoping to get back to the regularly scheduled postings soon!

Ash

In my free moments...crocheting, knitting, perler beads and a little sewing

The last couple of weeks at work have kicked my behind. (Oops!  I missed last week's Feature Friday!)   But I have been doing small projects whenever a spare moment came up.

Recently, my hubby and his friend have gotten into perler beads.  And I wanted to try it out, so I created a few coasters in a 70's design inspiration.  So far I have....

I think they are fun....(sorry, not the best pics ever...)

I have also been knitting on the bus to and from work.  I am using my new found cabling skills to make myself a laptop sleeve!

This is what I have so far.  I think I will be sharing the pattern once I have completed it, so keep an eye out for that, too!

I also just got some new cast iron cookware, which I am seriously loving.  No going back for me!  But the handles get pretty hot, so I crocheted us a few handle covers out of cotton....

I think they came out cute. :)

And finally, I just started cutting out a dress that I bough material for probably at least 2 years ago!  I am pretty excited for it, and happy to be getting back into sewing more.

I absolutely love the Sew Serendipity book that I have.  And I need to get the new one!  Here is the dress I want to make - mine will be out of the above material - the floral pattern is the main fabric and the pink dotted material will be the accents.

Can't wait to share all the finished products with you soon!

Ash